Welcome to Flawed yet Functional! I am an insulin dependent Type 1 Diabetic, and I use the Autoimmune Protocol (plus a few reintroductions) to keep my blood sugar levels stable. Through the AIP diet, I’ve discovered sensitivities to gluten, dairy, and eggs. Honestly, eliminating gluten and dairy from my diet were far easier than eggs. Eggs do such amazing things to baked goods and make easy, delicious breakfasts! However, I’ve learned to embrace egg-free breakfasts, and I have a delicious recipe to share with you today: Crunchy Paleo Breakfast Cereal.
Yes, that’s right! Cold, milk-poured-over-it breakfast cereal is possible on the Paleo/Egg-free diet! My kids actually have no idea what breakfast cereal is which makes explaining what’s for breakfast very comical. (Crunchy mama win!) However, they love this granola-esque cereal for breakfast or snack.
Low Carb Granola
There are tons of oat-free granola recipes out there that could be used just fine for a Paleo breakfast cereal. However, I am a diabetic, so I need to watch my carbohydrate intake. Most recipes that are Paleo-friendly, are covered in honey. Honey has TONS of carbs in it.
So I wanted to create a granola that wasn’t covered in sugar yet still tasted good.
High Fat and Protein Cereal
On the flip side, cereal that has a lot of fat and protein in it would be an ideal breakfast. Fat and protein fill you up and leave you satisfied for a long time. Also, they don’t have the crash after a couple hours like carbohydrates.
Enter coconut flakes as the base of this Paleo breakfast cereal. Coconut flakes when toasted are crunchy (a necessity of a good cereal!), and they have quite a bit of fat (8g per serving) with not too many carbs (4g net per serving).
A crunchy, slightly sweet base for a breakfast cereal? Perfect!
AIP Accommodations
If you are on the Autoimmune Protocol without any reintroductions, simply leave out the nuts and seeds. Only coconut and dried fruit? Will that be good? Oh yes, it will be! Try it and see!
Make sure to top it with coconut milk too to eliminate all nuts!
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Beefing Up the Cereal
Coconut flakes are a great base, but I wanted even more goodness in this meal. So I chopped up pecans and almonds to be toasted with the coconut. The crunch and extra nutrition are the perfect addition.
To give the cereal an extra boost of nutrition and sweetness, I usually top my cereal with toasted pumpkin seeds and a sprinkle of raisins. Pour dairy-free milk on top, serve it with an additional protein such as breakfast sausage or bacon, and you’ve got a delicious, easy, egg-free breakfast!
The Finishing Touches
There are so many options for how to eat this Paleo cereal! Don’t feel limited by how I serve it up (that’s usually dependent on what I have in the house anyway!) Here are some other ideas for how to serve Crunchy Paleo Breakfast Cereal.
- As a topping on dairy-free yogurt. Almond yogurt is our favorite as it has the fewest additives.
- In a bowl, topped with sliced bananas or fresh berries and dairy-free milk poured over it.
- As a snack with melted coconut manana drizzled on top. A sweet, high fat addition!
- Mix in any type of dried fruit and/or seeds. Golden raisins and pumpkin seeds are great but use anything you like: dried cranberries, blueberries, cherries, sunflower seeds, etc.!
- By the handful for a quick snack!
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Storing
This crunchy cereal can be stored in an air-tight container to be eaten another day. However, it never lasts long at our house, so I haven’t tested this longer than one day. Ha! I can’t keep my kids from eating it! But at least for 24 hours it keeps its crunch. Possibly longer…I need to hide it from my kids to test it out!
Egg-free breakfasts can be delicious, varied, and easy! If you are trying the Autoimmune Protocol or have an egg-allergy, be creative with your breakfasts! Try Crunchy Paleo Breakfast Cereal to switch up your morning routing. You and your family will still be filled and satisfied!
Crunchy Cinnamon Paleo Breakfast Cereal
Sweet, crunchy, and easy, what more could you ask in a Paleo breakfast?? This gluten-free, egg-free breakfast recipe will fill you up and leave you satisfied until lunch with its high fat and protein content without a bunch of carbs!
Ingredients
- 1.5 cups flaked, unsweetened coconut
- .5 cups raw, chopped pecans
- .5 cups raw, chopped almonds
- 2 tsp. cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp. vanilla
- 1 Tbsp. coconut oil, melted
Instructions
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Preheat the oven to 325° and line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
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Pour all ingredients onto the middle of the lined baking sheet and toss with hands to coat evenly.
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Bake for 8-10 minutes, stirring once or twice until fragrant and coconut is lightly browned.
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Eat plain with dairy-free milk poured over or top as desired with bananas, fresh berries, dried fruit, salted pumpkin seeds, etc. Enjoy!
Recipe Notes
**One serving, without additional toppings, has 14g of carbohydrates.**
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Hi Emily!
I want to try this so bad, do you have any suggestions for someone who can’t have almonds? Would walnuts work or is there a better pairing for pecans?
Thanks
Jessica
Hey! I would totally use walnuts! I should’ve said that in the post. Use any combination you like!
This sounds delicious! Do you ever add in chunks of fruit??
We’ve done fresh banana slices, and once we get berries in season again, I’ll try those too! Great idea!