Oat/fruit substitute home-made granola

Question
A friend saw me eating a trail mix - granola cluster hybrid and commented that her daughter who has type 1 diabetes loves food like that but could only have a quarter cup.  Being an avid foodie I took this as a challenge.  I need help with some general substitutions though. Dried sweetened cranberries, apples, and peaches are substantially better than raisins.  Almonds and peanuts are better than seeds.  What is better than oats, but similar?  My instinct is copped Almonds.  Do you have any suggestions for better fruits, seeds, nuts, or oat substitutes?  Or do you have any ideas one something I have not considered yet?  Based on recipes for granola I can add vanilla bean, and spices like cinnamon, and I can use a low sugar maple syrup to bind clumps. Thanks for any suggestions!

Answer
Dear Sherry,

I admire your dedication for your friend's daughter!
She probably can have more than 1/4 cup--that is just what is known as a 'serving' or "exchange" of dried fruit.

All dried fruits are high calorie because they are all very concentrated sources of fruit sugar; I would actually put raisins in a more nutritious category than dried sweetened cranberries because of the sugar added to the cranberries.  Fruit sugar does take longer to turn into glucose in the blood than sugar.

So my suggestion would be to make a trail mix for someone with diabetes more concentrated in nuts (which are extremely low in carbohydrates) and sprinkle in fewer fruits.

The oats are not bad, and you have a great idea with using a low-sugar syrup to bind the clumps!

1. Prev:Just starting out...
2. Next:Dieting and losing weight