Lizi's High Protein Granola, 350g

Product Information

A fruit-free blend that’s pale, with a few clumps, some sunflower seeds and one or two big whole almonds. The flavour isn’t bland but it’s not sweet at all. Delivers lots of nutty and seedy flavours. If you don’t want any sugar this could be good. Nice big clumps of oats, but barely any flaked almonds and raisins - the three I find are hard, a bit like raisin jerky. Best crunch of the day in a sweetish mix, but there is a bitter aftertaste. There are in fact, 20 different amino acids, and the sequence in which they are chained together will determine their functions – going to show how much attention to detail naturally occurs in our wonderful bodies! Having a high-protein breakfast not only replenishes the sources that have been absorbed by the digestive system overnight, but it keeps you feeling fuller for longer , giving you the energy to go about your day – whatever may await you!

An attractive pale gold mix with some clumps and small amounts of raisins and flaked almonds. Tastes very sweet and sugary (there’s desiccated coconut in there) so it’s not very complex, but it’s chewy. A good base to add other nuts and its low price bumps up the value score. Nicely toasted oats, gathered in a few clumps, but very little else; there was definitely one sunflower seed in our bowlful. A good toasty flavour on the sweet side, with some crunch, but no discernible nutty flavour or fruit. At 6g of sugar per 50g serving an d made with soya protein flakes and crispies , it’s 100% plant- based and lower in sugar than you might expect.Yes, the two may have similar ingredients – oats, nuts, dried fruit – but they are very distinct, or should be, although several so-called granolas in the shops veer perilously close to muesli. The difference is, muesli is essentially a raw food while granola has been baked to toasty crispness, the grains melding to form rugged clumps that promise crunch and chew. If you’re following a vegan or vegetarian diet, it’s so important that your diet is rich in variety. By taking this approach you can ensure you are consuming all of the healthy protein your body needs. There’s an added bonus to using plant-based foods as your source of protein – these foods are also incredibly nutrient dense and full of vitamins, minerals and that all-important fibre – providing further health benefits. Pale, containing no fruit or any visible nuts. There are a few clumps in the mix, which are sweet and crunchy but leave a weird, bitter aftertaste. No nuts in this, just a few sunflower seeds and oats in nice size clumps. A good medium dark colour but with a sweetish and bitter aftertaste. Not much going on otherwise. A shame about the bitterness.

Discover more about meeting your high-protein goals when following a plant-based diet in our blog: 14 sources of plant-based protein. Very dark, almost like it has cocoa in (it turns the milk brown). Contains puffs of cereal and flakes of almonds, cashew and coconut. Not madly sweet but the flavour is complex, with slightly bitter treacly flavour; it comes across like a grown-up Coco Pops. The puffed cereal is divisive - does it have a place in granola?

About this recipe

Small clumps and pieces of nut rather than whole nuts. A few hard raisins. Quite pale so it looks a bit anaemic and the taste has a slight bitterness. Not very sweet, but delivers a decent crunch that sadly doesn’t last. With puffed quinoa, pumpkin seeds and oats this does not have a traditional look. There is a bit of honey flavour, though not overwhelmingly sweet, very crunchy, but more like breakfast cereal than a granola. Fun though. Pour the dry ingredients into the wet and mix thoroughly, until everything is coated evenly. Spread the mixture out on your prepared pan.

Muesli-like, with lots of pumpkin and sunflower seeds, some teeny bits of what seems to be pecan, and lots of medium to light toasted oats. There’s no crunch, but a pleasing flavour, even if it isn’t toasty. Just not granola. In a microwave safe bowl, melt the coconut oil, peanut butter and maple syrup in the microwave and stir until smooth. A pale but clumpy mix; I find flakes of Brazil nut and almond, plus half cashews and pumpkin seeds in reasonable levels. Not sweet but reasonably crunchy. Strong bitter aftertaste, which is a shame as it is good value otherwise. Extremely sweet but manages to be balanced by nuts. Good and crunchy with a nutty flavour. I like the unblanched almonds. A pale mix and not very clumpy (looks like a muesli), but it does seem lavish, loaded with nuts and fruit, including big, expensive-looking raisins as well as oats and wheat flakes. Sadly, the granola is on the soft side, not crisp and not very sweet. Oddly bland given the amount of nuts.

Method

Has a pleasing amount of nuts, including toasted hazelnuts, cashews halves, whole unblanched almonds and flaked almonds, and clusters of medium to light oats. Looks granola-ish. On the sweet side but not overwhelmingly so. Decent crunch. Tastes fresh, just not as generous with the nuts as it could be. There are loads of nuts in this, including whole almonds, along with sunflower and pumpkin seeds and slivers of toasted coconut. It has a toasty appearance but not very clumpy - there’s more nut than oat. Slightly salty, almost savoury, but you’d need to like coconut. As well as being responsible for making new bones and muscles, enzymes and hormones, protein is a source of energy for the body. Eating the right amount makes sure that you have all the energy you need for an active lifestyle, busy day or the exercise you have planned. Protein is an important part of our diet and, for many people, has grown in significance in recent years. There’s been a rise in awareness largely fuelled by the ‘clean eating’ trend, not to mention the number of women introducing strength and resistance training into their fitness regime, realising the role that protein has to play. Dark, but doesn’t dye the milk so much as some others. There are lots of chewy coconut pieces in there and chunks of nut, and date syrup and vanilla flavouring in the ingredients list. It’s a promising colour but too sweet. Good if you love coconut.