Sweetened with maple syrup and packed with seedy bits, this clustery Lemon Tahini Cashew Granola is a healthy and filling on-the-go snack or ready-when-you-are breakfast. This recipe is vegan and easily gluten free.
#OurWild
Think about the last time you traveled to our nation’s public lands. Maybe you were on vacation, in need of respite wide open spaces, mountains and forests provide. Or you went for recreation to fish, camp, photograph, backpack or birdwatch.
To reconnect with nature.
Family.
Yourself.
These are our public lands which stretch beyond our 400 national parks to include national forests, scenic rivers, marine monuments, wildlife refuges, wilderness and recreation ares, just to name a few.
Our Public Lands
Our public lands were created so all Americans, regardless of wealth or social status, could enjoy access for recreation, respite, study, conservation and preservation with specific areas set aside for resource use.
America’s public lands are one of our nation’s proudest and most sacred treasures. They include places like Yosemite, The Grand Canyon, Olympic National Forest, and Crater Lake or other not as well-known lands such as Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore or Continental Divide National Scenic Trail, for example.
Americans own 618 million acres of public lands, 110 million acres of which are protected as pristine, untouched wilderness. National policies dictate how public lands and wilderness designated within them are used, maintained and preserved. (The Wilderness Society)
But, we cannot take these treasured places or benefits they provide for granted. Public lands are under constant pressure in our growing society for space, and resource extraction as well as those who merely see these lands as a means to generate profit.
Public Land Pressures
This pressure is nothing new, but recently it has intensified.
You may have heard, special interests have been lobbying state governments and Congress to seize America’s public lands so they can be privatized or auctioned for drilling, mining and logging. To do this, lobbyists are working to enact laws that require Congress to hand over public lands to states which would mean these lands would no longer fall under the protection of the National Park Service (The Wilderness Society).
The concern is that by transferring these lands, already budget strapped states could eliminate mixed-use requirements, limit public access and turn over large portions, if not all, for resource exploitation and/or development. To the highest bidder, of course.
Yet these public lands are not just a resource to develop. They hold value far greater than a price tag can reflect. They provide ecological, psychological, natural and economic benefit we need to protect.
Political Will for Public Lands
Earlier this year, US representative Jason Chaffetz of Utah introduced a bill (HB 621) to essentially continue the quiet dismantling and slow suffocation of our Nation’s public lands. Some 3.3 million acres, the size of Connecticut, of public lands were to be sold off to the highest bidder for natural resource exploitation and/or development for the benefit of “the reduction of public debt.” (The Guardian).
Fortunately after strong public pushback, Chaffetz had a change of heart from “groups I support and care about.”
But the story doesn’t end there. Our Nation’s current administration’s FY 2018 budget continues the assault by drastically reducing funding supportive of our public lands.
And the story continues. In April, Trump issued an executive order to review Certain National Monuments. The president assigned Mr. Zinke, of the Department of Interior, to examine whether Trump’s predecessors over-stepped their authority and made these public lands too large and/or ignored objections from the American People (National Geographic).
The term American People seems to get thrown around loosely in Washington. I’ve come to the conclusion the American People is code for the most powerful/influential of lobbyists in Washington.
To see these treasured public lands under review, NPR wrote a story here.
#INeedNature
So, in honor of Earth Day and to bring awareness about our public lands, I’m sharing a place, and recipe, that’s special to me.
You may have visited: Ebey’s Landing National Historic Reserve located in the heart of Whidbey Island. While only a small fraction of this land is federally owned, its expansive views reach two National Parks including Mt. Rainier NP to the south and Olympic NP to the west.
Just off Ebey’s Reserve shores and beyond the Salish Sea (aka Puget Sound) lie snow-capped peaks of Mount Olympus, Hurricane Ridge and America’s only remaining example of a temperate rainforest including the Hoh, named the quietest place in the lower 48, and Quinault Rainforests.
These treasures provide safe refuge for wildlife, contain old growth forests, native plants, interesting ecological and geological features and provide visitors tranquility, recreation and respite.
