Quinoa Mac 'n Cheese - Yes PLEASE!

Happy Monday friends!

I'm over @ The Hollie Rogue today sharing a favorite summer tradition with her readers!  Click on over there and check that out.  I honestly can't believe it's August already!!!  This summer has FLOWN by!  SADFACE!  :(

I’m happy to share a YUMMO & kid friendly (and husband friendly if I’m being honest here) quinoa recipe from Pinterest that I originally shared over on Brooke's blog.

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Quinoa is SUPER popular these days!  You can do a zillion things with it and it’s GOOD for you! 

Here are a few Quinoa facts!

1)   Let me quell your curiositiy…it’s pronounced (keen-wah).

2)   It was around 5,000 years ago!

3)   Totally related to spinach, chard & BEETS…even though it doesn’t remotely look or taste like ANY of those things!

4)   It’s a COMPLETE protein!

5)   It’s gluten-free.

If you'd like to learn more click here.

Cheesy Quinoa Mac ‘n Cheese

Check out the original recipe here…I am just copying it below for you for your convenience…adding a few of my observations and photos along the way.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups quinoa, rinsed and drained

Veggies of your choice (optional)

good pinch of salt

a few grinds of seasoning salt

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 large eggs

1 cup soy milk or non-fat milk

1 1/2 cups grated Cheddar cheese, more for sprinkling

Optional- Crushed Red Pepper, Panko Bread crumbs for topping

Toppings (optional)- salsa, hot sauce, sour cream, scallions

What you do:

Lightly saute any veggies you would like in this dish.

Cook quinoa to packaged instructions until fully cooked. (About 15 minutes)

Preheat oven to 350 F. 

Coat 13x9 inch dish (or 8 individual ramekins) with cooking spray.

Whisk together eggs and milk in large bowl. 

Fold in quinoa mixture and cheese. Stir very well and let some of the cheese melt.  

Transfer to prepared baking dish and if using Panko Crumbs or Bread crumbs add now and bake 30-35 mins, until bread crumbs are browned.

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Here are my observations:

This is my FIRST time cooking quinoa and I was nervous to burn it.  I added more water than it calls for when I cooked it because it just seemed really dry.  That must have been a good call because it cooked up to a good consistency. 

Also, I SOAKED my quinoa in water for about an hour, then rinsed it in the sink for 2 minutes (ish).  THEN I cooked it.  NOTE:  Quinoa is tiny so it may slip right through the holes in your colander when you attempt to drain and rinse it.  To avoid having to order pizza because dinner went down the drain you can line your colander with a cheesecloth or a clean kitchen towel.  That’s what I did and it worked just fine.

I sauteed some frozen broccoli in a bit of olive oil and added it to this dish.

I didn’t use breadcrumbs because I didn’t have them on hand BUT I did broil it for about a minute or so when It was done baking because I love for the cheese to be a little bit brown and bubbly. 

I am VERY VERY happy with my first quinoa experience!  The kids ate it up quickly which means LOVE for them and J said it was a “make again” which is how we judge new recipes in our house!

Do any of you have any good quinoa recipes?  If so, I’d LOVE for you to send them to me to try out!  I may or may not be getting obsessed with it!