Today we continue a recent monthly feature: a vegetarian recipe, made from ingredients available in Senegal. Our guest is P. and she blogs at For the Love of Fulani. This recipe isn’t what you might think of when you hear ‘vegetarian’, but by the technical definition it fits, right? I saw it on her blog and loved it! So I asked her to share with us.

I used to buy granola all the time in the States and eat it for breakfast with fresh berries and yogurt. When I moved to Senegal I went for almost a year before I finally found some muesli, which I promptly devoured. But because we live so far away from convenient plentiful shopping I couldn’t ever buy enough to make it until our next shopping trip. So when I came across this recipe I was elated. I mean coffee and granola in one bite?! How can you not love this?! Unless you don’t like coffee . The amount of coffee is completely adjustable depending on how strong you like it and if you happen to have espresso powder then use about half of the amounts listed below.

Enjoy your mocha granola with a nice scoop of fresh plain yogurt and a teeny tiny drizzle of local honey (you know to help with all the allergies the rains can bring)!

Mocha Granola

INGREDIENTS
1/3 cup hazelnuts, coarsely chopped
1/3 cup sliced walnuts or almonds
3 cups old fashioned rolled oats
2 tbsp. canola oil
1/2 cup honey
3-4 tbsp. ground instant coffee
¼ cup ground flaxseed (optional)
¼ tsp. ground cinnamon
Pinch of grated nutmeg
½ tsp. salt
4-6 oz. bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped

DIRECTIONS

Preheat the oven to 325˚ F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.

Place a large skillet over low heat. Add the chopped hazelnuts and almonds. Cook, stirring frequently, until lightly browned, 3-4 minutes. Stir in the oats and canola oil and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until the oats are lightly toasted, about 2 minutes.

Transfer the oat mixture to a large bowl and stir in the honey, espresso powder, ground flaxseed, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. Spread out onto the prepared baking sheet in an even layer. Bake, stirring every few minutes, until the granola is light golden brown, about 15 minutes.

Move the granola to one side of the baking sheet and using a spatula press gently into a thick slab.  Let cool to room temperature.  Break the dried and cooled granola into small clusters, mix in the chopped chocolate, and store in an airtight container.

*If you prefer a more subtle coffee flavor, use 2 tablespoons of coffee powder. For a more prominent flavor, use 3-4 tablespoons.