Quinoa Breakfast Pudding

Quinoa is becoming a familiar staple in the cupboards of many of my family and friends. Until recently, many people had never heard of this healthy, tasty little seed. Quinoa can be used in place of rice or couscous, and provides a complete protein. Quinoa has more protein than any other "grain" and is very versatile. Most people think of quinoa for lunch or dinner, but you can also make it into a breakfast pudding, and eat it instead of oatmeal or cereal. Below is a great quinoa breakfast pudding recipe I've made a few times now. You can make up a batch and then just re-heat a serving each morning. I've also added a cut up banana to the top, and that's tasty, too!

Quinoa Breakfast Pudding

1 cup quinoa
2 cups water
1 cup vanilla almond milk (or any other type of milk)
½ cup raisins or cranberries
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
salt to taste
2 teaspoons vanilla extract (increase to 3 tsps if using plain almond milk)
2 organic apples, peeled, cored and diced
1/4 cup real maple syrup

Place quinoa in a sieve and rinse thoroughly (unless your quinoa is pre-rinsed, then you can skip this step). Allow to drain and then place quinoa in a medium saucepan with water and cinnamon. Bring to a boil over high heat. Cover pan with lid, lower heat, and allow to simmer until all water is absorbed and quinoa is tender, about 15 minutes.

Mix in milk, fruit, lemon juice, vanilla, syrup and salt. Cover pan and allow to simmer for 15 minutes longer. Serve warm. This makes about 5 servings.