We need these lands. All public lands. #ineednature
About Lemon Tahini Granola
Since granola is one of my favorite snacks to have on hand while on an outdoor adventure or for anytime I need a grab n’ go snack, I’m sharing my easy to make, clustery Lemon Tahini Cashew Granola recipe.
It’s packed with thick rolled oats, sunflower, sesame and poppy seeds, cashews, quinoa and coconut. Sweetened with maple syrup, it’s not too sweet like so many store-bought varieties. There’s two whole lemons, juice and zest, in this granola for a fresh lemony pop of flavor, and spiked with a bit of warming cinnamon and ginger.
It’s quick and easy to pull together, but a looong slow bake and slow cool down ensures crunchy clusters and will have your house smelling like a bakery!
It’s a snack worthy of making its way into your backpack, yogurt bowl and/or lunch bag. Perhaps I’ll prepare some and deliver it to my elected officials.
“We have become great because of the lavish use of our resources. But the time has come to inquire seriously what will happen when our forests are gone, when the coal, the iron, the oil, and the gas are exhausted, when the soils have still further impoverished and washed into the streams, polluting the rivers, denuding the fields and obstructing navigation.” ~Theodore Roosevelt
Please contact your congress people, both state and federal and tell them why public lands are important to you. For more information, visit The Wilderness Society.
the recipe
Lemon Tahini Cashew Granola
Ingredients
- 1/2 C (95g) Raw Quinoa rinsed and soaked overnight, excess water drained** (see note)
- 3 C (305g) Thick Rolled Oats not quick, gluten free if needed
- 1 C (90g) Shredded Unsweetened Coconut
- 1 C (155g) Raw Cashew Pieces
- 1/2 C (80g) Hulled Sunflower Seeds
- 2 Tbs Sesame Seeds
- 1 Tbs Poppy Seeds
- 2 tsp Cinnamon ground
- 1 tsp Ginger ground
- 3/4 tsp Fine Sea Salt
- 1/3 C (85g) Tahini
- 1/4 C (45g) Coconut Oil virgin, unrefined, melted
- 1/2 C + 2 Tbs (200g) Pure Maple Syrup
- 2 Lemons zested and juiced
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 275F (135C). Line a sheet pan with parchment paper. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, add the quinoa, thick rolled oats, shredded coconut, cashews, sunflower, sesame and poppy seeds, cinnamon, ginger and salt. Stir throughly. Set aside.
- In a medium mixing bowl whisk together the tahini, coconut oil, maple syrup and lemon juice and zest. Whisk until it is smooth and there are no lumps.
- Pour the wet over the dry ingredients and mix with a sturdy spoon until all the ingredients are moistened and evenly distributed. Pour the mixture into the pan and press into an even layer. Bake at 275F (135C) for one hour, then rotate the pan and increase the oven temperature to 315F (157C) for 15-25 minutes OR until the edges are golden.* (see note) The granola will still be soft to the touch but it will firm up as it cools. Let it cool completely in the pan before removing it. This ensures clustering!
- Store in a lidded container for up to two weeks at room temperature.
Notes
Nutrition is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate. If this information is important to you, please have it verified independently.
Please join me in learning more about our public lands from friends around the web. Follow the links below for more virtual travels, stories and recipes. And, many thanks to Eva and Sasha for organizing #ourwild virtual event.
Tending the Table: Okanogan-Wentachee National Forest
The Bojon Gourmet: Hibiscus Berry Smoothie Bowls
Healthy Nibbles and Bits: Leek and Kohlrabi Fritters and Pinnacles National Park
Husbands That Cook: Point Mugu State Park
Brooklyn Supper: Shenandoah National Park
Wholehearted Eats: Happy Trail Bars and Into the Universe
The Broken Bread: Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest
The Year in Food: A Church in the Wild
Fresh Off the Grid: Weekend Escape: Planning an Impromptu Camping Trip
Adventures in Cooking: Olympic National Park
The Modern Proper: Trail Mix Pancakes
Will Frolic For Food: Glacier National Park
Wu Haus: Joshua Tree
With Food and Love: Roasted Sugar Snap Peas with Mint and Sea Salt and Scenes from Joshua Tree
This recipe is a fresh take on traditional sweetened granola. I enjoyed the subtle tartness from the lemon juice and lemon zest. I rated this recipe “good,” only because I found the recommended bake time in the recipe to be too long (1 hour at 275 degrees plus 20-25 minutes at 315 degrees). The granola turned out overcooked (a deep golden, not the golden in the photographs) at 1 hour 20 minutes. I recommend removing the granola after one hour at 275 degrees, or placing it in the oven at 315 degrees for an additional 5 to 10 minutes. With a shorter baking time, I give this recipe five stars!
