Bite Of Minnesota: Quinoa Granola
Who doesn't love a good snow day? After a huge storm hit the east coast last week, us Midwesterners immediately started canceling Sunday plans before snowflakes even hit the ground. Nestled under covers, the snow started falling until it made a beautiful white blanket of its own. And then it stopped. Predictions of 6-8 inches were reduced down to 2-4 inches but most of us kept pretending it was a snow day anyway. What's the harm, right?
Personally I accomplished a lot of cooking for there were many odds and ends hanging out in my refrigerator. First, I threw together a delicious quiche made from roasted tomatoes, caramelized red onions, spinach and feta. Then I moved onto zucchini lasagna made with zucchini instead of pasta. Finally, I had some cooked quinoa to use up and made a recipe from a fellow blogger for Quinoa Granola.
I'm always trying to eat a little healthier and Lee over at Fit Foodie Finds is a great person to follow when searching for healthy recipes. Plus, she's from Minnesota and seems super sweet!
Here is her most recent iteration of Quinoa Granola. I didn't have pepitas so I used peanuts instead and I've been serving it with plain yogurt for breakfast or a quick snack.
Quinoa Granola
Serves 6 (1/2 cup servings)
Fit Foodie Finds blog
2 cups cooked quinoa, chilled
1/2 cup pepitas (pumpkin seeds)
1/2 cup shredded, unsweetened coconut
1/2 cup dried cherries, unsweetened
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons honey
1 tsp vanilla
Preheat oven to 375F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. In a medium size bowl, mix together cooked quinoa, pepitas, coconut and dried cherries. Then, spread evenly on the baking sheet.
In a small bowl, mix together olive oil, honey, and vanilla. Then pour over quinoa mixture and toss to evenly coat. Bake for 35-40 minutes, tossing mixture every 10 minutes to ensure the granola cooks evenly.
