Natural Zest

I know I know, I had promised this recipe to many people starting back in January. Well, so I’m a tad behind, but I did it, and darn it, they’re delicious! I’d say it was worth the wait. And not only are they great, but I seem to have perfected it on the first try!

Without further ado, the star!

Banana Oatmeal Quinoa Muffins

1/4 cup dry quinoa – cook according to instructions (see below)

2 cups quick oats – dry

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp cinnamon or to taste

2 eggs

1/2 cup milk

1/4 cup agave

2 cups banana

1/2 cup fresh cherries or other small fruit

Preheat oven to 325. Grease muffin tin. Combine all ingredients in large bowl. This recipe comes out a bit wet, so you can easily reduce any of the liquid ingredients according to preference, either less or no milk, or cut back on agave – the sweetener. My bananas had been frozen, so were quite moist when added in. And the cherries were very juicy too. I think any small berry would be delicious in place of the cherries, and dried fruit could be used as well.

Pour mixture into muffin tin and cook at 325 for approximately 25 minutes. The extra muffins refrigerate well so they can last all week! And the lack of flour in the recipe means very little crumbs, so it’s easy to eat on the go.

(of course ideally we all have a nice leisurely sit down breakfast, but in the real world, sometimes you gotta run!)

RECIPE TWEAKS:

- you can use less milk (probably even no milk – or try yogurt!)

- you can use less sweetener – and try other sweeteners

- I’ve replaced the bananas with pureed peaches (~2 cups) and think pureed pineapple would be fantastic!

- any small fruit works for the cherries part (I’ve used blackberries, blueberries, chopped strawberries and obviously cherries)

- the pan doesn’t actually need to be greased, so less fat!

Quinoa Muffin Deliciousness (with two Zucchini Bread muffins on the side!)

NOTES:

For those who get really hungry or do a lot in the mornings, adding extra quinoa is another good option as that is the energy powerhouse in the recipe.

A note on bananas: If you eat bananas in your house, always take the last one or so, or the ones that are overripe and pop them in the freezer. This makes for a quick, always ready addition to any baked good (breads, muffins, etc). When you need to use it, it takes less than 5 minutes to soften, just cut the peel open, and the banana goop just pours out! I used two bananas in this recipe, one a bit larger than the other.

To cook quinoa: Bring 1/2 cup water to a boil, add rinsed, dry quinoa. Cover and lower to a simmer. Cook approximately 15 minutes until water is absorbed. Remove from heat and set aside.

This recipe was adapted from The Weekend Chef.