choc berry breakfast quinoa | recipe

This quinoa dish is full of all sorts of good stuff, making for a light, healthy breakfast. Quinoa is high in protein, making it a great way to start the day & the addition of cocoa powder, vanilla & berries helps it taste wonderful.

It is also a quick-to-make breakfast, using already cooked quinoa & is gluten & dairy free. I use a combination of dried & frozen berries, but if you are lucky enough to have fresh you can certainly use them.

Firstly you need to cook the quinoa - the following amount will make several breakfast, I just keep the rest in the fridge.

1 cup quinoa
2 cups water
pinch of salt

Rinse the quinoa, before placing in a small saucepan with the salt & water.
Bring to the boil, then reduce to a simmer & cook until the water is absorbed - about 15-20min. I like to leave it to cool in the pot with the lid on, then store in a container in the fridge.

choc berry breakfast quinoa

adapted from Eating for England

3/4 cup cooked quinoa

1/4 cup oat milk (or milk of your choice)

1 tsp cocoa powder

1/2 tsp vanilla essence

1 tsp chia seeds (optional)

sugar, maple syrup, honey or sweetener of your choice (I use rapadura sugar)

handful dried cranberries

handful frozen blueberries

Place quinoa, milk, cocoa, vanilla, seeds, cranberries & a sprinkle of sweetener* in a small saucepan. Cook over medium heat until hot - add the blueberries once it has started to get hot & cook until the berries are defrosted. Tip into a bowl to serve.

*I use very little sweetener in mine - I find the oat milk makes it quite sweet anyway, even with the cocoa powder. You can always add extra once it's cooked, so don't add much to start with.

You can adapt this in a myriad of ways - different dried or fresh fruit, adding some chopped nuts, dessicated coconut or anything you enjoy.

fruit & grain biscuits {aka Dad's biscuits} | recipe

I came up with these biscuits a few years ago when my Dad needed to eat gluten free for a while. Based on a traditional Anzac biscuit recipe, these biscuits are made with gluten-free flour, a mixture of different flakes & honey (although you can use the traditional golden syrup). I've also added some dried fruit (use a mix of whatever you have).

The mix of flakes in this batch is quinoa, brown rice, millet, amaranth & oats**. Use whatever you have, although I do advise a mix of sizes - if all your flakes are tiny, it will affect the texture. These are perfect with a cup of tea & keep very well. I'm baking for lots of people, so I generally make a double batch.

Dad’s Biscuits

adapted from a traditional Anzac biscuit recipe

makes about 26

140g plain flour - gluten free*
70g raw sugar
120g mixed flakes (quinoa, rice, buckwheat, amaranth, millet**)
40g LSA meal (linseed, sunflower & almond meal - you can just use almond/hazelnut meal)
55g desiccated coconut
70g dried fruit (sultanas, cranberries, chopped apple, peach, apricot)
125g unsalted butter
80g honey or golden syrup
½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 tbsp (20ml) boiling water

Preheat oven to 180C (350F) & line trays with baking paper.
Sift flour into a mixing bowl, add sugar, flakes, LSA, coconut, dried fruit & stir to combine. Make a well in the centre.
Put butter & honey into a small pan, stir over low heat until butter is melted & mixture is smooth. Remove from heat. Dissolve soda in water; add immediately to butter mix. It will foam up instantly. Add to dry ingredients & using a wooden spoon, stir until well combined.
Drop tightly packed tablespoonfuls*** of the mix onto trays & flatten slightly.
Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until golden brown.
Leave on trays for 5 min, before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

* you can use a bought gluten free flour mix, or make your own. My mix (based on the mix & method found on Gluten Free Girl) is as follows (for 500g of flour):

- 100g sorgham flour
- 100g millet flour
- 150g rice flour
- 150g tapioca flour

If you don't have these flours, or you want to try a different combination, go read this post on Gluten Free Girl, there are lots of alternatives.

**we're not strictly gluten-free & so I often also add oats to the biscuits. I've read different things about the gluten content of oats, so if you are baking for someone who is celiac, don't put any in.

***my tablespoon is the standard Australian size of 20ml - the standard size in some countries is 15ml. If you are using a 15ml tablespoon, your biscuits might bake quicker.

no-bake choc fruit bites | recipe

Not that long ago, we picked up a packet mix for fruit (or energy) balls. They were pretty nice & I've been keeping a look out for a recipe to try making my own. Then I came across these, which looked good & worked very nicely. Since then, I've been experimenting with other flavours & these chocolaty ones are my favourite so far.

These are delicious & make a great snack. Despite the word 'choc' in the title, they contain very little chocolate (you can omit the chocolate entirely if you want - they are still delicious, just a bit less chocolaty) & are full of healthy ingredients. No added sweetener, vegan**, easy to make, delicious...what more could you ask for?

no-bake choc fruit bites 
recipe adapted from Texanerin

makes 24-30

75g walnuts
70g rolled oats
40g dark chocolate** (optional)
2 teaspoons chia seeds (optional)
180g dates
180g sultanas or dried cranberries
2 teaspoons vanilla essence
4 teaspoons cocoa powder
½ - 1 cup quinoa or amaranth flakes or oat bran
½ - 1 cup rolled oats

In a food processor grind walnuts, oats & chocolate (if using) add the chia seeds & set aside. Put the dates & sultanas or cranberries in the food processor & process until smooth (it may all clump up into a big ball, just process it a little more & it should smooth out). Add the vanilla & cocoa powder & process until combined.
Tip the oat & nut mixture back in & give it a quick pulse. Now you begin adding the extra grains. Start with ¼ cup of each, pulse, and see if you like the consistency. Keep adding the oats & quinoa/amaranth/oat bran a little at a time until it seems like enough. You don’t want to make your mix too dry – it should stick together when you squeeze it.
Transfer the mix to a bowl & roll & squeeze into balls. Mine are usually about 2.5 – 3cm, but you can make them any size you like. Put on a tray & leave in the fridge for 30min to harden, then transfer to a container. Store in the fridge.


**the dark chocolate I used is vegan, but some dark chocolate has dairy in it, so check the label

*I usually end up adding ½ - ¾ cup extra of each grain & you can make them with just rolled oats if you don’t have the other grains

*to make an apricot & coconut version: replace the dates with dried apricots & omit the cocoa powder & chocolate. Add ½ cup desiccated coconut with the nuts & oats. You will need less of the extra grains at the end. 

*you can easily add other seeds, lsa meal, dried fruit, whatever you like.