Maple + pecan.
THE. BEST. COMBO. EVER.
Seriously. I'm totally hooked. My obsession has taken me from cookies, to muffins, to quick breads, to pancakes and now to a warm, healthy quinoa breakfast bowl. They've all been awesome, but this one is the real deal.
I've always loved starting my day with something on the sweeter side. You know my routine typically is just a green smoothie, but as winter has fallen, I just can't seem to bring myself to drink an icy cold beverage each morning.
See my mornings begin with our puppy. No alarm clock, just the scratching sound of her pawing at her crate and her faint whimpers to come up on the bed. I can almost guarantee that it's still dark outside. And she certainly doesn't care if it's the weekend. She's up, ready to go, whether we like it or not.
As soon as we're out of bed, it's walk time. In the summer that's fine by me (exercise shorts and a cute tank are pretty much my standard attire) but this time of year that morning walk means layer, after layer, after layer. By the time we get back to the apartment, a smoothie is the absolute farthest thing from my mind. I'm cold, I'm tired and all I want to do is put my PJs back on and climb back into bed.
But I'm awake and I'm terrible at going back to sleep (ahem…thanks Instagram).
So I've resorted to a childhood comfort food: oatmeal.
But rather than just the standard recipe of oatmeal and water, I've come up with a version that not only cuts down on some of the carbohydrates and calories, but also pumps up the fiber and the protein. If you thought oatmeal was the perfect breakfast before, just wait until you have a bowl of this.
The base of this quinoa breakfast bowl combination of certified gluten-free oats and quinoa flakes. Both provide a high amount of fiber, but since quinoa flakes are complex carbohydrates, they digest more slowly and help to keep you fuller for even longer.
But wait…there's more! *insert image of me in an infomercial*
You see I'm a big fan of oatmeal that's on the thicker side. I like it rich, creamy and even though it's a total mental thing, I feel like I'm more full when my oatmeal is thick vs. runny. Whatever, I'm weird, but I swear it's true. *maybe*
I decided I wanted to try and reduce the amount of the oat-quinoa flake mixture in this breakfast bowl the lower the carb amount, but I didn't want to skimp on the volume – hello hangry by 10am – so I added in a few tablespoons of coconut flour.
Initially I thought it was just going to help thicken the oatmeal slightly, but it did so much more. Not only was the texture PERFECT, the oatmeal-quinoa flake mixture had this faint coconut flavor in the background, and with the super-duper injection of fiber, I was full straight through lunch. Which let me just say…never happens. Like ever.
And now I'm eating it every single day. It's awesome.
I've jazzed it up numerous different ways, but this one has to be my favorite. It reminds me of warm sticky buns – just sans all the gluten, dairy and other junk.
With the simple addition of toasted pecans, a pinch of ground cinnamon and a *generous* drizzle of maple syrup, your bowl of fiber-filled oatmeal goes from plain Jane to mall-style, Cinnabon status. Might sound lame, but damn is it good. It's sweet, it's comforting, it's simple and yet it's decadent and almost dessert-like. It's a must-make. Like nowish?
Maple Pecan Quinoa Breakfast Bowl
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons certified gluten-free oats
- 3 tablespoons quinoa flakes
- 2 tablespoons coconut flour
- 1 - 1 1/4 cups water plus more as needed
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 cup toasted pecans chopped
- 2 - 3 tablespoons or more if you're feeling adventurous of pure maple syrup
Instructions
- Combine oats, quinoa flakes, coconut flour and water into a small sauce pan. Turn on medium high and bring to a boil.
- Reduce to low heat, stir in cinnamon and half the pecans and let cook until thick, about 30 seconds. If the mixture becomes too thick, add more water 1 tablespoon at a time, stirring completely between each addition, until the desired consistency has been reached.
- Remove from heat, transfer to a bowl and garnish with remaining pecans and maple syrup.
- Serve immediately and enjoy!
Nutrition
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I’m just eating it. I had no coconut flour so I replaced with almond flour, and no pecans so I replaced with almonds, cashews and brazil nuts. It’s very good. Next Time I will try with soy milk instead of water.
Thank you for being so inspiring.
Guilaine, from France
Sounds delicious! Glad you made it work for what you had on hand 🙂
Damn that does sound good I think it will be a must-have or should I say a must-try… You’re absolutely right I don’t know how to pronounce that word but you make it sound so yummy and good.
