Breakfast Bars {Quinoa + Chia + Cranberry + PB}
Mornings that begin with smoothies are on the decline here in Pennsylvania as it is frightfully cold. It’s really not all that bad. I’m still in an adjustment phase and by late December I’ll hardly whine at all. My go-to breakfast in the depths of winter is a toss up between steel-cut oatmeal or sleeping in the middle of my bed under several comforters with my cat huddled next to me for added warmth. If you want to go the oatmeal route I’ve got a post for that. If you want to go the amorphous bed blob route you’re on your own, but I suspect you can figure it out. For these moderately chilly mornings where I can still get out of bed with relative ease, I wanted something more portable, but still nutritionally substantial – enter the quinoa breakfast bar.
These bars are really simple to make. There’s only four steps.
1. Cook your quinoa and let it cool. You need two cups of cooked quinoa, so it’s about 1 cup uncooked.
2. Gather your ingredients.
Ingredient List:
- 2 cups cooked quinoa
- 2 cups uncooked rolled oats
- 1 cup unsweetened almond milk
- 1/2 cup dried cranberries + cherries
- 1/3 cup organic honey
- 1/4 cup crunchy peanut butter
- 1/4 cup ground flaxseed
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp chia seeds
3. Combine ingredients.
4. Once you’ve mixed your ingredients, place into a pan and bake at 350º for about 15 minutes. I used a 9×9 pan which made it easy to divvy the goods into 10 servings. Then, package individually, toss in the fridge, and grab-and-go as needed.
These bars are really tasty; mildly addictive but not too sweet. A review from my husband, “Tastes better than it looks, because quinoa looks strange.” He’s right…quinoa does look strange.
Here’s the nutritional information: (note: measured to the best of my ability, I’m not a nutritionist)
Calories 216 | Fat 6.5 g | Protein 6 g | Fiber 4.7 g
Carbs 35.3 g | Potassium 180 mg | Sugars 14.2 g |Sodium 51 mg
Vitamin A 1.5% DV | Calcium 6.5% DV | Iron 8.4%DV
“I only eat food in bar form. When you concentrate food you unleash its awesome power, I’m told.” Homer Simpson
So Pretty is as Pretty Does. 