Cinnamon Quinoa Breakfast Bowl

Jumpstart your day with this Cinnamon Quinoa Breakfast Bowl! With fresh fruit, toasted nuts, and warm spices, it’s refreshing, healthy, and satisfying.

vegan / gluten free / breakfast

If you saw what I eat for breakfast every day, you would be so bored. Don’t get me wrong, I absolutely love my daily eggs & avocado, but lately I’ve been trying to switch things up just because I think change is good every once in a while. Especially if that change means another excuse to smother things in peaches.

This quinoa breakfast bowl is inspired by the beautiful bowls of oatmeal that I see all over the internet. You know the ones – they’re chock full of colorful fruit and other various superfoods. They’re so pretty that they make me wish I liked oatmeal… so finally I had the idea to make a sweet non-oat quinoa bowl for breakfast.

How to Make a Quinoa Breakfast Bowl

To make the base of this recipe, I cook quinoa in almond milk with a few cinnamon sticks. It’s this simple: Almond Breeze + quinoa + whole cinnamon sticks. You could also get creative with your spices. Nutmeg, cardamom, and/or vanilla bean would all be welcome here.

Quinoa Breakfast Bowl Variations

To your spiced quinoa, add whatever seasonal or dried fruits you like. Obviously, peaches are my thing right now; the raspberries are for Jack because they’re his favorite. For crunch, I topped these with toasted almonds and coconut flakes.

I’m going to give you two options for serving these bowls: my preference and Jack’s preference.

1. My way – I’m not a fan of mushy food, so I serve my quinoa breakfast bowl pilaf-style. This way, you cook the quinoa as you would for most other recipes, without too much liquid. It stays fluffy, and you can enjoy it warm off the stove or at room temperature if you make it in advance.
2. Jack’s way – Jack likes to eat a porridge-style quinoa breakfast bowl. This way, it’s best served hot with plenty of almond milk to soak into the quinoa.

Sweeten the deal by drizzling a little maple syrup on top.

If you love this quinoa breakfast bowl…

Try Overnight Oats, Many Ways, chia pudding, a smoothie bowl, or these quinoa breakfast cookies next! Or, head to this post for 60+ healthy breakfast ideas!

4.7 from 30 reviews

Cinnamon Quinoa Breakfast Bowl

  PrintPrep time 5 minsCook time 20 minsTotal time 25 mins Swap out your oatmeal for this delicious, protein-packed quinoa breakfast bowl! Top it with your favorite seasonal fresh or dried fruits, nuts, and seeds. Vegan and gluten-free.Author: Jeanine DonofrioRecipe type: BreakfastServes: 2Ingredients

• ½ cup uncooked quinoa
• 1 cup Almond Breeze Almondmilk, Original or Vanilla
• 1-2 cinnamon sticks
• piece of a vanilla bean, or ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• pinch of salt

Toppings:

• toasted sliced almonds
• toasted coconut flakes
• peaches
• raspberries
• maple syrup, optional
• extra splashes of almond milk, optional
• more spices, to taste (cinnamon, nutmeg, etc.), optional

Instructions

1. Rinse and drain the quinoa.
2. Place it in a small saucepan and add the almond milk, 1-2 cinnamon sticks, vanilla, and a pinch of salt. Bring to a high simmer, cover and reduce heat to a low simmer for 15 minutes. (Tip: don’t walk away, if it starts bubbling, turn the heat off, give it one stir mid-cook if you need to, and resume).
3. After 15 minutes, remove the pan from the heat and let the quinoa sit for 5 more minutes or until the almond milk is absorbed and the quinoa is cooked. Taste and add additional spices to your liking.
4. Scoop the quinoa into two bowls and top with toasted almonds, toasted coconut, and fruit. Serve with maple syrup if you like. Enjoy as a fluffy pilaf, or as more a porridge with warm almond milk poured on top.

Notes- Cooked quinoa can be stored in the fridge for 4-5 days. Serve at room temp or heat it as you’re ready to serve. If it’s dry, add a few more splashes of almond milk.
– Sub in whatever seasonal fruit you like, dried fruits are also delicious here.3.4.3177

Did you make the recipe? I want to see!
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1. David B
   08.28.2023

   Has anyone cooked this in a rice cooker?

   Reply ↓

2. Abbie
   08.05.2022

   Hi! I tried making this but I failed 😣 the fresh cow milk I used curdled within 10 minutes of keeping the saucepan on medium-low heat and the quinoa was barely cooked… 🙁 what did I do wrong? Any tips to avoid the curdling of milk while making this? I used fresh cow milk so I don’t get how it ended up curdling.

   Reply ↓

3. Cari
   04.25.2022

   Hi! Looking forward to trying this. Can you use other dairy substitutes? I typically have oat milk on hand. Thanks!

   Reply ↓

   • Jeanine Donofrio
     04.27.2022

     Hi Cari, yep, you can use oat milk.

     Reply ↓

4. Carolyn
   04.25.2022

   Hi! I made this it was good. Don’t think I did it right.. to make it “your way” I follow then list of ingredients listed and for jack’s way you would add more milk.

   Reply ↓

5. Carolyn
   04.25.2022

   Hi so made this! I enjoyed it 😊 I have a question.. to do it “your way” do I follow the list of ingredients has is or would that make it jack’s way…. Hope that makes sense.

   Reply ↓

6. Daisy
   08.06.2021

   Can I use soy milk instead of Almond Milk?

   Reply ↓

7. Danny
   04.04.2021

   DONT COVER THIS , I did the recipe exactly as instructed and covered it. And as soon as I covered it , I went to do something and heard the pot making noises and came back to a mess. It boiled over…

   Reply ↓

   • Jeanine Donofrio
     04.05.2021

     Hi Danny, it sounds like you could turn your heat down a bit if it boiled over.

     Reply ↓

   • Lou
     02.18.2022

     Or don’t leave like the recipe suggests when bubbling

     Reply ↓

   • Mike
     02.19.2022

     I know when I don’t follow directions and things don’t go as I want, what makes me feel better is to 1⭐️ review

     Reply ↓

   • Monica
     08.04.2022

     Never LEAVE the Kitchen Unattended!! lol 🙂

     Reply ↓

8. Esther
   03.18.2021

   I’m in love with this quinoa after making it the pilaf style! I can zap it in the microwave for longer if I want to make porridge later. I really enjoyed the taste even though I only have ground cinnamon, no sugar added and yet so tasty! I can’t wait to use it for other combos ❤️♥️

   Reply ↓

9. Ana
   12.07.2020

   This was great! My picky little eaters asked for me to make it again. I had to make some substitutions because it’s grocery day but it’s so good. Thank you!
   I had to use red quinoa, half coconut milk+ low-fat milk, and one star anise. Then topped with a little real maple syrup, blueberries and plain Greek yogurt.

   Reply ↓

10. Yetişkin sohbet
    09.21.2020

    Thank you soo much

    Reply ↓