Hope you enjoy it!!
My husband and I just started eating plant-based foods only. Thank you so much for posting such wonderful food options. I have no idea what I am doing yet, but your site is a wonderful start for us! Thank you!!
I’m so glad!! Let me know if you have any questions along the way 🙂 xo
Hi Alyssa. On this post, it says there are 29 comments, but when I click on “29 comments” only about 11 show up. It was nice when the comments automatically showed up before your site redesign. Anyway, I made this today as it sounded so good! However, there was no texture and the coconut flour left a gritty feeling in my mouth. I will not be making this again.
Thanks for the feedback!
Can one double the quinoa flakes instead of using oatmeal (don’t like or tolerate)?
Or, add plain quinoa in place of oatmeal?
Yes absolutely!
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Oooh, I’m totally making this tomorrow morning!
We are big time oatmeal lovers here! I can’t wait to try it this way!
I’ve had quinoa pops for breakfast many a time, but I’ve not come across quinoa flakes before. Sounds worth a go, although I do love my oatmeal porridge.
I couldn’t agree more on maple pecan! Totally a match made in culinary heaven. And wow, this breakfast bowl is a load of fiber and other nutrients!
This really sounds delicious! Such a great breakfast idea!
This sounds absolutely amazing! Perfect for these cold mornings! 🙂
Sounds delish for me, but hubby is allergic to coconut (in all forms) so not great for him! I was wondering if I omit the coconut flour, would you recommend reducing the water, or just replacing the coconut flour with arrowroot or tapioca flour? Thanks for the great recipes, I’ve enjoyed every single one I’ve tried.
Oh my word your photos are gorgeous!!! I’m so excited to use this recipe in my breakfast round – up!!! I tried following ou on FB, but the link in your social media icons says your page doesn’t exist.. do you have a page? I’d LOVE to follow along!
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Alyssa,
Where do you buy your quinoa flakes?
(looking for an economical answer).
Thanks
What beautiful pictures! I haven’t tried coconut flour in my oatmeal but knowing how much I love both of them I’ll be hooked.
Yum! Whenever I already have some cooked quinoa in the fridge, I put a little in my oats in the morning. Just ran out of maple syrup and need to get some more to make this!
Sounds yummy! I know what I’m having for breakfast tomorrow morning–even though it was 81 degrees here in Texas! 🙂
It will still be delicious even if it is a heat wave 🙂
Alyssa, These ingredients sound wonderful; what I would classify as a “comfort food”! I can’t wait to try this! The addition of the maple syrup simply sounds amazing…I would recommend “Vermont” pure maple syrup, as it’s the best made 😉
Oh Christine, you couldn’t be more right! I grew up in Vermont and it’s the absolutely ONLY type I will buy. In fact, I just picked up a gallon of it 🙂 Grade B is my favorite!
Sounds wonderful! Oatmeal by itself just doesn’t keep me full until lunch time. Can you tell me how to do this in a microwave?
Hmm…I think the best way to do this would be to cook your oatmeal as you normally would (make sure you’re using quick cooking oats) and just add in the other ingredients. The quinoa flakes cook super fast, so I think that should be super easy. Enjoy it! Let me know how it turns out 🙂
Alyssa, This morning I made my current favorite breakfast oatmeal with 50% quinoa flakes and 50% quick oats (I added canned pumpkin, pumpkin pie spice, and topped with bananas and pecans) – It turned out great in the microwave – I didn’t have any coconut flour -plan to get some soon – but just with the added quinoa it is now lunch time and I am still not hungry! Yeah! Thanks for a great tip for a more filling breakfast!
I can’t wait to try this!! Last night I made a combo of quinoa and oatmeal in the slow cooker, and I’ve usually been mixing quinoa flakes and gluten free oatmeal in the morning, never thought of coconut flower! Thanks for the tip!
Oh that sounds awesome, Angie! What flavors did you use? I need to try to make quinoa flakes in a slow cooker – such a great idea!
Thanks! It’s just a crazy combo of mashed banana, apple, almond milk, PB2, and cinnamon. The mashed banana ends up being sweeter than chopped. For this particular recipe I actually use quinoa instead of flakes.
600 calories, 87 carbs per serving?
Updated the ingredient list to help the data be a bit more accurate 🙂 if you want to cut down on the carbs, I’d just remove the maple syrup!