Breakfast Quinoa

It’s Passover and you want a hot cereal for breakfast. Don’t even think of the Passover packaged stuff. Matzo is great as is. Not powdered. Think quinoa instead.

Or, it’s not Passover or you don’t do Passover. You want a hot cereal that’s a bit off the beaten track. Think quinoa.

I usually cook quinoa using half broth and half water. But here’s a great reason to cook quinoa with just good ol’ water. Make extra and use as a side spruced up with lemon juice, olive oil and herbs. And use it for this hot breakfast cereal.

There are so many ways to do quinoa as a hot cereal. Here’s one inspired by the food blog, Couldn’t Be Parve. Thanks, Shoshana.

Let’s take a look at what goes into this flavorful breakfast: Quinoa, almond milk, applesauce, almond butter, and cinnamon. Feeling like you want a bit more sweetness? Add a teaspoon or two of brown sugar. I tried it with the brown sugar and it felt too sweet. I didn’t miss the sugar when I made it again without it. Yes, I made extra extra quinoa.

Top with your favorite dried fruit. Or dried fruit and your favorite granola. Click here (?) for a Passover Granola recipe. Wait, stop. You can’t click there or “here”. I’ve made this Judy Zeidler recipe for Passover Granola so many times, I thought I posted it. But I haven’t.

OK. Here it is in a nutshell.

Matzo Farfel Granola , courtesy of Judy Zeidler (with the honey reduced by half)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grab a large bowl and toss together 2 cups matzah farfel, 1/2 cup unsweetened shredded coconut and a cup of nuts of your choice (halved raw almonds, slivered almonds, chopped walnuts or delete the nuts and swap with another cup of matzah farfel). Add 1/4 cup honey, 1/4 cup safflower oil and a pinch of salt. Stir to coat. Spread on foil-lined and lightly oiled baking sheet. Bake for 20 minutes, stirring halfway through. Transfer to platter to cool. Add 1/2 cup dried fruit (raisins, cranberries, and/or chopped dried apricots) and toss.

And now back to our regularly scheduled program.

See? I told you it was simple. And simply delicious.

Breakfast Quinoa

Ingredients:

Directions:

Combine applesauce with the almond butter, almond milk, cinnamon and brown sugar (if using) in a small saucepan. Stir over medium heat until the mixture is hot and well-blended. Add quinoa and a pinch of salt and continue stirring until your breakfast is nice and hot.

Split between 2 bowls and top with dried fruit, if using. I like to add a splash of almond milk.

Serve immediately to 2 happy people (including yourself).

bb note: This recipe can be considered gluten-free and vegan if you don’t do the dairy thing with butter or milk.

More hot cereal options:

Add a teaspoon of Silan (date syrup) while cooking your quinoa cereal.

Swap the almond butter for a teaspoon or two of brown sugar.

Cook  the dried fruit with the cereal to soften the raisins or apricots or cranberries up.

Swap dried fruit for fresh fruit: strawberries, blueberries, mixed berries or sliced bananas.

Add a splash of almond or regular milk to the bowl before serving.

Stir in a small pat of butter before serving.

Drizzle with honey before serving.