Because I am always cooking quinoa, finding new ways to do it is really fun for me.  Whether it is a new quinoa recipe or simply a new approach I love to try new things.  Now, forgive me if the title to this post was confusing.  I am sure that you could cook quinoa in your crock pot, but that is not what I have done here. (Hmm…something to try next week.)  Instead, I’ve taken one of my favorite crock pot breakfast recipes, changed it up a little and added quinoa. Breakfast in a crock pot you ask?  YES!

Now, I don’t set this dish to cook over night.  Something about living eggs cooking all night long just doesn’t work for me.  What I do is start this quinoa breakfast recipes in the evening and then store it in the refrigerator once it is done.  Like most all egg breakfast casseroles, it freezes well.  I like to put leftovers in my seal a meal so that I have them to pop out of the freezer on a busy morning.

Since this dish starts with cooked quinoa, you will need to know how to cook quinoa. This isn’t a fussy dish, so I recommend the standard stove top method I use here: how to cook quinoa perfectly or here: cooking quinoa. Either one will work just find but the later will be much quicker.  You can also cook the quinoa in a steam cooker or microwave rice cooker.

If you are watching what you eat, low fat sour cream and cheeses work well in this dish.  Most often, that is what I use.

Broccoli, Cheese and Quinoa Crustless Quiche

1 cup cooked quinoa grain

10 egg whites, beaten

6 eggs, beaten

1 cup sour cream

4 ounces cheddar cheese

4 ounces goat or feta cheese

10 ounces chopped frozen broccoli, thawed and drained

½ cup roasted red pepper, drained and chopped

1 tsp garlic

½ tsp salt

½ tsp pepper

1/8 tsp cayenne pepper

Directions

Cover your slow cooker with olive oil cooking spray.  Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and then transfer to your slow cooker.  Cover and cook on low for four hours.  Enjoy!

This is a great dish when you have company and don’t want to have to fuss in the morning.  I am all about doing as much as I can ahead of time!

New to cooking quinoa?  Check out the impressive quinoa nutrition facts and my quinoa cooking tips!  Now that I’ve broken out my slow cooker, I think I am going to have to try to make some quinoa soup in it when the weather cools down.

As always, I would love to hear from you!