Quinoa Breakfast Bars: Cooking with Quinoa for Dummies

Quinoa Breakfast BarsIt has been a while since my last book giveaway. Are you ready?

Quinoa is one of my favourite foods, it is healthy and very versatile. Since quinoa is not exactly a grain, but rather a seed, it can be used in many cooking applications. It can be easily used in appetizers, smoothies, salads, main dishes, and desserts etc. Quinoa is also known for its nutritional value: rich in protein, high in fibre, and gluten-free, it makes a great alternative to other grains for people who are even sensitive to wheat or gluten. The “for Dummies” book series, published by Wiley have been around for a long time, created with a simple and direct style so they are very to understand. Cooking with Quinoa for Dummies contains a variety to easy-to-follow and delicious recipes by Cheryl Forberg, a nutritionist and a James Beard Award-winning chef. If you are looking to try making quinoa for the first time, this book might be for you. I also like the fact that all the recipes contain its nutritional information so you have a good idea of the serving sizes and the nutritional values. I’ve made the Quinoa Breakfast Bars recipe from the book and it turned out great. It is made with wholesome ingredients like rolled oats, nuts, dried berries, honey with the addition of quinoa flour, which adds extra nutrition. It makes a good grab-and-go breakfast and snack. I definitely recommend this recipe, it is simple and tastes great.

What’s better? I am giving away TWO copies of Cooking with Quinoa for Dummies by Cheryl Forberg, courtesy of Wiley. See below for giveaway details.

Cooking with Quinoa for Dummies

Cook­book Give­away [CLOSED]:

For a chance to win ONE of TWO copies of Cooking with Quinoa for Dummies by Cheryl Forberg, all you need to do is one OR more of the following:

1. Simply comment on this post and state why you like quinoa.

2. Tweet the fol­low­ing on Twitter: (click HERE)

I’ve entered to win a copy of Cooking with Quinoa for Dummies via @YummyWorkshop Details here: http://ow.ly/iEMtc #giveaway

3. Share OR “LIKE” Yummy Workshop’s Quinoa Breakfast Bars recipe photo on Face­book (click HERE) AND comment on why you want this cookbook.

You may do just one of the above OR all three, it will increase your chances of winning. Please do not repeat your comment or tweet.

The give­away is open to all Cana­dian and US res­i­dents, the prize will be mailed out to each winner.
The dead­line to enter is Wednesday, March 20, 2013, 12am PST. Two win­ners will be selected ran­domly and will be announced on Thursday, March 21, 2013.

Good Luck!
[Update March 26/2013] Two winners have been randomly selected for this cookbook giveaway. Congratz to Emily and Tonna, lucky winners of the Cooking Quinoa for Dummies cookbook!

Quinoa Breakfast Bars

Yield: 24 bars

Quinoa Breakfast Bars

Ingredients

  • Cooking oil spray
  • 2 ½ cups gluten-free old-fashioned rolled oats (not quick)
  • ½ cup quinoa flour
  • ½ cup nonfat dry milk powder
  • ½ cup unsweetened coconut
  • ½ cup sliced almonds or chopped pecans
  • ½ cup chopped dried apples or other dried fruit or berries
  • ½ cup currants or raisins
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup dark honey
  • ½ cup natural almond butter or peanut butter
  • 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
  • TIP: You can easily make quinoa flour by grinding whole quinoa seeds into a fine powder by using a coffee grinder, process about ¼ at a time. ¾ cup of quinoa seeds will yield approximately 1 cup of quinoa flour. This way, you can make as much as needed.

Method

  1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Lightly coat a 9 x 13-inch baking pan with cooking oil spray.
  2. In a large mixing bowl, measure the rolled oats, quinoa flour, milk powder, coconut, almonds, dried apples, currants, and salt. Stir well to combine and set aside.
  3. In a small saucepan, warm the honey and nut butter over low heat, stirring occasionally until blended. Do not boil. Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla.
  4. Add the warm honey mixture to the dry ingredients and quickly stir the mixture until it’s well combined. The mixture will be sticky but not wet.
  5. Pat the mixture into the prepared baking pan and press firmly with your hands to remove any air pockets. Bake the bars until they just begin to brown on the edges, about 25 minutes.
  6. Cool for 10 minutes and cut then into 24 bars, each about 1½ x 2¼ inches.
  7. When the bars are just cool enough to handle, remove them from the pan to a cooling rack. When they are completely cool, store them in an airtight container. Keep the in the refrigerator for optimal freshness.

Notes

Per serving: Calories 161 (From Fat 56); Fat 6g (Saturated 2g); Cholesterol 0mg; Sodium 61mg; Carbohydrate 25g (Dietary Fiber 2g); Protein 4g.

Vary It! Experiment with your favorite nuts or fruits and substitute chopped dried berries for the apples or raisins.

Excerpted from Cooking with Quinoa for Dummies by Cheryl Forberg. © 2013 John Wiley & Sons Canada Ltd.

http://yummyworkshop.com/2013/03/09/quinoa-breakfast-bars-cooking-with-quinoa-for-dummies-book-giveaway/

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13 thoughts on “Quinoa Breakfast Bars: Cooking with Quinoa for Dummies

    1. Hi Vivienne,

      I’ve never tried making it with a blender. I think it should work as well as it works quite similar with the coffee grinder. I would just work with small batches so it will grind finely.

      Betty

    1. You can probably omit the milk powder in this recipe. It is more for taste, I doubt it would affect the end result too much.

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