Crunchy, munchy, nutritious and satiating, one of the healthiest cereals on planet, granola is an immensely popular cereal breakfast and an all-time favourite snack. Muesli like texture, and tad bit nuttier, granola is nothing but a toasted mixture of oats and assorted nuts. Composed of rolled oats, which are groats that have been pressed flat and lightly steamed, blended with nuts and puffed rice and a dash of honey, this healthy mixture is baked until it turns crispy. Irresistibly yummy granola is indeed one the best morning binge breakfast or an evening munchie that offers a load of health and wellness benefits besides providing an instant dose of energy. Often it is also combined with yogurt, honey, strawberries, bananas, and other types of fruit, or is mixed with other cereals to enhance their nutritive value.
Also Read: Brown Top Millet: 5 Superb Health Benefits Of This Gluten-Free Cereal
Health Benefits Of Granola
Owing to its undeniable health benefits, delicious taste, and versatility, granola is consumed and relished by every health-conscious person. The long list of wellness advantages this cereal provides is probably due to its nutrients that also includes copious amount of dietary fibre. It consists of all essential vitamins and many minerals including sodium, potassium, zinc, phosphorus, magnesium, calcium, and iron and thiamine. Regular intake of granola augments bone health stimulates new tissue growth and aids hormonal growth.
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Here are other potential health benefits this super food offers:
Improves Digestion
Dietary fibre is a vital ingredient in any meal to regulate digestion. And this cereal is replete with soluble and insoluble fibre. Besides aiding bowel movements, it stimulates peristaltic motion or wave-like muscle contractions that moves food through the digestive tract. When the smooth muscles in the intestinal system contract, it causes the release of gastric and digestive juices.
Aids Heart Health
Development of plaque in arteries and veins leads to many heart troubles. Granola improves heart health by cleaning the arteries and reducing dangerous LDL cholesterol. This helps in preventing cardiovascular anomalies like atherosclerosis, heart attack, and stroke.
Prevents Anaemia
Anaemia is deficiency of iron in the blood. Iron is an essential part of healthy RBC building. Anaemia can cause headaches, cognitive malfunctions, depression, and irritable bowel syndrome. Significant amounts of iron present in granola counteracts symptoms of anaemia and enhance RBC levels.
Boosts Energy Levels
Granola provides an extra ounce of boost when you have hunger craving and need some quick snack to munch on. Granola provides manganese, which is one of the most integral minerals in the body. It performs the function of distributing ample nutritional resources throughout the body.
Augments Skin Health
A fabulous source of Vitamin E, granola protects skin from premature ageing, dark spots sunburn, and wrinkles. It is a great choice of breakfast for the ones who aim to lose weight but want their energy levels in place. It does not lets the body get bereaved of important nutrients and keeps the skin radiant and hydrated.
Now that you are all startled by the wholesome health benefits that this crunchy snack offers, we also bring you an easy granola recipe that can be relished as an early morning breakfast or a mid-day snack.
Nutty Granola
Ingredients
3 tbsp coconut oil
2 cups rolled oats
2 tbsp honey
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup chopped almonds
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup raisins
A pinch of cinnamon powder and salt
Method
Place a large pan on the stove over medium heat
Add coconut oil and maple syrup
Cook oil and syrup together until bubbly
Stir in oats, almonds, coconut, flaxseed, cinnamon, and salt
Continue moving oat mixture around with a wooden spoon or spatula until the oats and nuts start to turn golden brown
If the mixture is browning too fast, turn the heat down
Remove the pan from the heat and let granola cool completely
Add cranberries or raisins
Push granola to the centre of the pan for it to dry in cluster form
When it gets cooled, break large clumps and store in an airtight container
Nutrition
Lightly cooked and topped with foods that are nutrient dense, granola is bound to be full of all vitamins and minerals. Since oats is the key ingredient in this snack, it is high in dietary fibre.
A Pro Tip While Buying Granola
In case you choose readymade granola, most varieties may consist of puffed rice. Though extremely satiating, puffed rice have little nutritional value and are more of empty calories. Look out for varieties that have no puffed rice and you are good to go with this fulfilling nutritional cereal that can give an adrenaline boost to your energy levels.
