Quinoa Pancakes

Quinoa pancakes; sorry about the poor photo quality; it was before 7am...

It's been a month of excess and enjoyment in this house. I may be behind the majority but my New Year healthier approach to cooking and baking really only started yesterday.

And finally I am inspired to share again thanks to one of the (many) new cookbooks I got for Christmas. The King Arthur Flour Whole Grain Baking Book has been a fabulous addition to my already overflowing bookshelves. It contains a wealth of information, tips and recipes on how to use whole grains without sacrificing any taste whatsoever. However, given my overdose of Christmas baking (some frozen) lasted us until last week;  I could not, in all conscience, add more goodies to the snack cupboard until we were all done with the reserves.

Today, however, a cold is moving through our house and my little one woke up asking for pancakes. I couldn't say no; partly because (selfishly) it gave me the perfect excuse to try out the pancake section of my new book. The book gives me an excellent opportunity  to use the whole grain flours I have been storing in my freezer, unused for months. Apparently whole grains go off much faster than their processed cousins so I now keep the less often used ones in my freezer. Today it was the quinoa flour that shouted to me.

So at 6:30a.m. I got out the baking bowls and we set to work. The batter has no fat or sugar added but manages to turn out a light, slightly sweet and earthy pancake. Very well received by all and it pleased this Mummy no end to send her brood off to school and work with a protein packed breakfast. My husband made some comment about feeling like he was in a hotel; I guess I haven't made a decent breakfast in a while! We had them with pumpkin butter and a touch of maple syrup but the recipe recommends maple syrup mixed with ginger syrup which sounds lovely to me.

Quinoa, ginger and cranberry pancakes

Ingredients

1 cup (3 7/8 oz) quinoa flour
1/4 cup (3/4 oz) whole wheat pastry flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup (4 oz) milk
1/2 cup (4 oz) applesauce
1 egg
1/2 cup (2 oz) dried cranberries

1/4 cup minced crystallised ginger ( I omitted; my kids have given it the curly lips in the past, but it would be delicious)

Directions

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients ( not including the cranberries) 
2. In another bowl, whisk together the milk applesauce and egg.
3. Mix the wet with the dry and stir until well mixed together; it will be quite runny.
4. Finally stir in the cranberries and crystallized ginger if using .
5. Leave the batter to sit for 10 minutes
6. Heat a heavy skillet or griddle pan on medium
7. Pour a 1/4 cup of the batter for each pancake.
8. Cook until bubbles form and the edges just start to turn golden.
9. Turn them over an cook another 1-2 minutes until golden.

Enjoy!

A versatile and tasty Quinoa Paella



It's been a tricky week for my food blog inspiration. As I publicly proclaimed in my last post, I've had it up to here with being just slightly over my "fighting weight". Actually the bits that are over are my love handles on my jeans.

Anyway, this week also coincided with St. Patricks Day (for those of you who live in a bubble), so I instantly fell off the wagon and made Irish Tea Bread. I blame my Mum; she emailed my the recipe just in time. Plus, I couldn't send my daughter to school on St. Patrick's day with an all American muffin or granola bar; just not traditional Irish enough. So off she went with her tea bread, fully prepped to educate her teachers and class on what it was called, how it was made (she helped me).

However, sorry to disappoint, but I just can't bring myself to post that recipe yet. I need to be true to my word and give you the healthy options only; at least for the next week or 2 anyway! And I honestly didn't eat that much of the tea bread!

So, I am continuing to love love love Lorna Sass's fabulous book; Wholegrains for Busy People. Honestly, I can't find a recipe in there that does not appeal to me. Lorna manages to make cooking with wholegrains both appetizing and attainable without using a lot of obscure "healthy" ingredients.

So I've been working on a tweak of one of her recipes; a one pot quinoa dish based loosely on paella. It started with me looking for a reason to use smoked paprika. I dream about that spice! I just love it's complexity; when I add it to a dish it tastes like I've blended a whole bunch of spices in a fancy chef like way!

Notes on the recipe:

I'm presenting this recipe as I cooked it last night, but feel free to add more or less peas or substitute with another crunchy green vegetable such as broccoli, green beans or even seasonal (did I mention it's Spring!) asparagus. You could use fresh or roasted red peppers, and more or less chorizo. I'm sure you get my drift; it's a flexible recipe.

Quinoa Paella

Serves 6-8 (plenty for leftover lunch the next day)

Ingredients

1 lb/450g chicken or shrimp (chicken cut into approx 1" pieces)

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 teaspoons smoked spanish paprika

2 garlic cloves (minced or finely chopped)

pinch of red pepper flakes (or more to taste)

11/2 quarts/ 1500ml chicken broth

1 rounded tablespoon tomato paste

3 cups/ 18 oz/ 510g quinoa

1 1/2 cups/ 6oz/ 170g chopped chorizo

2 cups/ 8oz/ 225g frozen peas

1 cup/ 8oz/ 225g roasted red peppers (chopped)

1 teaspoon sweet chili sauce (or more to taste)

Directions

1. Heat a large deep pan or skillet, on medium high and add the olive oil. When hot add the chicken or shrimp.
2. Cook for about 2-3 minutes (or until cooked through) then remove
3. Add the chorizo, paprika, garlic and red pepper flakes and cook a further 2-3 minutes
4. Add the chicken broth, stir up the bottom to release the tasty bits, then add the tomato paste
5. Add the quinoa and simmer for approx 12 minutes
6. Add the chicken or shrimp and cook a further 2 minutes
7. Finally add the peas and peppers
8. Serve

This is the double whammy; healthy comfort food.