Quinoa & Chia Crunchy Cereal

I love cereal, but I’ve cut back since switching to my healthier diet due to all the processed ingredients in cereals. If I do eat cereal, I like to buy a raw brand cereal, making sure there’s no bad sugars in there. So when I saw this recipe from Oh She Glows of homemade cereal, I was intrigued to try it out.

Makes 2 servings

1 1/2 cups cooked quinoa
1 T chia seeds
2 T pure raw agave nectar
1/2-3/4 t cinnamon
1 t vanilla
pinch or two sea salt

1. Soak quinoa 2 hours prior and rinse
2. Cook quinoa with water, with amount as directed on package
3. In a small bowl mix everything together. Pour onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Break up into chunks with a spoon and flatten with a hand as if you were making flatbread.
4. Cook for 40-50 minutes at 375F, being sure to check half way through and adjust cooking time if necessary. Cereal should be slightly golden brown when finished. Remove from oven and cool.

It was good and crunchy. I enjoyed it with some almond milk. I would make it again except it is time consuming just for 2 bowls of cereal. If I make it again, I would double the batch next time so at least it’d last a little longer.

Blueberry Quinoa

Cooked quinoa with almond milk and some cinnamon, topped with blueberries.

Comments on Final Outcome:
This is a great breakfast, in replacement of oatmeal. However, it’s a pain to prep! It’s not a dish where you can make in, like, 10 min. I had to soak the quinoa for ~4 hours to get the saponin off, then rinse it several times to make sure it’s washed well. Otherwise, I’d make it more often.

My reason for keeping this ingredient around in my life:
Quinoa is high in protein and it’s actually complete protein (has all 9 essential amino acids), so it’s good for vegetarians. Also, it’s gluten-free.