Creamy Peaches and Coconut Quinoa “Oatmeal”
Lent is over, guys. It is finally over!
Well, I say finally. That wouldn’t really be accurate, for I must admit that I wasn’t particularly relieved when I woke up on Easter morning.
I’ll admit to having been a “bad” girl on Easter day, though. I really over indulged in all things sweet… And I did have this HUGE bowl of cereal for breakfast.
But all in all, things went good. I didn’t go overly nuts… and now, things are back to normal for this girl.
Don’t worry, I’ll fill you in on all the details soon. Sorry I don’t have a recap ready for you just yet. I’m really bad at planning these things. Like I’m really bad at coming up with “Holiday themed recipes” ahead of time. I always think about it when it’s already way too late.
Sorry about that. I guess I’ll have to wisen up for the future. I’ll work on that, promise!
And I WILL have a Lent recap to share with you soon.
I swear!
Now, during Lent, I got this major craving for a nice bowl of warm oatmeal, which would happen to be one of my favorite week-end breakfasts, ESPECIALLY during the colder months.
I find there’s just something so comforting about oatmeal.
But while being off grains, indulging in this gooey delicacy was not an option for me. Still, I had to find a way to work around this little obstacle. I had to find an alternative.
I looked in my cupboards for non grains that could be made into a nice bowl of creamy, warm cereal. Of course, quinoa was the obvious choice.
I thought that quinoa alone, however, might be a little boring, so I decided to also add a little bit of amaranth. I am so totally in love with this tiny little seed, I just have to add it to warm cereal as often as I possibly can. And I thought that it would pair up absolutely beautifully with quinoa, not only visually, but also in texture.
As far as I am concerned, these two are a perfect match! They both have this “explosive” nature, this super sexy translucence, and this adorable, irresistible “minuteness”.
I think that this bowl of warm cereal ended up being even better than the oatmeal I’d been craving. It certainly was creamy yet chewy, gooey and definitely comforting!
Now I was in the mood for peaches and cream, but of course, you can feel free to use any fruit that you have readily available. Blueberry, raspberry, apple, mango, orange, dates, pears, banana, strawberry, fresh figs… those would all be brilliant options.
As well, you could use just about any variety of nut for a little bit of a bite and flavor accent: walnuts, hazelnuts, Brazil nuts, chestnuts, pistachio, almonds, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, or hummmm…. peanut butter!
Oh my… I think I could eat this every day for the next 6 months…
And I don’t think that I’d be having the same combination twice.
I get the feeling that this will even be dinner some night this week.
I just gave myself needs…
Oh, it’s so hard to be a foodie sometimes!
CREAMY PEACHES AND COCONUT QUINOA CEREAL
[Grain Free, Gluten Free, Refined Sugar Free]
INGREDIENTS
(Serves 1 extremely hungry human being or 2 more modest appetites)
- ½ cup quinoa
- ¼ cup amaranth
- 1 cup young coconut water
- 1 cup + ½ cup almond milk
- ¼ tsp salt
- 2 tbsp unsweetened shredded coconut
- 1 peach, peeled and cut into 1″ chunks (save a few slices to garnish, if desired)
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1 scoop (35g) vanilla flavored whey protein
- 2 tbsp young coconut water
- In a fine mesh sieve, rinse quinoa under running water until it no longer “foams” and water runs clear.
- Transfer to a medium saucepan. Add amaranth, young coconut water, 1 cup almond milk and salt. Bring to a boil over high heat, then lower heat, cover and simmer, stirring occasionally until all the liquid has evaporated, about 10-12 minutes.
- Remove from heat. Add coconut, peach, and vanilla extract. Cover and let sit for about 5 minutes.
- Meanwhile, dilute whey protein in 2 tbsp coconut water. Stir that into warm cereal and transfer to serving bowl(s).
- Garnish with coconut cream or fat free Greek plain yogurt, peach slices and toasted coconut shavings, if desired.
