Cinnamon Toast Breakfast Quinoa

This recipe’s photo shoot was going swimmingly until the very end. Ingredients, sunlight, dog not on table—check, check, check. Then I told myself to quit being lazy and pull out the tripod to be sure I got some crystal-clear photos of the final dish.

I tripped over Cookie, the tripod arm bumped the foam board reflector, the reflector knocked over the mini milk pitcher and then both bowls. It was like watching a stack of dominoes fall.

Ingredients:

Breakfast quinoa

• Heaping 2 tablespoons chopped raw pecans
• 1 ½ teaspoons coconut oil
• ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon, plus more for sprinkling on top
• Tiny pinch of salt
• 1 cup pre-cooked quinoa* (either chilled or warm from cooking—both will work)
• 1 tablespoon maple syrup, more if desired

Toppings and optional accompaniments

• 1 tablespoon chopped dried cherries or dried cranberries
• Hemp seeds, chia seeds or flax seeds (optional), for serving
• Milk or yogurt of choice (totally optional), for serving