Breakfast grain bowls with caramelized bananas

By grammadot

Prep: 10 minutes Cook: 35 minutes Makes: 4 servings

Red quinoa is available at some specialty stores, but if you can’t track it down, use regular quinoa instead.

Ingredients

• 3 cups water, or more as needed
• 1/2 cup steel-cut oats
• 1/2 cup red quinoa
• 1 cup milk (low-fat, whole, almond or coconut), plus more for serving
• 1 tablespoon chia seeds
• 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3 medium firm-ripe bananas
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• 11/2 tablespoons dark brown sugar, plus more for serving
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 cup toasted walnut pieces, optional

Preparation

Step 1

1 Heat 3 cups water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Stir in the oats; reduce the heat to medium-low and cook uncovered, 10 minutes. Stir in the quinoa; cook, 10 minutes. Add the milk; cook, stirring occasionally, 5 minutes. Stir in the chia seeds and vanilla, then remove the pot from the heat, cover it and let it sit while you prepare the bananas. The cereal will thicken.

2 Peel the bananas; cut them diagonally into 1/2-inch-thick slices. Heat the butter in a large nonstick pan or cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat. Add the bananas; cook, turning once, until browned, about 1 minute per side. Sprinkle with the brown sugar and the cinnamon; cook, stirring gently, until the sugar melts, about 1 minute. Add a tablespoon or 2 of water if the pan seems dry.

3 Spoon the grain mixture into serving bowls; top with the bananas and the walnuts, if using. Drizzle with additional milk and/or sprinkle with sugar, if desired.

Nutrition information per serving (with low-fat milk): 320 calories, 8 g fat, 3 g saturated fat, 15 mg cholesterol, 56 g carbohydrates, 19 g sugar, 10 g protein, 40 mg sodium, 7 g fiber