Laboring

Every birthing story that I have ever heard concludes with the mother relating how totally starved she was after labor and delivery. Mothers have shared ravenous tales of devouring plates of pancakes, bowls of chili, cheeseburgers, pizza, Chinese food, and just about anything not nailed down. Labor is intense, and it makes you hungry.

I was feeling that this morning. I stayed up late last night laboring over some minor changes to this blog. Blogger does do most of the heavy lifting here for me, but I wanted to tweak a few things. Unfortunately, that same assistance that makes posting a blog accessible to almost anyone that can type also makes it more difficult for a code dummy like me to make progress with little conversions. My night consisted of lots of Googling, some trial and error, and a final result that I am still not so sure about.

Meanwhile, just like mothers everywhere, I was starving after that strenuous ordeal. I needed a real breakfast. Breakfast Quinoa from Martha Stewart Living was the perfect healthy start for me on this Mother's Day. Quinoa is a high-protein seed that can be used in salads and grainy side dishes, but simmered with some milk and sugar makes a excellent substitute for plain old oatmeal or cream of wheat. Blueberries stirred into this hot bowl of cereal are juicy bursts. I am recovering from my labors with a bowl of Breakfast Quinoa On My Plate.

Breakfast Quinoa

2 cups milk, plus more for serving

1 cup quinoa, rinsed
3 tablespoons brown sugar, plus more for serving

1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon, plus more for serving

1 cup fresh blueberries, plus more for serving

  

Bring milk to a boil in a small saucepan.

Add quinoa, and return to a boil. 

Reduce heat to low, and simmer, covered, until most of the milk has been absorbed, about 15 minutes. 

Stir in sugar and cinnamon. 

Continue simmering, covered, until almost all the milk has been absorbed, about 8 minutes. 

Stir in blueberries.

Serve with additional milk, sugar, cinnamon, and blueberries. (Makes 2 cups)