Get To Know Your Super Foods: The Quinoa Quiz

Get To Know Your Super Foods: The Quinoa Quiz - A Super Food That Answers Your Nutrition Questions

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The Quinoa Quiz - A Super Food That Answers Your Nutrition Questions What is quinoa? If you haven't heard about quinoa (pronounced keen-wah), you're not alone. Many people have yet to learn the encouraging details on this super food. Although not a pantry staple in most kitchens yet, quinoa soon will be. This seed (no, it's not a grain) has a rice-like appearance with a fun crunchy texture and slightly nutty flavor. If you know spinach, Swiss chard, and beets, you know some of quinoa's relatives. Once called the Gold of the Incas, quinoa is well on its way to becoming revered all over the world. Let's see why.

Winner of 9 Essential Amino Acids With just a quick run down of the nutrients in quinoa, it's not hard to see why this food is considered one of the best super foods in the world. Quinoa is a good source of protein, but not just any protein. The protein quinoa supplies the body is complete protein, supplying all nine essential amino acids. This fact alone makes quinoa the perfect super food choice for vegetarians, vegans, or anyone concerned about getting a healthy dose of protein in their diet. Quinoa is especially rich in lysine, the amino acid that is essential for healthy tissue growth as well as repair.

What Can Quinoa Do For Me We can start with a few basics you will recognize right away. Besides being a complete protein, quinoa is loaded with dietary fiber, calcium, iron, and phosphorus. Magnesium is abundant in quinoa. Known to be beneficial for relaxing blood vessels, magnesium, along with riboflavin, appears to benefit those who suffer from headaches, even migraines. Manganese joins with copper to form an enzyme which guards against cell damage caused by free radicals.

The health benefits gained from including quinoa in your diet include helping reduce the risk of heart disease, type 2 diabetes, cataracts, and gallstones. For pregnant women, quinoa is a great way to increase iron intake naturally, which is important for baby's healthy development.

Because quinoa is lower in carbohydrates than other grains, many people substitute quinoa for grains because it is a very filling food that releases its energy slowly throughout the body, to satisfy your appetite longer. This is a great way to stay on a weight loss program without starving.

If you are eating a gluten-free diet, this is a wonderful new food to discover. Because quinoa is gluten-free, and has many of the same characteristics of grains and rice, there are numerous ways to use quinoa in your recipes.

What Do I Do With This Stuff Raw quinoa is most often bought pre-rinsed, but if it isn't, rinse it in a colander lined with cheesecloth. Then follow the directions on the box. Quinoa is cooked similar to rice; usually a 2 to 1, water to quinoa ratio.

Cooked quinoa has a nice light texture and a mild, slightly crunchy and nutty flavor.

Once cooked, you can use quinoa in many pilaf dishes, adding vegetables, stocks, and seasonings to taste. Just try substituting quinoa into any of your recipes that call for rice and see how you like it. Quinoa also makes a

nice fluffy side dish all by itself. Add herbs and seasonings if you like and spoon alongside chicken, fish, or meat for a tasty side dish with great crunchy texture.

Another favorite way to serve quinoa is cold in salads. Add sweet corn kernels, spring onions, kidney beans, green bell pepper, and celery into a bowl of cooked and cooled quinoa, toss, and you have a light salad that's full of flavor. Mix in balsamic vinaigrette dressing for even more pizzazz.

Quinoa can be served at any meal, and is available in several forms, even flour. For breakfast, you can serve quinoa with berries, nuts, and milk as a cereal. The flour can be used for baking along with whole grain wheat or as a substitute. Fitting quinoa into your healthy diet is not at all difficult with all these choices.

Once you include quinoa in your diet, you'll be looking for all sorts of ways to serve it. It won't be hard to find!

This is a very versatile super food that deserves a spot in your pantry.

Want to learn more? Click here for your forever guidebook for using food and nutrients to improve your health and vitality, lose weight, slow down the aging process and prevent disease.

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Super Foods Recipes Quinoa Broccoli With Sundried Tomatoes 1 cup sundried tomatoes 2 cups vegetable broth, divided 1 cup finely chopped sweet onion 3 garlic cloves, grated 1 1/2 cup dry white wine 1/2 cup lemon juice 1 cup uncooked quinoa 3 cups small broccoli florets optional: chopped cashews and diced green onions for toppings Put sundried tomatoes in a heat-proof bowl, cover with hot water, and let sit for 15 minutes; then drain water and chop tomatoes into small pieces and set aside.

In a large pot, put 1/2 cup of the broth and bring to a simmer; add onion and garlic and simmer for 5 minutes.

Add the sundried tomatoes, remaining 1 cup of broth, white wine, and lemon juice; bring to a boil.

Reduce heat and stir in quinoa; cover and simmer slowly for 20 minutes.

Uncover pot and put broccoli in pot, re-cover pot and simmer for another 10 minutes.

Remove pot from heat and toss ingredients together, fluffing up the quinoa and mixing in the broccoli.

Garnish each serving with a sprinkling of cashews and green onions if desired.

Quinoa Cheddar Puffs 1 3/4 cups milk 2 large eggs 1/4 lb butter, softened 1 cup quinoa meal or quinoa flour 1 cup cornmeal 1/4 tsp salt 1/4 tsp black pepper 2 tsp baking powder 1/2 tsp basil 1 cup grated sharp Cheddar cheese Preheat oven to 425 degrees and grease or spray oil in muffin tins, or line with paper muffin cups.

In large bowl, put milk, eggs, and butter and mix until blended.

In separate bowl, put quinoa meal, cornmeal, salt, pepper, baking powder, and basil, and mix well.

Add dry ingredients to liquid ingredients and mix until just blended.

Fold in Cheddar cheese until combined well.

Fill 24 muffin cups with mixture and bake in preheated oven for 10 to 12 minutes or until puffs are light golden brown.

Note: Make quinoa meal by putting raw quinoa in your blender or food processor, and chopping until very fine.

You could also use quinoa flour.

Click here for your forever guidebook for using food and nutrients to improve your health and vitality, lose weight, slow down the aging process and prevent disease.