Hi Stephanie! Thank you for your note. I’m sorry the granola turned out over-baked for you. Unfortunately, due to oven variations, no single result will be the same, and reason for my note in the method section that reads “for 20-25 minutes or until the edges are golden.” The OR part is very important in any recipe. It’s a cue due to oven variations. For more information, I’ve written about oven variations here: https://vanillaandbean.com/about-vanilla-bean/ Thank you for your note! I’m so happy you enjoyed the recipe!
Such a thoughtful post, Traci. As each year passes, I want to spend more and more time outdoors, and the sobering thought that we need to preserve it becomes more and more real. I want to make this granola and take a hike this weekend.
I think that too, Liren. It is my hope that our citizens will act to protect these treasured public lands. I hope you enjoy the recipe!
I loved reading through this post. It is unbelievable what is happening and what will happen to our beautiful land. How we act now is what our future will see.
Thanks for the awareness friend and this granola is absolutely delicious sounding and looking. Loving the tahini in it.
Yum!!
xoxo
I agree Ash. It’s makes me so sad… frustrated. Hopefully there will be a big enough outcry from the people… but even then, I worry it will be too late.
The tahini is really nice in this my dear xo !
Such an important cause and thank you for sharing it so well here, Traci. Love that you mentioned Sleeping Bear Dunes as well- we’re headed up there for a weekend this summer and I’m so excited. Now this granola… look at those clusters! So perfect for snacking on a hike in the wilderness. You’ve inspired me to try tahini in my granola- such a great idea!
I hope to visit Sleeping Bear some day… I’m so happy to hear you’re going! What fun, beauty and respite for you and your family Emily! I hope you’ll give tahini a try in your granola.. I’m hooked! :D
Granola is so perfect for breakfast or a quick snack. Lemon and tahini is such a fun flavor combination and sounds delicious. Love it!
Oh how much I love that you wrote this. I had all the intentions to write about the earth day, but I got sick. Darn it!
What is happening is so sad and I am glad that the food blogging community is raising their voice.
Your photos of Ebey’s Landing is breathtaking. I hope I will get to see it one day.
In the mean time, this lemon tahini cashew granola is calling my name.
Gorgeous as always. <3
Oh no… I hope you’re feeling better Aysegul! I hope you’ll see Ebey’s one day too. I know you’d love it here. xo
This is SUCH a great post, Traci! I think we all love nature, but most people (me included) had NO clue about the issues at hand. I, for one, do not support this suffocation of our nation’s public lands!
I remember your post about Whidbey Island! It is absolutely gooooorgeous there and I’d love to see it in person one day and just soak up all the nature and tranquility. In the meantime, there is a national forest not too far from us, Uwharrie National Forest, that we have been meaning to visit. We have to pass through it to get to Charlotte, NC so we have been planning a trip for about 2 years now. We need to stop letting life get in the way and go visit Uwharrie, because I’m in need of a vacation. :) Anyways, granola has to be THE perfect food to celebrate mother nature!! And I’m loving this lemon tahini cashew granola! The touch of maple for sweetness is just perfect! Wish I had a bowl of this for breakfast instead of my boring egg whites. Pinned! Cheers, friend and thanks for sharing the 411!!
Thank you Chey… There’s so much.. this is just the tip of the iceberg. I hope you make it out to Uwharrie National Forest… It’s time!!
