Banana Quinoa Breakfast

Adapted from: http://nutritionfor.us/2012/09/crock-pot-banana-bread-quinoa/#&disp=180301

Courtesy of: The Realistic Nutritionist

Made on: 01/19/2015

Yield: About a cup and a half, or three ½ cup servings

INGREDIENTS

- ½ cup Quinoa

- ¼ cup Unsweetened Vanilla Almond Milk

- ½ cup Water

- 1 Banana

- 2 tablespoons Chopped Nuts (I used pecans)

- 1 tablespoon Brown Sugar

- ½ teaspoon Vanilla

- ½ tablespoon Cinnamon

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Mash the banana and put it in a small crockpot.

2. Add all other ingredients to the crockpot. Stir to mix.

3. Cook on low for 4-6 hours. Optional: Additional milk, water or creamer for thinning; Additional brown sugar or honey for sweetening

Serve warm!

Adjustments I made: The original recipe called for butter, which I omitted and, having never tasted the original, I didn’t feel like I was missing out. I used pecans instead of walnuts simply because I had some chopped pecans in my pantry. I cut out the creamer and used the recipe author’s recommendation by replacing it with cinnamon. I always have unsweetened vanilla almond milk, so that is what I use in most recipes I am trying to make low-calorie, and it hasn’t steered me wrong yet!

Adjustments I would like to make: I might try honey instead of brown sugar next time, and I’m open to trying the quinoa with different kinds of fruits instead of a banana just to see what works best.

Overall Satisfaction: Pretty tasty. It was a nice change of pace, and I enjoyed it, but quinoa will just never quite beat oatmeal for me. Ellie and I liked it, and Brandon… ate it. I didn’t even bother trying to make the boys eat it this time around. They’re not quite as adventurous first thing in the morning. Random note: I discovered that my little crockpot is a little uneven in the cooking department. One side was much darker than the other side, though not burnt. I may have let it cook a little longer than 6 hours, but it was nice to have quinoa that was really, really cooked because sometimes I find it a little too crunchy.

Would I Make it Again? Probably. When I’m looking to shake things up or boost my protein, I’ll keep this recipe in my back pocket.

OK, so it's not the prettiest breakfast in the world, but it still tasted good!