This low carb banana-flavored cereal is the breakfast recipe you’ve been waiting for! Totally grain-free, it’s made with almond meal, hemp seeds and flaked coconut. Dig in!
If I suggested that you make your mother some cereal for Mother’s Day, would you think I am crazy? I mean, this is Mother’s Day, right? Surely I could come up with something more special than a bowl of cereal! Maybe you would think I don’t care for mothers or motherhood very much. Or maybe I had a bad experience in my childhood on Mother’s Day and I’ve been scarred for life, so I try to minimize the celebrations. Maybe I am really, really stingy or really, really cheap and all I want to spend on anyone is the price of a box of cereal. Just call me the Mother’s Day Grinch.
Or maybe, just maybe, there is a method to my madness. Picture this, if you will. A mother, a kind, generous soul who has given her all to her sweet children, who works tirelessly for their welfare, has recently gone on a low carb, gluten-free diet. It’s the best decision she ever made for her own health. She’s lost weight, she’s gained energy, her myriad health issues have decreased, she looks and feels like a million bucks. But she also feels a little deprived. Heretofore, she was used to pouring herself a quick bowl of cereal in the morning while the kids were getting ready for school. She loved the ease of it, the crunch of it, the way the milk took on the flavours and sweetness. This mother really misses her cereal.
Now a bowl of cereal for Mother’s Day breakfast is starting to look pretty good, isn’t it? Just the thing to make the new healthy mom feel truly special. And the kids can even bring it to her in bed!
I had a lot of fun creating this cereal and I certainly think it’s special enough for Mother’s Day. I wanted something granola-esque, with lots of healthy ingredients to boost your morning nutrition. I had a bag of hemp seeds from Bob’s Red Mill that I wanted to try out, as I’ve heard wonderful things about the flavours and nutrition of these little powerhouse seeds. They are low in carbs (yay!), high in fiber (yay!), and have a moderate amount of protein. Plus, you know, plenty of those other nutrient thingies like Omega 3s and magnesium. So along with some Bob’s almond meal and flaked coconut, and some chopped nuts, they made a great healthy base for a tasty banana nut cereal.
Oh, and did I mention it’s really easy to make? Score some points with mom AND have a little time for yourself. Win win, I would say.
Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Bob’s Red Mill. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Banana Nut Hemp Cereal
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups Bob's Red Mill almond meal
- 1 cup Bob's Red Mill hemp seeds
- 1 cup chopped walnuts or pecans
- 1 cup Bob's Red Mill unsweetened flaked coconut
- 1/3 cup Swerve Sweetener
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 3 tbsp butter, melted
- 2 tsp banana extract
- 1 large egg
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 300F and line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the almond meal, hemp seeds, nuts, coconut, sweetener and salt.
- Stir in butter, extract and egg until mixture begins to clump together. Spread mixture out onto prepared baking sheet and press down to help it clump together.
- Bake about 25 minutes, stirring 2 or 3 times, until beginning to brown. Turn off oven and let cereal sit inside for 5 to 10 minutes more.
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer
Please note that I am not a medical or nutritional professional. I am simply recounting and sharing my own experiences on this blog. Nothing I express here should be taken as medical advice and you should consult with your doctor before starting any diet or exercise program. I provide nutritional information for my recipes simply as a courtesy to my readers. It is calculated using MacGourmet software and I remove erythritol from the final carb count and net carb count, as it does not affect my own blood glucose levels. I do my best to be as accurate as possible but you should independently calculate nutritional information on your own before relying on them. I expressly disclaim any and all liability of any kind with respect to any act or omission wholly or in part in reliance on anything contained in this website.
Free Bonus: Secrets to Keto Baking!
Sign up for your favorite recipes delivered straight to your inbox plus get our FREE bonus: Secrets to Keto Baking!
Can I use Hemp Seed Hearts and have it come out ok?
Mmmmm. This is now in my oven. I used vanilla because banana didn’t jazz me so much. I also swapped coconut oil for the butter because coconut definitely makes me happy. Hard to wait for it to bake because it was just a bowl of wonderful. Did I mention, mmmmm!