39 Comments on “Creamy Peaches and Coconut Quinoa “Oatmeal””
That looks so creamy+tasty! I’ve had quinoa for breakfast once and loved it… I should have it more often! My go-to is oats because they are quicker. I will have to try amaranth… Although isn’t that a grain? I looked up where to buy it and it is advertised as a grain…
Quinoa would be one of my favorite non grains now, along with buckwheat groats! Both are exremely versatile and make for really great morning cereal too! As for amaranth, it often is mistaken for a grain, but it in fact is a seed… just like buckwheat! If you can get your hands on it, definitely get some! 🙂
Looks great… I’m a tad obsessed with quinoa for breakfast at the moment – this would be amazing with coconut milk too 🙂
You got that one right, Lou, and I’m sure that if I had had any on hand when I made this, it would now be part of the ingredient list! 😉
I was wondering what you were going to do when lent came to a close. I would have had a big bowl of cereal, too. Good for you for pulling through on this 🙂
Thanks much, Leanne! It wasn’t nearly as hard as I imagined it would be. I have to admit though, that bowl of cereal sure was heavenly! No way I can give up on this for the rest of my life… The fact that I chose to restrict my grain intake does make them so much better! From now on, cereal will be heavenly EVERY single time I choose to have a bowl! I see that as a good thing! 🙂
That looks delightful!
This looks so summery! I love that you added peaches – I think I’ll have to go and buy some to add to my next bowl of Kellogg’s FiberPlus Cinnamon Oat Crunch cereal.
This looks delicious…I try to have oatmeal for breakfast on a regular basis. I am excited to try this one for a change of flavors from the usual berries!
What a beautiful porridge! I’m actually not a fan of sweet oatmeal, I only like it savory with eggs. I do love sweet breakfasts in general, though.
I bought amaranth for the first time about a year ago and believe it or not I still haven’t tried it! I wanted to make popped amaranth, but my batch burned and I didn’t give it another try.
What does coconut water add to the dish, though? I’m not familiar with it.
Oh, coconut water adds sooo much flavor and sweetness, for a start, but it also adds a whole bunch of nutrients, such as potassium, vitamins, minerals and electrolytes. I buy mine in cans at my local Asian food market.
Of course, if you don’t have any, you could very well use plain water…
I’ve never tried savory oatmeal with eggs. Sounds intriguing though. How does it work? Do you whisk raw eggs into your porridge or do you top it with a poached egg? Or is it something completely different?
I don’t think I can find it here, so I’ll probably just sub coconut milk for almond milk and coconut water if I try this.
I make oatmeal with only water and salt and then I top it with fried eggs. If you prefer a creamier base you could whisk one egg into the oatmeal and put on on the top, but I prefer crispier base (sometimes I bake it on the pan after cooking). I guess with poached eggs it would be even better, but I’ve never poached an egg. I’m nervous to try that, haha.
Have you tried popping amaranth?
Your oatmeal dish reminded me of this one here and gave me an instant craving! I get the feeling that it will be happening in my kitchen fairly soon, but with a poached egg on top, as opposed to baked. Poaching eggs isn’t all that hard. I’ve posted a video somewhere on my site, in one of my posts… I’ll try and find it for you. It was a life changer for me, really. Well, ok… it didn’t change my life per se… but it sure got me poaching eggs like a pro! 😉
No, I’ve never tried popping amaranth. It’s quite an intriguing concept, really! I will definitely have to give it a try someday. It looks soooo pretty! Thanks for the link, by they way! I appreciate that!
Now, let me try and find that link to the poaching egg technique for you!
Gee! I thought it would take me way longer than that! I found it instantly. Here you go! Now you too, can poach eggs like a pro! 😉
That looks delicious, too! I have been planning on trying to poach eggs for the longest time now, I should really just do it. Hopefully with success. 🙂
I’m already in love with quinoa and now you’ve made me want to find out where I can get amaranth as I have not tasted that before. This sure looks a whole lot better then oatmeal to me!
The texture is very different than that of oatmeal, but extremely interesting nonetheless. If I was told I could never have oatmeal ever again, this would be a very suitable replacement, and I wouldn’t feel so sad… You definitely need to get your hands on amaranth. It’s just the coolest little seed. I fell in love at first bite and will forever be thankful to Leanne (@ Healthful Pursuit) for having me discover this. Make sure to share your impressions if / when you try it!
