Carrot Cake Quinoa Breakfast Bake
I think Monday deserves a really great breakfast. It gets us started on the right foot for the week, and it puts in less of a grumpy Monday mood. Am I right?
I thought so.
Ya’ll know I love to use quinoa in sweeter recipes as much as I do savory – here, here, here. Quinoa is so versatile, you can do pretty much anything you want to it. I love it for breakfast because I know I’m starting my day off with a good amount of complete protein.
This breakfast bake is really similar to this cinnamon raisin one (which reminds me that I really need to rephotograph that recipe. Yikes), except today I made it taste more like carrot cake. You have most of the traditional flavors of carrot cake, but in a much healthier form because it is made with quinoa. You have the sweetness from the carrots, raisins and maple, and the warmth from the cinnamon. It is hearty without being heavy, which is perfect for breakfast.
You can slice it up into bar form like I did here, or just use a big spoon to scoop it out. Whatever floats your boat. If you carefully slice it, it will hold together to make bars, just make sure you live your pan with parchment so that you can take the whole thing out to cut it. I learned this the hard way.
Now, everyone go kick Monday’s butt, and enjoy your carrot cake!
Ingredients
- 2 large carrots
- 1/2 cup dry quinoa, rinsed and drained
- 1/4 cup raisins
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 3 eggs
- 1/4 cup real maple syrup
- pinch of salt
Instructions
- In a medium saucepan, combine the quinoa with 1 cup of water. Cover and bring to a boil, once boiling, turn the heat down to low and let it cook for about 15 minutes. When all of the water is absorbed, fluff the quinoa with a fork and transfer it to a bowl. Set the quinoa in the fridge to cool it off faster.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a large mixing bowl, use a grater to grate the carrots into the bowl. Add the cooled quinoa, raisins, cinnamon, vanilla, syrup and salt. In a small bowl, beat the eggs a bit. Add the eggs to the quinoa mixture and mix until evenly combined.
- Line an 8x8 glass pan with parchment paper, and pour the quinoa mixture into the pan. Use a spoon to push the mixture into the corners and smooth out the top. Bake for 45 minutes, until the top is golden brown and cooked all the way through.
- Remove from the oven and let cool slightly before serving. To serve, carefully lift the whole thing out of the pan by pulling up on each side of the parchment evenly. Use a sharp knife to carefully cut it into bars.