Thank you so much for bringing awareness to this topic, Traci. It’s so scary to think about what might happen to our planet over the next 4 years (and the years to come) as a result of this administration and ignorant consumers. There is nothing more tragic to me then the thought of destroying nature and all of the precious wildlife that inhabits it. I only hope our voices will be heard before it’s too late.
On a happier note, this granola looks so bright and flavorful. The perfect snack for a day spent with nature!
Yes, it’s so disheartening, Sarah. So I act, then take more granola with me on another outdoor adventure… to immerse myself in the beauty that those who came before us preserved. I am grateful for that. xo
Such an important, interesting post Traci! So glad you’ve shared all this info with us. As I’ve said before, I come to your blog not only for the incredibly delicious recipes, but because I always leave having learned something. My son Casey did a trip across the country last summer with friends and stopped at several of the national parks and was awestruck. I am hoping to do that trip one day too. Your photos from Ebey’s Landing are beautiful. And this granola recipe… I think I enjoy granola as much as you Traci and the flavors in this one sounds like something I would totally enjoy. I love the entire list of ingredients. I can’t wait to try this one!
Thank you so much for your feedback, Mary Ann. I’m happy to hear Casey was able to travel to so many national parks… and that he chose to go see them! I hope you’ll get to do the same. I know you’re a granola fan… I think you’d like this one too!
Traci, thank you for sharing your passion about such an important issue. Now more than ever it’s crucial to protect these sacred spaces like Ebey’s Landing. I had the great fortune of being able to visit there a year ago and it’s pulled at my heart since then. I enjoyed checking out the links you provided as well. The addition of lemon zest and juice in this granola really appeals to me. Will be checking it out later this week!
I understand, Jean.. it’s forever etched into my heart too. SO happy you had the opportunity to visit and breathe in it’s solitude, splendor and grandeur…! I hope you’ll be back to enjoy it again. So many excellent posts in the links. Thank you for checking them out! I hope you enjoy this lemony granola!
Those clusters are everything – this granola is my dream midnight snack! :)
Is the quinoa cooked in this recipe or raw?
Hi Elle… it’s raw.
I really enjoyed reading this, Traci! I’ve never been to Ebi’s landing but it looks beautiful there! Definitely a special place :) It terrifies and angers me that there are people in this world that don’t think these amazing natural places are in need of protection. Hopefully there are enough of us that love them to fight for them though!
Also, this granola is amazing! Love those big chunks :)
So glad you did, Izzy. I hope so too… because I know there are many who cherish these lands, so we all need to raise our voices… but even then, I worry.
Thank you for this informative post, Traci. Our national parks should be protected and celebrated but I fear the current political climate favors big business and our national parks will suffer from budget cuts and oil and gas drilling – it’s disheartening to say the least. Your pictures of Ebey’s landing are just gorgeous – so still and calm – a perfect place to spend some time reflecting on the important things in life and disconnecting from the stresses of daily life. Wishing you a wonderful Earth day, Traci – here’s to the future and better days ahead. Xo
Most welcome Geraldine.. protected and celebrated, I couldn’t agree more. Ebey’s is such a calming place.. I hope you’ll make it up some day xo
Love everything about this post, Traci. And I couldn’t agree more. It hurts my heart to see what’s currently happening. And I hope we can all speak out and put pressure on those in positions of power to help change things. I’ve never been to Ebey’s Landing. But if I ever make it back to the PNW, I will certainly seek it out!
I know, Liz… the only thing to remedy my heavy heart about it is to act and to get out there and enjoy what we have now. I hope you’ll make it to Ebey’s… it’ll be forever in your heart. xo
Traci, Thanks so much for participating and for your wonderful insights into the importance of public lands in the current political climate. I’ve never been to Ebey’s Landing and look forward to checking it out. XO Sasha
I hope you’ll check out Ebeys Sasha.. it will be forever in your heart. Thank you again for hosting this important event!
Thank you for sharing such important information. We are fortunate to have these spaces, may they be respected and preserved. Oh, and I quite possibly will be making my first granola ever this weekend, per your recipe!
So welcome Jane…. I hope you enjoy your first ever granola! :D