Quinoa porridge with roasted rhubarb and honey labneh

Quinoa porridge is currently the darling of the café menu. This one is a no-fuss baked version teamed with tangy rhubarb and a vanilla and honey-spiked labneh, so you can enjoy this beauty without even leaving home.

Quinoa porridge with roasted rhubarb and honey labneh Credit: Alan Benson

• serves

  6

• prep

  25 minutes

• cook

  55 minutes

• difficulty

  Easy

Ingredients

• 300 g (1½ cups) white quinoa
• 500 ml (2 cups) boiling water
• 55 g (¼ cup, firmly packed) brown sugar
• 1 cinnamon stick
• toasted pistachio kernels, chopped, to serve

Vanilla-honey labneh

• 1½ vanilla beans, split and seeds scraped
• 390 g (1½ cup) greek-style natural yoghurt
• ¼ cup honey

 

Roasted rhubarb

• 550 g trimmed rhubarb (about 2 bunches), cut into 6cm lengths
• 110 g (½ cup) raw sugar
• 375 ml (1½ cups) milk

Standing time overnight

Instructions

To make the vanilla labneh, place the vanilla seeds (reserve the bean for the rhubarb), yoghurt and honey in a bowl and stir to combine evenly. Line a sieve with two layers of muslin cloth or a linen tea towel and place over a bowl. Spoon the yoghurt into the sieve, fold any overhanging cloth over to enclose the yoghurt. Refrigerate overnight (at least 8 hours) to drain.

Preheat oven to 200ºC (180ºC fan-forced). To make the oven-baked quinoa, combine the boiling water, brown sugar and cinnamon in a 1.5 litre capacity (6 cup) ovenproof dish. Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Meanwhile, to make the roasted rhubarb, rinse the rhubarb and shake off any excess water. Place in a bowl with the sugar and reserved vanilla bean and toss to combine. Transfer to an ovenproof dish just large enough to hold the rhubarb in a single layer and cover with foil.

After the quinoa has been baking for 30 minutes, stir in the milk, cover and return to the oven with the rhubarb. Bake for another 20 minutes, stirring the quinoa 2-3 more times during baking.

Remove the foil from the rhubarb and bake both for a further 5 minutes or until the quinoa is tender and porridge-like and the rhubarb is still holding its shape but tender when tested with a skewer.

Immediately spoon the quinoa porridge into bowls, top with the rhubarb and pan juices, and a spoonful of labneh. Sprinkle with pistachios and serve immediately.

Baker’s tips

• The rhubarb can be roasted up to 2 days before serving and kept in an airtight container in the fridge. Remove from the fridge about 1 hour before serving to bring to room temperature

• The vanilla and honey labneh can be made up to 3 days before serving. Keep in an airtight container in the fridge.

Anneka's mission is to connect home cooks with the magic of baking, and through this, with those they love. Read our interview with her or for hands-on baking classes and baking tips, visit her at BakeClub. Don't miss what's coming out of her oven via Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest.

Photography by Alan Benson. Styling by Sarah O’Brien. Food preparation by Kerrie Ray. Creative concept Lou Fay.

For more recipes, view our online column, Bakeproof.

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.