Black Pepper Honey Ginger Chewy Granola

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~ raw, vegan, gluten-free ~

Chewy, crunchy, sweet but with a bit of heat from the ginger and black pepper.   What a lovely combination.  Years ago I would have never imagined adding fresh cracked black pepper to a sweet recipe… but I am thankful that I can imagine it now.

Here is a little lesson this chewy granola taught me:  After I had removed it from the dehydrator, I took a taste test.  The flavor was spot on, but the texture felt a bit “wet,” it just didn’t snap, just bent when I tried to break it apart.

So, I figured that I would let it cool down for awhile and then retest.   After about 30 minutes, I returned to the treat at hand… still definitely on the chewy side, no snap, sigh.  At first, I thought… failure.  Not a total failure, just disappointing that it didn’t turn out “snappy”  as I expected.

Bob walked by and took a cluster… and then he disappeared.  A few minutes later he came back asking for more, but still no comment, his silence was killing me.  I couldn’t take it; I finally had to ask what he thought.  He popped another piece in his mouth and said that he loved the chewy texture.   Failure??!!  What was I thinking? Hehe,  More like success!

So this granola showed me once again, that sometimes expectations can really get in our way.   I stored this chewy granola in the fridge for over three weeks as Bob nibbled on it.   So I am happy to announce that it has a nice long shelf life.   It doesn’t have to be refrigerated,  so it would be great for hikes, snacks on the go, lunch box fillers… you name it.

When I created this recipe, I used nuts that had already been soaked and dehydrated.  If you have those on hand, use those.  Otherwise, just go through the soaking process and then proceed with the rest of the recipe.

Ingredients:

Yields 12 cups

• 4 cups (675 g) packed fresh peach chunks (3 cups pureed)
• 2 Tbsp raw honey
• 1/2 tsp Himalayan pink salt
• 1/2 – 1  Tbsp fresh cracked black pepper
• 2 cups raw walnuts, soaked
• 2 cups raw pecans, soaked
• 2 cups raw cashews or almonds, soaked
• 1/2 cup chia seeds, whole or ground
• 1 cup diced candied ginger
• 1 cup dried cranberries

Preparation:

1. Wash and remove the pits from the peaches.  Place in the blender or food processor and blend to a puree.   The number of peaches necessary will always vary, just make sure you end up with 3 cups of peach puree.
2. Add the honey, salt, and pepper.  Blend until mixed.
3. In a large mixing bowl combine the walnuts, pecans, cashews or almonds, chia seeds, dried ginger, and cranberries.  Mix well.
4. Pour the peach puree in with the dry ingredients.  Mix well with your hands, so everything gets well coated.   Let the batter rest for 15 minutes, so the chia has time to thicken up.
5. Spread the batter out on the teflex sheets that come with the dehydrator.
6. Dry at 145 (F) degrees for 1 hour, then reduce to 115 (F) degrees and continue drying 10-14 hours or until dry.  Remember – it won’t dry crispy dry.
7. Store in an airtight container on the counter (1- 2 weeks), in the fridge  (2-4 weeks), or even in the freezer (1-3 months).

Tags: Dairy Free, Gluten Free, Refined Sugar Free, Soy Free, sugar free, Vegan