If you’re craving some breakfast inspiration that’ll get your kids excited about eating first thing in the morning, look to our latest edition of Kid-Friendly Eats to get you sorted mama. A modern take on an old classic, this delish recipe will have them chowing down their breakfast pronto — no complaints.
Grains have an impressive nutritional content, are simple, cheap, filling, and on the whole, quick to cook. Grains and pseudograins are little nuggets of goodness, so including a wide variety of different grains as part of a well-balanced diet is a good thing – for you and your kids!
Grains are a great source of starch (complex carbohydrates for energy), protein, fibre (for a healthy digestive system), B group vitamins, vitamin E, iron, magnesium, zinc, and phosphorous. Try to choose whole-grains over their refined counterparts though (for current recommendations according to gender and age click here).
A new addition to the breakfast menu rotation in our house recently has been hot porridge (taking me back to my Scottish roots) but with the addition of other grains to add different flavours and textures. Our favourite so far has been the addition of red quinoa.
Quinoa is an excellent source of protein, fibre, magnesium, phosphorous, and potassium. It’s also a very rich source of folate and is quite unique in that it does in fact contain all of the 9 essential amino acids that our bodies can’t produce on their own (termed “essential” because we need to eat them!). To the porridge it adds some colour, crunch and a wonderful nutty flavour… and is an interesting take on the oat-based porridge that we ate as kids!
Quinoa Breakfast Porridge
A healthy, tasty, satisfying way to start the day!
Ingredients
¾ cup of whole oats
¼ cup quinoa, red
3 cups milk
2 tablespoons natural yoghurt
¼ cup blackberries
¼ cup raspberries
2 tablespoons flaked almonds, toasted
1 teaspoon honey
Method
1. Rinse the quinoa thoroughly. Add to a medium saucepan with the oats and milk and allow to soak for 15 minutes.
2. Place the saucepan over a medium-high heat on the stovetop and bring to a gentle boil. Once boiling reduce the heat and allow to simmer until the mixture becomes thick and creamy, approximately 15 minutes.
3. Serve immediately, topped with yoghurt, berries, almonds, honey, and a splash of extra milk.
**If you would like to make a gluten-free version of this dish simply omit the oats and replace with the same amount of quinoa (quinoa is a gluten-free grain). It’s a delicious variation!
Melissa Bujtor, originally from Australia, now based in Singapore, is an ex-banker turned mum and budding food and lifestyle photographer. She is extremely passionate about all things food, especially when she can combine it with her other love – travel! You can view Melissa’s work and contact her via her blog here.