I was in Moab last weekend running a half marathon to support the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society and stumbled upon a great little natural cafe on Main Street – Love Muffin Cafe. My mom and I had a fabulous baked tofu sandwich with vegetables and ginger but what really struck my eye was the red quinoa for breakfast. I’ve been searching for new breakfast recipes that are filling, but outside the traditional pancakes and french toast fair. So this morning, I whipped up a bowl of red quinoa for breakast. This is one that I”ll be making again. It’s easy to experiment with this one. Just use stuff you have in the cabinets. Let me know how it goes.

What you need

• 2 dried mission figs
• 6 dried dates
• 4 dried prunes
• 8 dried cherries
• 1 cup hot water
• 1 tsp agave nectar
• 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 1 cup red quinoa
• 1/3 cup walnuts, chopped
• 1/4 cup shredded coconut
• 2 Tbsp ground flax seed
• 1 1/2 cups almond milk

How to make it

First, soak all your dried fruit in the hot water for 5-10 minutes, until softened. Then chop fruit into bite-size pieces. 

You’re going to use the leftover water to cook your quinoa. I use a rice cooker, but you can also cook it in a saucepan just like rice. Add the agave nectar and vanilla to the water and stir. Then cook your quinoa.

While the quinoa is cooking, roast the walnuts in a frying pan. You don’t need any oil as long as you keep stirring your walnuts frequently. Remove the walnuts from heat when golden brown. Be careful not to burn.

When the quinoa is ready, mix it with the fruit, walnuts, flax seed and coconut in a large bowl. Serve in cereal bowls, with almond milk on top.

Makes 2-3 servings.

Tags: healthy, vegan