CHEF JEFF — ONE BYTE AT A TIME: Coconut-Walnut Granola

This Indian-spiced dish is gluten-free.

Coconut-Walnut Granola

4 cups chopped walnuts

1 cup shredded unsweetened coconut

½ cup almond meal

1 cup applesauce

¼ cup granulated sugar

2 tablespoons chia seeds, finely ground

1½ teaspoons ground cardamom

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground ginger

1 pinch ground nutmeg

½ teaspoon sea salt

Up to 1 cup mixed dried fruit, chopped into bite-size pieces

Soak walnuts in water for at least 4 hours,. Drain, rinse, place in bowl. Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Add coconut, almond meal, applesauce, sugar to walnuts. In separate bowl, mix chia seeds, cardamom, ginger, nutmeg, salt. Add to walnut mixture; stir. Spread onto 2 parchment-lined baking sheets. Bake 2 hours or until light brown, crunchy. Remove pans from oven every 20 minutes, stir mixture, rotate pans, return to oven. Don’t let burn. Cool then mix in fruit.

Yield: 5 cups.

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