This recipe is amazing!!
Mixed results – the texture was good, and the initial flavor and smell were good, but as it cooled it lost the banana flavor. All I can figure is the extract evaporated and reduced the tastiness. Next time I’ll try an emulsion instead of extract and see if that helps.
This looks and sounds delicious! Can I leave out the egg?
The egg helps make it clumpy and more like cereal but it might work if you sub a few tbsp or two of water before you bake it.
I’m getting ready to try this out! Is one serving half a cup? TIA
Usually more like 1/3 cup as it’s very filling.
I make this frequently and I got my parents hooked on it! I use a mix of nuts (whatever I have on hand) which gives a nice texture. Banana is not a favorite so I vary between vanilla and maple flavors. Delish with unsweetened almond milk!
I made this once and will certainly make again. If I don’t have the hemp seed (they are very expensive for a small bag), would this change the flavor without it? It tasted great and had the consistency of granola type cereal. It didn’t last long in my home. I highly recommend it.
No, it wouldn’t change the flavour.
I just made this tonight. I did not have banana extract, so I used pumpkin pie extract. It was so delicious. I will use as cereal with unsweetened almond milk.
I love this recipe and enjoy it as a cereal but was wondering what I could add to this recipe to make into more of a bar for easy on the go meal . was also wondering if adding some collagen protein peptides would work for adding a little more protein?
Sure, add the collagen. And then add an egg white (or possibly two) and press firmly into a pan and bake. Then cut into bars. Not sure how long to bake, though…
I have missed you cold old cereal in the summer time! I think this recipe is my all time favorite now!!(as I drip cashew milk off the spoon onto my keyboard) 5 Stars Carolyn and so easy to make 🙂
Glad you like it!
This turned out really good. It is still cooling in the pan but I just had to eat a warm serving with almond milk. I only had 2/3 the amount of hemp seed so I added sunflower seeds to make up the difference. I doubt it changed the flavor any. I also substituted vanilla for the banana flavor. I also adore the Peanut Butter Flax granola. I love all your granolas.
This was wonderful and so filling! I only had chopped pecans (like smaller than 1/4″) and it ended up quite crumbly – do you think this was the problem? There were a few chunks, but mostly crumbs. Also, I’m wondering if I could reduce the carbs more by subbing in a zero-carb whey protein for maybe 1/2 of the almond flour? Thanks for all of your hard work – you are making my life so much easier!
Carolyn, I want you to know that you have been a life saver for me. I have 6 auto-immune diseases and since starting a LCHF diet, I have felt better than I have for the last 20 some years. I look forward to making your recipes. Thank you for finding alternatives to a lot of my favorite foods
So very glad I can help, Mary! It must be tough living with all of that.
I love this. Have made it several times for myself and my 93 yr. old father. My daughter would like to try making this also. The problem…military frowns upon the use of hemp seeds. Can I substitute with raw sunflower seeds?
Sure, sub away. But why does the military frown on the use of hemp???
Had to look this up. Found this at http://www.af.mil/
The prohibition is explained in Air Force Instruction 44-120, paragraph 1.1.5, as well as AFI 44-121, paragraph 3.2.2, which states, “Studies have shown that products made with hemp seed and hemp seed oil may contain varying levels of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), an active ingredient of marijuana which is detectable under the Air Force Drug Testing Program. In order to ensure military readiness, the ingestion of products containing or products derived from hemp seed or hemp seed oil is prohibited.”
Kind of like too many poppy seeds showing up on a drug test as a narcotic.
Interesting!!!
Ca
Thanks for the recipe, first time ever that I used hemp seeds, crunchiness is awesome. I made it with coconut oil though, do you think it would have to be stored in the fridge?
I’ve been making your recipe for the last few months and I love it. I use 1 teas. vanilla and 1 teas. almond extract instead of banana. It is sooooo good with almond milk. I also just need a couple tbl of sweetener. This is also great in some yogurt. Thanks so much.
Thanks! Glad you like it.