Granola is a delicious and healthy breakfast with proper nutrition.
Nutritional value 1/4 cup (29 g) of classic granola:
* Calories: 140
* Fat: 9 g
* Sodium: 85 mg
* Carbohydrates: 14 g
* Fiber: 3 g
* Sugar: 4 g
* Proteins: 3 g
Caloric content
A serving of classic muesli per quarter cup contains about 140 calories, about the same as cookies or other pastries. Muesli itself is a healthy product, but some purchased brands and even homemade mixes can be a significant source of calories from sugar and fat.
Carbohydrates
You consume 14 grams of carbohydrates in one serving of muesli. Since muesli is usually made from whole grains, a serving will contain about three grams of fiber. There is also about 4 g of sugar in granola.
Fats
Most types of muesli contain fat. Classic muesli contains nine grams of fat per serving.
Protein
Nuts and grains in muesli help to increase the protein content in muesli. However, as a rule, this is a low-protein snack. Each serving contains about three grams of protein.
Trace elements
Depending on the ingredients, granola may contain a large amount of micronutrients.
Granola contains vitamin E, thiamine, vitamin K, riboflavin, vitamin B6, folic acid and pantothenic acid.
Minerals in muesli include manganese, phosphorus, magnesium, iron, potassium, zinc, copper and selenium.
Information about extra calories of muesli
How you cook muesli at home, or what brand you buy, can make a big difference in the calories, carbohydrates and fats of muesli you consume. Depending on the ingredients used, the nutritional information may vary slightly.
Serving size is also a problem when evaluating the nutrition of muesli. Some muesli brands specify the serving size as a quarter cup. But many people eat much more. Granola is a food that is easy to eat mindlessly, especially if you consume it directly from the package. As a result, you can eat much more than a single serving. Since serving sizes can vary, be sure to check the label with information about the nutritional value of your favorite brand before counting the calories in your muesli.
Health benefits
Granola can be a quick and convenient source of carbohydrates. Many people like to take muesli with them to keep active when they have a long and hard day of exercise. Granola can also provide increased protein levels if it contains nuts such as almonds or walnuts. Fiber from whole grains in muesli will help you feel full longer.
Granola can also provide a significant amount of calories by adding sugar. Some brands are made with added sugar, such as brown or cane sugar. In addition, if you buy or make muesli with dried fruits, you will also get more added sugar.
So should I eat muesli or avoid it? It depends on how you're going to eat it. If you need a convenient source of carbohydrates, this is a good choice. But if you want to lose weight, you should carefully monitor the portion size.
Muesli Recipes and Healthy Cooking Ideas
If you cook muesli at home, you can control the ingredients so that they meet your nutritional needs.
Muesli can be easily prepared by yourself: it is enough to soak the oats in water, juice, syrup (be careful and control the sugar content), or honey. Soaked oats need to be filtered from the excess liquid in which it was infused. Next, it needs to be baked in the oven for some time - until it hardens. After it needs to be cooled and poured into a storage container with the desired additives, such as dried fruits, nuts, coconut chips, grated dark chocolate, etc. If you need less sugar, soak oats with a liquid that has the least or no sugar, and also control additives or use granola without them at all.
It is recommended to take the least processed oats, because it contains the most useful substances and it will give you the right "consistency" of granola – from small oats you will get almost "edible pollen".
In addition to the traditional use of granola, try adding Greek yogurt to it and leave it overnight. In the morning you will have a cold low-calorie and healthy breakfast. This is a good option if you don't have enough time for a morning meal.
Allergies and recommendations
If you avoid cereals or gluten for health reasons, you should avoid muesli, as they usually contain a mixture of whole grains. In addition, those who are allergic to nuts should eat only those types that do not contain nuts, and be sure that there was no cross-contamination during processing.
You should definitely keep track of the amount of sugar in purchased or homemade muesli, because with proper nutrition, muesli will be useful only if there is little excess sugar in it.
