Warming Slow Cooked Quinoa Porridge With Apple And Cinnamon
We all know how important a healthy breakfast is for general well being and weight loss, but with the cooler months coming, you may find that your get up and go has got up and gone!
We’re drawn to cool foods in the warm months to keep our bodies hydrated, while the colder months have us reaching for richer, warming foods that comfort and restore.
More about The Healthy Mummy’s amazing breakfast recipes
While your Healthy Mummy smoothie is a fabulous, year round breakfast option, having a few other options means you can mix things up, without resorting to unhealthy dishes.
If you’re looking to add to your repertoire, why not try this delicious, nutritious, weight loss friendly alternative to porridge which uses slow cooked quinoa to create a protein rich, creamy breakfast dish.
The biggest bonus? You do all the prep the night before so serving up the first meal of the day is as easy as taking the lid off the crock pot and scooping out a serving!
Quinoa has quite the nutritional powerhouse reputation. Full of muscle building, metabolism boosting protein, it’s also gluten free, low in calories and packed full of other essential vitamins and minerals.
All these features combined means that it’s a great option to include on your brekky menu, keeping you full and satisfied throughout the morning, with plenty of energy to burn.
The inclusion of cinnamon and honey adds plenty of flavour and sweetness without a huge number of calories, while fresh fruit and nuts up the protein and vitamin count. We used grated apple, raspberries and crushed up pecans but you could use whatever fruit you have to hand.
Enjoy!
Servings |
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- 1 cup quinoa
- 2.5 cups milk (cows, soy or nut)
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 2 tsp vanilla essence or paste
- 1 tbsp honey or pure maple syrup
- ¼ apple grated
- ½ cup raspberries
- ¼ cup pecans coarsely chopped or other nuts
Ingredients
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- Rinse quinoa under fresh running water and drain
- Place in the bowl of a slow cooker
- Add the milk and stir to combine
- Add the cinnamon stick, vanilla, honey/maple syrup, apple, raspberries and pecans and stir to combine
- Turn slow cooker onto ‘low’ and allow to simmer for 6-8 hours (overnight is ideal)
- Serve with extra milk or even low fat, natural yoghurt and a drizzle of extra honey
- NOTE: Slow cookers and the temperature they reach vary greatly. This can influence the time taken to cook dishes like this porridge. The general rule of thumb with seeds like quinoa is 1 cup of seeds to 2.5 cups of liquid. If you find that your porridge is cooking too quickly or starting to burn, you may need to add more liquid to the mix. Half a cup of water or milk mixed into the crock pot should help prevent any further burning.
Cal per serve -170