Winter Warmer Quinoa Porridge

As the weather starts to get colder, and it becomes a little harder to get up in the mornings, my muesli and yoghurt just isn't cutting it. While it still fills me up and is satisfyingly yummy, it leaves me with no warmth in my stomach to get me through the cold mornings until lunch time.

This morning I tried out a new recipe and approach on porridge, by incorporating some Quinoa with my oats. If you are gluten intolerant, you can of course skip the oats completely. 

Many like to use quinoa flakes instead of the quinoa seeds, which would certainly cut your cooking time down in the mornings if you are on a tight schedule. Before we jump to the recipe, here's a little quinoa education for those that have been interested, but not sure what this super-food is all about.

Quinoa 101:

Pronounced "Keen-Wa" , is a grain-like crop that is grown for its edible seeds. Originating in the Andean region of Ecuador, Bolivia, Columbia and Peru, where it was successfully domesticated 3,000 to 4,000 years ago for human consumption

Quinoa seeds contain essential amino acids like lysine and good quantities of calcium, phosphorus, and iron.

The Incans, who held the crop to be sacred,referred to quinoa as chisaya mama or "mother of all grains. Today, people appreciate quinoa for its nutritional value. Quinoa is considered a superfood. Protein content is very high (14% by mass), yet not as high as most beans and legumes. Quinoa's protein content per 100 calories is higher than brown rice, potatoes, barley and millet, but is less than wild rice and oats. 

Nutritional evaluations of quinoa indicate that it is a source of complete protein. Furthermore, it is a good source of dietary fibre and phosphorus, high in magnesium, iron, a source of calcium and useful for vegans and those who are lactose intolerant. Quinoa is also gluten-free and considered easy to digest.

Winter Warmer Quinoa Porridge

Serves 2 (or if you're a single lady, 2 yummy breakfasts that you wont need to share)

Ingredients

3 Cups Water

1/4 Cup of red or white quinoa

1 Cup of oats

a handful of sultanas

a handful of almonds, walnuts - roughly chopped

honey or pure maple syrup

Instructions

- Pour the water into a saucepan and bring it to the boil

- Add the quinoa and boil for 10 minutes over a high heat

*** For those that are time poor, you can replace the above with 1 cup quinoa flakes to 2 cups water, and this would only need to boil for 3-4 minutes ***

- Stir in the oats, sultanas and nits, then reduce the heat and simmer for 5-10 minutes or until the water has been absorbed, and the mixture is at the conistency that you prefer.

- You can add a little water, or milk of your choosing if the porridge is too gluggy for your taste

- Serve drizzled with the maple syrup or honey

I also added ground cinnamon to mine just before serving, with a sprinkle of shredded coconut, chia seeds and an LSA mix. I also cut up some fresh strawberries and a table spoon of natural greek yoghurt.

The best thing about making porridge is that you can play around with all kinds of optional extras. Cocoa nibs, coconut, blueberries, more/less yoghurt... the choice is yours!

Enjoy!

Images: My Own

Sources: Wikipedia | Quinoa: Production, Consumption and Social Value in Historical Context by Alan.L Kolata