Sometimes we wake up hungry and want a hearty breakfast to get us going for the day and the traditional egg just won’t cut it, so why not try something different. Being a lover of all types of food, I must admit that breakfast is by far my favorite meal that could be had anytime of the day.
The inspiration behind the strawberry banana berry quinoa protein brekkie, the Australian word for breakfast, comes from my daughters. Our morning routine consists of Maddie and Lexie trying to agree on anything which often leads to fights and cries- they are after all sisters. The day I made this dish they just stopped and looked at it like it was a work of art and said mommy what’s that, is that dessert, is that for us? If you are a parent you can agree that it can be hard to get children interested in trying new foods and sometimes you must experiment a bit as I did with this dish. You see my daughters love sweets for breakfast and the occasional steak and egg but mainly sweets. So instead of giving them a traditional cereal or pastry I created this dish which on the surface just looks like fruit but is packed with tons of protein and quinoa. I love quinoa, it is a gluten free plant food that has all nine amino acids and is a complete source of protein and is packed with vitamins and minerals. Quinoa pronounced kee-noo-wah is one of those foods most children don’t like to eat because they don’t know what it is or it may look odd to them. In making this breakfast I thought of adding some of the basic things my children love, bananas, strawberries and mixing it up to plate this amazing breakfast. I encourage you to try it either for brekkie, lunch, snack or dessert, it’s the epitome of yummy goodness.
Buen Provecho!
Strawberry Banana Berry Quinoa Protein Brekkie
Printable Version
Yield: Serves 4 Total Time: 15-20 minutes
Ingredients:
-1 Box/1lb. of Fresh Strawberries
-1 Cup of Shredded Coconut
-4 Bananas
-1/2 Cup of Chia Seeds
-1/2 Cup of Goldenberries
-1/2 Cup of Goji Berries
-4 Tablespoons of Almond Butter
-Cinnamon
-Tricolor Quinoa
Equipment Needed:
-Cutting Board
-Knife
-Measuring Spoon
-Measuring Cup
-Fine Strainer
-Boiling Pan
-Sautéing Pan
-Serving Dishes
-Spoon
-Wooden Spoon or Spatula
Prep & Directions:
-Get your bag of tricolor quinoa and pour 1 cup of quinoa over a fine strainer and rinse
with cold water to remove any residue and drain
-Get a sauté pan and put it on the stove and turn the gas/electric knob to a low
setting
-Then put your drained quinoa on the sauté pan and gently sauté until you start to
hear the quinoa pop, making sure not to burn the quinoa, this process is important
and helps give the quinoa a nice flavor
-Once the quinoa has finished roasting set aside
-Get your boiling pan and put it on the stove and turn the gas/electric knob to a high
setting
-Get your measuring cup and get 2 cups of water and pour water into the boiling pan
-Then add the roasted quinoa into the boiling pan
-Gently boil the quinoa and then reduce to simmer, ensuring to cover the boiling pan
with a lid, this should take about 15 minutes and once it’s cooked it will feel soft and
look like a sprout emerged from the seed
-After the quinoa is cooked, set it aside and let it cool down
-Rinse the strawberries and destem, then slice into thin pieces and set aside
-Peel the bananas and slice into thin pieces and set aside
-Get your plate and with a spoon get your quinoa and pour the quinoa in a line in the
middle of the plate
-Get a tablespoon of almond butter and put on top of the quinoa
-Get your sliced bananas and place along both sides of the quinoa and almond butter
to form what looks like a pitched tent
-Get your sliced strawberries and place right above the bananas along both sides and
in the middle of the quinoa
-Get your shredded coconut and sprinkle a small handful over your dish, leaving the
rest for your other plates
-Get your goji berries, goldenberries, and chia seeds and sprinkle a small handful over
your dish, leaving the rest for your other plates
-Finally sprinkle with a dash of cinnamon
-Repeat this process for the other plates
-Store the remaining quinoa in a glass container and wait for it to cool down before
refrigerating
*****Feel free to add more of the ingredients and season to suit your taste buds*****