Superfood in the spotlight: Quinoa

Quinoa is a highly nutritional and protein-filled seed that is often treated as a grain. For something so small it packs a lot of nutrients into each grain. Gluten-free, this superfood contains all the nine essential amino acids (the building blocks of protein) that promote strong muscles and boost our immune systems.

Nutrient-rich
Manganese, copper, phosphorus and magnesium abound and this richness results in great anti-inflammatory benefits: the ability to prevent certain health conditions such as diabetes and cardiovascular diseases.

Flavour
Another incredible advantage of quinoa is its amazing flavor. Nutty and with a great texture, there are many recipes to chose from at goodnessis.com. This Bread Loaf by Stacey is one of the best ways to prepare quinoa and incorporate it into your weekly meal plans.

makes one medium round loaf/sandwich loaf

Ingredients:

to cook the quinoa:
1/4 cup of red quinoa
1/2 cup of water

for the bread:
1 cup water
1/4 cup of sunflower seeds
1/4 cup pumpkin seeds
1/4 cup linseed/flax (If you are not adding linseed it is very important to lessen the water by 1/4 cup, as the linseed soak up a lot of the moisture.)
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoon honey/molasses/maple syrup
1 + 1/4 teaspoons salt
1 + 1/2 cups of white spelt flour
1 + 1/2 cups of whole spelt flour
1 generous teaspoon of dried yeast
sunflower seeds, caraway and black sesame for the outside

Recipe:

Cook the quinoa, covered until the water has evaporated. Set aside and allow it to cool. In the bowl of a mixer add 1 cup of water, the seeds and nuts, the oil and the sweetener. On top of this add the flour, salt and lastly the yeast. Do not mix.

Fit the mixer with the dough hook attachment and mix on low for 10 minutes until the dough is smooth and elastic. Add the cooked quinoa and mix until well combined. If it looks too wet add 2 tbsp. more flour but keep in mind it should be sticky.

Remove the bowl from the mixer and cover with a tea towel. Allow to sit at room temperature until doubled in size, about 1 1/2 hours. Turn the dough out on a lightly floured surface. (If you find the dough sticky, rub your hands lightly with oil.)

Knead it by pushing it down and over itself for a few minutes. If you are baking this in a loaf pan than stretch the dough to a rectangle 20 x 25cm. Roll tightly as if you were rolling a swiss roll, close the seam well by pressing the edges together. Otherwise for a free form round loaf shapes the dough into a ball.

Brush with oil/ghee, lightly sprinkle with caraway, black sesame and sunflower seeds. Cover lightly with a tea towel and allow to rise near a warm place for about an hour or until it has doubled in size.
Half an hour before the bread has risen, center a rack or baking stone in the center of the oven and heat the oven to 210 degrees Celsius.

When the oven is ready, bake for 35 -40 minutes or until golden brown. Remove and allow it to cool on a rack. If you are unsure whether the loaf has cooked through, turn the oven off and let it sit in the oven for a further 10 minutes. Once cooled (very important), slice and enjoy with your favourite spread.