Free Snacking: Granola Butter

This week on free snacking, instead of eating some top 9 allergen free baked goods, we are checking in on spreads. Searching for a peanut butter replacement that has protein and some fat was one of the first things I set out to do with a kid with allergies. Not only is peanut butter one of my favorite foods, but it’s a great source of calories for toddlers (but... you know... only when it’s safe for them to eat it). If you can’t have peanut butter, often the first place you go to is one of the many tree nut butters- almond, cashew, pecan, Nutella, etc. They, too, are delicious and a good thing to add to snacks or sandwiches, but again only if you can have them.

The main peanut butter alternative is Sunbutter, made from sunflower seeds, it has a similar (maybe) taste to peanut butter and it also is full of fat and some protein. But there is a new kid on the block- granola butter. 

"Granola Butter" is not the best name because you read it and then say to yourself "What is that?" but the company "OAT HAUS"? Perfect branding. No notes.

It was also a Shark Tank impulse buy for us last year, but now it’s actually in our regular grocery store! The creator said she wanted something that tasted like liquid teddy grahams (it’s literally on the website. I think that sounds like the unfortunately byproduct of a toddler stomach bug and would have maybe gone for… spreadable teddy grahams? Pureed teddy grahams? Literally anything without the word "liquid" in it. But what do I know?) 

Where was I? Granola Butter. Shark Tank. How it was created. Okay, so the creator struggled with an eating disorder for 10 years and when she tried to get back into eating nut butters, her stomach couldn’t handle it. So she created Granola Butter, a nut free spread, that you can still eat in similar ways to a peanut butter. On Shark Tank, the Sharks gave her a hard time because it wasn’t low calorie, but that wasn’t her goal. She wanted something that was a little indulgent, that she could safely eat. Not everything has to be low cal, sharks. And did you not hear the part about the eating disorder??? Let’s take a look at the nutrition and how it compares to other spreads:

 

It doesn’t have nearly as much protein as peanut butter/nut butters/even Sunbutter, but total calorie wise, it’s pretty similar. That’s because the first ingredient is oats. Not so great if you are on a low carb diet, but as far as getting some high calorie foods into my kid, a good choice. We’ve tried three of their flavors- original, vanilla, and chocolate. The original is my favorite. I’m a sucker for some cinnamon. The vanilla is good, as well, though I don't remember it tasting that different from the original. The chocolate one is good as long as you go in with limited expectations- I mean, the first ingredient is oats, so thinking it tastes like “brownie batter” is going to be a bit of a let down.

The main problem with granola butter is the viscosity. All of the flavors are much runnier that traditional peanut butter (or almond butter or sun butter). It makes it hard to have on crackers which is my family’s preferred snack. You know what it is good on, though? Drizzled on top of vegan ice cream. Like, it’s ridiculously good. It’s not hot fudge, but I’m not going to say no to a little bit of extra flavor and fat and carbs on my attempt at homemade dairy free ice cream.

You know what? I spoke too soon. Maybe "liquid teddy graham" is the perfect description.

So, if you want a different thing to make your snacks more filling or your ice cream more delicious, try a tub of granola butter. It’s still ridiculously expensive, but at least it won’t kill my kid!