This is one of my new grain-free breakfast favorites.  It takes less than 5 minutes to make from start to finish and completely fills me up!

The recipe below is from the Trim Healthy Mama book/cookbook that I’ve been using for the past month or so (it’s worth every penny of the cost – just read the reviews at the link below!)

You can change it up some if you would to as well. If you don’t want the chocolate then just add enough extra almond flour/flax meal to cover that extra 1 Tbsp and then just add whatever else you want in the muffin (like blueberries, apple/cinnamon, chocolate chips, banana/nuts, etc.).

Almond flour is MUCH more expensive than flax meal, so if you can handle the taste of more flax meal then you can divide up that 3 Tbsp. of almond/flax however you would like to as long as there is 3 Tbsp total (or 4 Tbsp. if you don’t add in the chocolate).

Products used in this recipe:

Quinoa is gluten free, low in fat, rich in riboflavin, and a high quality protein thus the nickname Supergrain.  Many use it as part of a grain-free diet since it’s not a member of the grass family and more closely resembles spinach or beets.  Promising never to spike your blood sugar, it is easy to prepare and incorporate in your diet.  Quinoa Salad makes it simple for those just venturing into incorporating quinoa into their meal plans and the taste of this flavorful dish will definitely keep you coming back for more!

Quinoa Salad

Last year I was working on the coupon matchups for Sunflower Farmers Market (now Sprouts) and I had a question about the price of their quinoa.  I called the store and asked the guy who answered what the price was on the bulk “quehn-oh-uh”.  ”I’m sorry, could you say that again?”  ”Um, quehn-oh-uh?  It’s spelled q-u-i-n-o-a.”  ”OH, “keen-wah”.  Yes, just one minute.”

I learned how to say it that day, but I didn’t venture out to actually try cooking it until this year.   To be honest, it kind of scared me a little.  I had known about quinoa for a while but had never even had it, much less tried to cook it, so it took going grain-free for me to give it a go.

I watched some youtube videos on how to cook it and it’s actually very easy to make and doesn’t take much time at all.  AND, I think it tastes great!

Quinoa is perfect for a grain-free lifestyle!

It is a pseudocereal rather than a true cereal, or grain, as it is not a member of the true grass family. As a chenopod, quinoa is closely related to species such as beets, spinach and tumbleweeds. -Wikipedia

I use Quinoa instead of rice and noodles, or as a side dish all on its own. It’s also a great addition to salads!

Here’s how to make perfect quinoa:

I usually make at least 2 cups worth so that I can have plenty leftover to use in another meal later in the week.  I typically don’t like leftover rice, but leftover quinoa is great!