Healthy Granola That Tastes Good

As a kid, I spent a lot of time outdoors; climbing trees, catching frogs and the like. I even went through all the necessary steps to have 10 acres of wooded area on our homestead licensed as a wildlife sanctuary. Needless to say, I was a bonafide, tree-hugging, granola girl. And true to form, I enjoyed the nutty, crunchiness of granola cereal from an early age. Once the granola craze came along, generic grocery-store granola became more of a vehicle for brown sugar and cinnamon than the healthful morning repast of the past. Granola bars became the staple of every lunchbox and soccer game snack. As a result, I steered clear of the stuff for many years.

When the folks at Golden Girl Granola approached me to try their cereals, I took a few moments to read up on their products since I don’t endorse products that I don’t use or feel are beneficial. What I learned was that Golden Girl Granola is an all-natural, whole-grain granola that is non-GMO, dairy free, cholesterol free, casein free, trans-fat free, wheat free and has no preservatives, artificial color or flavors. Sounds too good to be true, huh? Fearing that anything that so healthy couldn’t be delicious, I decided to put it to the test.

A week or so later, I received a big box with four bags with incredibly tempting names: Truly Tropical, Pumpkin Harvest, Bluesberry and Chocolate Decadence. The delivery was actually perfectly timed because I was working on my Mocha Mug Muffin post and the Chocolate Decadence granola made the perfect topping, so I opened that bag first. I must admit that eating this as a breakfast cereal was hard for me. It contains a generous amount of chocolate chips, which were difficult to eat first thing in the morning. Instead I reserve this bag for topping yogurt and ice cream.

Next, I tried the Pumpkin Harvest which will be my autumn go-to from now on; crunchy granola with pepitas and cinnamon – very tasty. Bluesberry had a completely different flavor profile made with pure New England maple syrup, dried blueberries, coconut and sliced almonds, this was my favorite topping for my morning yogurt. Last but not least, I opened the Truly Tropical which turned out to be my hands-down favorite with its cashew pieces, dried mangoes, large coconut flakes, and baked with natural Merrimack Valley honey. I didn’t even bother with yogurt or milk, I found myself eating this right out of the bag! And, it is made with certified gluten free oats so it is completely gluten-free; it does not get better than that.

Golden Girl Granola is a family granola business based in Carlisle, MA.  They created Golden Girl Granola out of a love of gourmet food and began by baking small batches in their home kitchen and selling it at local farmers’ markets. Today, each batch is still hand-stirred to ensure that each bag is light and crunchy.

You can find Golden Girl Granolas available in 14 oz. pouches and 3 oz. snack bags at grocery stores throughout New England or you can buy directly from their website. For more information, visit them on Facebook and Twitter.

While the food items we sampled were complimentary, I received no additional remuneration. The opinions included herein are honest and unsolicited.