Quinoa Breakfast Bowl | A High Protein High Fiber Start

 

Quinoa Breakfast Bowl | High Fiber Meals

Yearn for the stick-to-your-ribs (but not your hips?) warmth of breakfast and find a cold smoothie just doesn’t do it, you want a change, or you’re combining the two for more variety in your meal… introducing the quinoa breakfast bowl. A seed, not a grain, quinoa does do a good grain imitation. It has a bit of a nutty flavor and can double dip as a side or salad as well as this unique way to make it. Word of caution, if you’re sensitive to lectins, and you’re more likely to be if you’re eating them regularly, you’ve already got a leaky gut, quinoa does contain lectins, so like anything don’t over do it and pay attention to your body’s feedback. Do RINSE the quinoa in a strainer before cooking. It’s an important step.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup quinoa, rinsed
• 2 cups coconut milk (or any other plant-based milk)
• 1 serving vanilla protein powder
• 3 T hemp hearts
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• pinch of salt
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 2 tbsp pure maple syrup (or sub stevia to reduce sugar)
• 1-2 T ground flax

Instructions:

Using a fine mesh strainer, rinse the quinoa. Bring the milk to a boil in a medium sized pot over medium-high heat. Add the quinoa and bring back up to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover with a lid and simmer for 15-20 minutes until most of the milk has been absorbed and the quinoa is tender. Stir in the cinnamon, salt, vanilla and maple syrup until fully combined. Top with berries, toasted nuts or coconut flakes, or drizzle with melted nut butter. (This little tip makes it easy to have the taste of nut butter with a much smaller serving of fat if you’re adjusting calorie-density in this recipe.

(Pssst that’s not to say we count here at Flipping50. I know you’ll find places to do so. Here’s what 4 decades of coaching women in midlife and “losers” or those who DO and those who DON’T keep weight off has taught me: NEVER have “counters” of calories, or points, been the ones who change their lifestyle or relationship with food so they are “free” and maintain the stronger, leaner life they really want.

“Counters” typically live in fear: fear of regaining, fear of going to a social event, and fear of every scale change. That’s not a way to live I can support. If that resonates with you, consider joining us for a better half! 

Fiber: 7g

Protein: 30g

High carb* alert! Even with the addition of protein and fiber, this is a higher carb meal that could spike blood sugar for some. If you’re carb sensitive, this may not be your best choice. If you’re using a Continuous Blood Glucose (CGM) Monitor, this is a perfect experiment.

FLIPS: Add sliced almonds, walnut pieces, or hemp seeds for a little more crunch. Add more fruit (knowing it will be higher in carb)

** If you click any link to a product using Flipping 50’s link I may earn a small commission, while you can often save with the link. In this case, you can earn $25 off your first month using my link above (automatically!) It’s a game-changer for my clients to see in real time how their eating, sleeping, exercise, and stress influences their blood sugar spikes. We can change immediately and have better results in a month!

Why High Fiber?

There’s a post you’ll want to locate to get the full monty on fiber’s list of desirable traits! Stay full? Check! Blood sugar benefits? Check! Better digestion? Check! All fiber isn’t created equal. You may be getting less than you think. Read the post to learn more. 

An excerpt from the post:  In new research we see that nutrition is not complete without the addition of sufficient fiber to meet gut and colon nutritional needs. Diets containing more than 50 g of fiber per day are associated with low colon cancer risk. Current dietary fiber requirements are based on cardiovascular health ignoring needs for colon health. Add to that the benefits of fiber for weight loss support, and you have a persuasive argument for fiber.

Why High Protein?

Let’s first visit “high protein.” It’s really most likely higher “than you thought.” It’s not “high” protein. Though it may be, relative to the percent of carbs or fats at a certain meal or in your diet. Muscle requires protein. It also requires carbs. So if you’re struggling to gain lean muscle (aka, boost metabolism), and going low to no carb, that’s one limiter. You’ll also be full for longer if you have adequate protein at a meal. So to address “adequate protein:” It’s been known in science for 25 years. It’s been slightly more mainstream since 2008. And there’s still a ton of confusion about it. If you know your lean body mass (in pounds), your Fat Free Mass on many Smart Scales now, that would be a target for your grams of protein. If that’s unknown, (first, I’d suggest fix that! Link to my Amazon page for 3 Smart Scale recommendations for this need-to-know number) our ideal body weight in pounds in grams of protein is what you need. Now if you weight 200 and want to weigh 150, you might think that’s where you want to be. Not true. If you need to LOSE weight to be at your ideal, you need to increase protein by about 10-15% while you’re in a calorie deficit so that while losing weight you KEEP muscle. Again, loss of muscle means loss of metabolism. That means? The inevitable regain of weight. Questions? There is an abundance of content in blogs, podcasts here on Flipping 50 to help. Try the Food Flip (open select times a year) for support if you need a real shift in your dietary habits. Make this Quinoa Breakfast Bowl? Add any personal touches?  Comment below and lmk how you like it or tweak to your liking!