Cinnamon Apple Quinoa

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This Cinnamon Apple Quinoa is a creamy, comforting gluten-free, vegan-friendly breakfast recipe! Made with almond milk, coconut cream, apples, and spices, this whole bowl of deliciousness is ready in under 30 minutes! {Vegan + Gluten-Free}

Oh, friends, Cinnamon Apple Quinoa is comfort food at its finest. We’re talking full-embrace hugging vibes and warm, fluffy goodness vibes. If we’re about be enveloped by cooler temps that turn downright frigid, we might as well be enveloped by a delicious gluten-free breakfast recipe, too.

And this Cinnamon Apple Quinoa is strong. Not in an over-the-top-too-much-flavor-if-that’s-even-possible kind of way. More like this recipe has one job – be comfortingly delicious (maybe that’s technically two jobs?), and it does it (them?) well. 10/10 stars, would recommend. 

Not gonna lie, the star of this show is the coconut cream. It makes Cinnamon Apple Quinoa rich and creamy and still dairy-free, which I LOVE. Because while I do eat some dairy, we have a dairy allergy in the house, and it’s nice to have options everyone can enjoy. 

But here’s a confession: I don’t love coconut. Yet I DO love coconut cream in this quinoa breakfast bowl. It just works. The apples, spices, and sweetener neutralize what might otherwise be a super-coconut-y flavor. And somehow, like any good production, all the individual players know their parts. They play them well, too. From creamy dairy-free milk ingredients to cinnamon-spiced apples, this gluten-free quinoa breakfast bowl recipe is here for us. Basically, our mornings just got a little bit better, Spiriteds.

So let’s get our quinoa ON! Because this bowl of comforting goodness awaits!

Cinnamon Apple Quinoa ingredients

• Quinoa. Uncooked.
• Almond milk. Unsweetened is fine because we’ll add our own flavors.
• Coconut cream. Either buy a can of coconut cream OR chill a can of full-fat coconut milk overnight. The cream of the milk will rise, and then you can skim it off the top and use that in this recipe. Either method will work.
• Apples. Cored and peeled. Whichever variety of apples your tastebuds like best will work. Pictured here are Gala apples.
• Sweetener. Maple syrup, agave nectar, or honey will work.
• Spices. Cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and allspice. Amounts are provided but to-taste will also work.

Tips to make Cinnamon Apple Quinoa

1. In a saucepan, combine the quinoa, almond milk, coconut milk, sweetener, and spices. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently. Then add the chopped apples, and reduce heat to MEDIUM. Cover the saucepan and simmer for about 15-20 minutes. Check regularly to make sure the quinoa doesn’t burn.
2. Remove saucepan from heat. Fluff the quinoa and then let it sit, covered, for 5-10 minutes.
3. To serve, fluff the quinoa with a fork and top with extra apple pieces, if desired. Serve warm. Refrigerate leftovers for two to three days.

Best practices

This is a simple recipe to prepare, but quinoa often has a mind of its own. So I have included tips below to get tasty results!

• Add the apples once the quinoa starts to boil. This ensures they soften without becoming mushy.
• Stir frequently during the cooking process. Quinoa has a tendency to cook hot and uneven. It is also prone to sticking to the bottom of the pan. So it’s important to lift the quinoa off the bottom of the pan, folding or tossing the ingredients. The best stir is a top-to-bottom motion as opposed to a circular motion.
• Let the quinoa sit covered after cooking. Fluff the quinoa with a fork, place the lid back on the saucepan, and then let the quinoa sit for about 5-10 minutes. This ensures the quinoa cooks evenly, as the steam in the pan will cook any partially-cooked quinoa. 

Get your quinoa ON!

If you like unique quinoa recipes, then check out these tasty meals!

• Cinnamon Quinoa Breakfast Bowls
• Cauliflower Turmeric Quinoa Bowls
• Avocado Quinoa Salad
• Southwestern Quinoa Bacon Breakfast Bowl

One comforting nibble of Cinnamon Apple Quinoa at a time, that’s how we’re doing breakfast around these parts.

Spiriteds stay well and stay wild. Jump into the fun when you can, and always remember I’m glad you’re here. ❤️

Cinnamon Apple Quinoa

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This Cinnamon Apple Quinoa is a creamy, comforting gluten-free, vegan-friendly breakfast recipe! Made with almond milk, coconut cream, apples, and spices, this whole bowl of deliciousness is ready in under 30 minutes! {Vegan + Gluten-Free}

• Prep Time: 5 minutes
• Cook Time: 20 minutes
• Total Time: 25 minutes
• Yield: 2 cups 1x
• Category: Breakfast
• Method: Stovetop
• Diet: Gluten Free

Ingredients

Units USM Scale 1x2x3x

• 1 cup quinoa, uncooked
• 2–4 tablespoons agave nectar
• 1 cup almond milk, unsweetened and unflavored
• 1 cup coconut cream (see notes)
• 2 apples, cored and peeled, any variety
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/8 teaspoon allspice

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Instructions

1. In a saucepan, combine the quinoa, almond milk, coconut milk, sweetener, and spices. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently. Then add the chopped apples, and reduce heat to MEDIUM. Cover the saucepan and simmer for about 15-20 minutes. Check regularly to make sure the quinoa doesn’t burn.
2. Remove saucepan from heat. Fluff the quinoa and then let it sit, covered, for 5-10 minutes.
3. To serve, fluff the quinoa with a fork and top with extra apple pieces, if desired. Serve warm. Refrigerate leftovers for two to three days.

Notes

• Add the apples once the quinoa starts to boil. This ensures they soften without becoming mushy.
• Stir frequently during the cooking process. Quinoa has a tendency to cook hot and uneven. It is also prone to sticking to the bottom of the pan. So it’s important to lift the quinoa off the bottom of the pan, folding or tossing the ingredients. The best stir is a top-to-bottom motion as opposed to a circular motion.
• Let the quinoa sit covered after cooking. Fluff the quinoa with a fork, place the lid back on the saucepan, and let the quinoa sit for about 5-10 minutes. This ensures the quinoa cooks evenly, as the steam in the pan will cook any partially-cooked quinoa. 
• Use coconut cream from a can OR chill a can of full-fat coconut milk overnight. The creamy portion of the coconut milk will rise to the top. Skim it off the next morning and use it in this recipe!