3 ways to get quinoa into the kids without them knowing

I’m a healthy food binger. I spend Monday to Friday thinking I am pretty brilliant, eating things like quinoa, lentils, chickpeas, almond milk and organic oats, and smugly high-fiving myself for being so virtuous and clean. And then the weekend begins…

Then it’s just a blur of wine, followed by chips, followed by desert, and then there’s the coffee, followed by biscuits, followed by dinner out, friends over for dinner, cheeky toasted sambos and eating the leftovers off the kids’ plates.

My answer to my weekend unhealthiness? Quinoa and lots of it mid-week, before the weekend kicks in again. And you see the pattern here.

During these four virtuous days, quinoa is my BFF.

It’s so easy to make, it’s a protein, it’s full of the antioxidant Manganese, it’s filling, super-healthy, and it keeps me full in place of starchy carbs. Since I discovered it’s magical fill-me-up capabilities, I’ve ditched pasta, potatoes, rice and noodles during the week.

I make a bit pot on a Sunday and use it throughout the week in soups, salads, stir-fries or throw in some pesto or Indian spices to serve with meat or fish for dinner.

Sadly, as with many healthy foods, I just can’t get my kids on the same buzz. Even when I re-named it ‘fluffy’ and drowned it in pesto, which they love. So, I got to thinking how I could slyly disguise it in their food to give them a healthy, protein shot without them even knowing, and a means of keeping them full and stopping the nagging for snacks all day long too.

Here are 3 brilliant recipes that got my kids eating quinoa – a sentence I thought I would NEVER say.

1.Toasted coconut breakfast cookies (you’ll need quinoa flakes and cashew butter for these, both of which you will get in any health food store).

Ingredients

1/2 cup creamy cashew butter (or nut butter of choice)

1/4 cup honey (or maple syrup)

1 medium ripe banana, mashed

1 egg

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 cup gluten-free or normal oats

1/2 cup quinoa flakes

1 teaspoon baking powder

Pinch of salt

1/2 cup coconut flakes

2 tablespoons chia seeds

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
2. Toast the coconut flakes in a dry skillet over medium heat until golden brown. Set aside to let cool.
3. Add cashew butter, honey, banana, egg and vanilla in a large bowl. Mix until combined. Add oats, quinoa flakes, baking powder and salt to the bowl and stir together. Fold in toasted coconut and chia seeds.
4. Spoon 2 tablespoons of dough onto the baking sheet and repeat until no dough remains.
5. Bake cookies on center rack for 15 – 18 minutes until edges are golden brown. Remove and let cool on the pan for 5 minutes then transfer to a wire rack and cool completely.
6. Enjoy at room temp or slightly reheated in a microwave.

Recipe from simplyquinoa.com.

2. Garlicky and cheesy quinoa fritters

Honestly these are SO good. Courtesy of the brilliant diethood.com.

Serves: Makes 12 to 14 Fritters

Ingredients

2 cups grated courgette

½-teaspoon salt

1 cup water

½-cup quinoa

1 egg

3 garlic cloves, minced

½-teaspoon dried oregano

1 cup grated fresh parmigiano-reggiano cheese

1 cup bread crumbs

salt and fresh ground pepper, to taste

3 tablespoons olive oil

Instructions

1. Place courgette in a colander and toss with ½ teaspoon salt.
2. Let stand 10 minutes then wring zucchini dry with paper towel.
3. In the meantime, prepare the quinoa.
4. Combine water and quinoa in a small saucepan; bring to a boil.
5. Reduce quinoa to a simmer; cover and cook for 10 minutes.
6. Remove from heat, fluff with fork and let stand ten minutes.
7. Place courgette in a large bowl.
8. Add quinoa, egg, garlic, oregano, fresh cheese, and panko crumbs.
9. Season with salt and pepper; mix until thoroughly combined.
10. Heat olive oil in a skillet.
11. Shape courgette-mixture into 2 to 3-inch patties.
12. Working in batches, add courgette mixture into skillet, flattening slightly; cook until golden and crisp, about 4 minutes per side.
13. Transfer fritters to a paper towel–lined plate.
14. Serve with yogurt, or sour cream, soy sauce, etc…

 3. Quinoa and strawberry smoothie

Ingredients

250g frozen (or fresh) berries

1 banana

100g cooked quinoa

100g greek yoghurt

200ml milk

½ tsp honey

Instructions

1. Add all the ingredients to a blender and blitz until smooth. You can add more or less honey depending on how sweet you like it.

Taken from a great blog if you have any fusspots in your house, myfussyeater.com

Let us know how you get on or if you have any recipes to share, [email protected]