O and love your new profile pic too!
Oh thanks! I wasn’t quite convinced… Good to hear! 😀
So I’m sure you’ve had one before…but I couldn’t help nominating you for some more awards 🙂
http://cravingsgoneclean.wordpress.com/2012/04/11/versatile-blogger-and-liebster-awards/
Thanks much Lauren! Too funny, that’s my third nomination in as many weeks. Guess I’ll have to get busy and deliver the goods now! I truly appreciate your nominating me! 🙂
This looks so taaaasty ! I would like to try it, but, since I’m french, I guess the quantities… ? how big is a “cup” to you? argh why are all the awesome food blogs in english, can’t seem to find any in french! anyway sorry for the little rant xD
Laura, je peux comprendre ta frustration! J’aimerais bien écrire en français, mais l’anglais me permet de rejoindre et d’inspirer un nombre beaucoup plus important de lecteurs, tu vois. 😉 Sens-toi bien libre de commenter ou de poser des questions en français par contre, il me fera plus que plaisir de te répondre! 🙂
Alors voyons voir… une tasse de liquide équivaut à 250ml. Pour les solides, c’est un peu plus compliqué. Si tu veux, je mets une demi tasse de quinoa et un quart de tasse d’amaranthe sur la balance ce soir et je te donne leurs poids respectifs en grammes? Ça t’aiderait?
Oh le problème n’est pas de comprendre les recette en soi, ça va je comprend plutôt bien l’anglais, c’est juste pour les quantités ! J’avais pas vu que tu venais du Québec ^^
Ce serait vraiment gentil de peser pour moi oui 🙂 merci beaucoup !
Bon, alors voilà! Les deux ingrédients ont plus ou moins le même poids; un quart de tasse d’amaranthe pèse 50g et une demi-tasse de quinoa pèse 90g. J’espère vraiment que ça t’aidera!
Vous n’utilisez pas du tout les tasses en Europe? C’est tellement pratique comme mesure parfois. C’est vrai que ce n’est pas très précis, mais pas mal plus rapide dans certains cas! Je ne pourrais pas m’en passer! Là-bas, vous pesez absolument tout?
Delicious!! I will haev to try this. It definitely looks more healthy than my usual coffee and Mt Dew! lol
This looks so good! Love the peach and coconut combo – I don’t think I’ve ever done that before! Sounds so yummy!
Merciii d’avoir pesé, j’essayerai cette recette dès que possible 🙂
Non pas du tout pour les tasses! On a juste un espèce de verre gradué dont le nom m’échappe là mais on s’en sert surtout pour les liquides. Mais je préférerais le système des tasses, ça a l’air beaucoup plus pratique et rapide !
Ah, une dernière petite question si tu veux bien, qu’est-ce que tu entends par “whey protein” ? de la protéine de petit lait ? je vois pas trop ce que c’est xD
De rien du tout! Ça m’a fait plaisir! Je sais exactement de quoi tu parles, mais le nom m’échappe également! Alors ils ne vendent pas de ce genre de truc en Europe? Whoa. Ça me semble tellement irréel! Je ne pourrais jamais faire sans!
Et pour le Whey Protein, c’est en effet de la protéine de petit lait en poudre. J’espère que de ça, vous en avez!!! Sinon, il faut déménager au Québec! 😉
🙂 et oui nous aimons nous compliquer la vie !
Okay merci, je vais devoir fouiller les supermarchés mais je devrais bien finir par trouver tout ce qu’il faut 😀
Sympa le nouveau design au fait !
Merci Laura! Bien contente que tu aimes!!! 🙂
This looks and sounds absolutely delicious! But I was wondering where you can find that Amaranth and what exactly it is or tastes like??
You might be able to find amaranth at your local grocery store, or Natural Food Store. Check out Bob’s Red Mill site for more info. You could probably even order it online from them, if you can’t find it locally…