People Underestimate the Value of a Good Ramble

Friday, October 1, 2010

Breakfast anyone....

I'm still trying to eat better, when at all possible, but it gets harder as the weather gets colder. In wet, cold, yucky weather, I crave comfort food, all of which, while comforting, tends to be on the less healthy and more fattening side as well.

So I was very proud of my new breakfast cereal invention this week. I've been having lots of yogurt, plain, with berries, which was great for the Summer, but wasn't cutting it as we head into Fall.  So this week I made up a weeks supply of a yummy, healthy, fruity, nutty, grainy hot cereal that's been just perfect.

It was really easy.  Here's what I did:

I toasted 1/2 cup each of millet and quinoa, added a tablespoon of butter, a touch of sea salt and some stevia. (Don't ask for exact amounts, cause I don't cook that way.) Then I added almond milk (about 3 to 1 to the grains),  brought it to a boil, reduced to a simmer and cooked for a while (1/2 hour maybe).  Added more almond milk (1 1/2 cups), brought it to a boil again, then 1/2 cup of oatmeal , cinnamon, vanilla, peeled and chopped apple, chopped dried apricots and cherries, toasted slivered almonds and chopped pecans. I simmered for about another 10-15 mins and voila!

It was warm and creamy, but had a crunchy texture, too. It even looks good.

I'm excited thinking about what other fun foods I can make up this winter that will still be comforting, but can take the place of less healthy alternatives.

2 comments:

Tammi Kibler @ How Do You Cook Quinoa? said...

Interesting, I don't usually cook my quinoa that long, but I imagine it would become very smooth and rich tasting with all that almond milk.

Yum, a real morning comfort quinoa.

Toni said...

It was definitely creamy and smooth, with the nuts to add crunch. I wanted to let all that liquid really cook into it. But you could certainly cook it less or add the quinoa later in the process.

It was really good. I've made it a few times since and added brown rice and different types of fruit, like pears and dried cranberries. It's always awesome.