Yogurt with Toasted Quinoa, Dates, and Almonds

Amazzzzzing

I honestly thought this sounded boring when I first made this LOL...sorry, just being honest! BUT it's sooooooooo good! It's unpredictably, inexplicably good. Thank you for sharing.

Do you think you could toast the quinoa in the oven with the pistachios and almonds?

I absolutely love this! But I want to serve it as part of a table-of-mixed-flavors lunch (as such dishes seem to be served at Sitka & Spruce) and would love menu suggestions. Should I stay Turkish? Salad, yes; maybe beets/beet ash? Any other suggestions?

Very easy and flavourful! The lemon zest adds a brightness to the earthier flavours of the nuts and dates.

Late to the game, but I made this for lunch yesterday and breakfast today, using a super-creamy and tangy bulgarian yogurt from Whole Foods. Delicious! I drizzled honey on it instead of olive oil; just a touch. Winner!

I make this over and over again. Absolutely delicious - a combination of ingredients and textures that I wouldn't have put together & the olive oil adds a luxurious finish. Love that I have learned to pop my own quinoa, an ingredient that piles up on my shelves along with good intentions.

I printed out this recipe ages ago and finally made it this morning - definitely an "eclectic gourmet" twist on breakfast. I streamlined the toasting by using the same saute pan on the stove - toasted the quinoa first, then the nuts. I also "cooled" the quinoa and nuts in the same shallow bowl that I would eventually be adding the yogurt and dates (fewer dishes to clean). I was skeptical about the flavor combination of lemon zest, sea salt and olive oil but it all came together nicely. I use a fabulous French-style organic yogurt from Sonoma County that comes in a jar - lovely flavor. The comments from others here inspire me to use other nuts and fruits. I have a jar of lime honey in the pantry that is begging to be included. Thanks!

The first time I made this I realized I had no quinoa so I used oats. Delicious, it was like a cheat's granola! Have used quinoa since then and I love the crunch it provides and experimented with cranberries, flaked coconut, flaked almonds, pistachio oil and drizzled some honey on the top. A fantastically filling, luxurious, unctuous breakfast.

Really delicious combination! It seems like a flexible recipe and I look forward to trying variations. What seems essential is good yogurt, toastiness, crunch, earthy sweetness, lemon zest, with a bit of olive oil and salt. I didn't have Greek yogurt but used some fantastic local yogurt and it was great.

Awesome! I'll use only one date next time. But WOW.

My new Go To breakfast! And so versatile! I have a nearby grocery store with an excellent dry goods bulk section. Planning to make use of that as a way to really mix things up without having to invest in a lot of larger containers of things. I could see this as being really good with dried mango... macadamias... and so much more!

This is delicious! I've just made for the first time with golden quinoa, and hazelnuts instead of pistachios. Unfortunately, I had to wing it on the lemon zest, and just scraped what I could off of the lemon with a fork (only tools I had at the office). I'm really looking forward to modifying it and trying all sorts of variations. A great way to use up the package of Medjool dates I had tucked in the pantry!

Do you rinse the quinoa first and toast it wet? It doesn't sound like that is what you do but just need to check...have been reading that quinoa needs to be rinsed. Cannot wait to try this dish...thanks.

MMMMMM..... I just made this and it is soooo simple and crazy delish. Don't leave out the lemon zest! It made all the difference. I chopped up alot more nuts than what it calls for and was happy I did. (I also think a couple cranberries chopped would be a nice bright addittion.)

Tantalizing enough to make me spring for several ounces of olive salt. I don't think I'll be disappointed.

This was really yummy! I used driec cranberries because I didn't have dates. The fresh lemon zest makes it! I'll me making this again soon.

I just made this for breakfast and it was so delicious!!!! I did decrease the amount of yogurt by quite a bit though as 6oz is way too much for just me! Such a delightful surprising flavours though!

This is delicious, I underestimated the pairing of such simple ingredients. so good! didn't add oil and it wasn't missed- but the salt! now that's something else all together!

Finally got around to making this recipe as written, with dates. I bought some beautiful, large fresh Medjools and used marcona almonds, I was so excited. I have to say that it is leaps and bounds more delicious with prunes instead of dates! The plump tartness of the prunes and good, spicy, flavorful olive oil make this superb.

So you just eat the yogurt by the mouthful, Ortolan? I didn't think that pita would work either. But it looks pretty yogurt heavy to eat on its own - especially if it is full fat Greek yogurt with olive oil. Greek yogurt in its many manifestations is often an accompaniment to something else. I thought that this might be the case here as well. I did order the rose salt online!

What would you serve this with? Pita? Any other suggestions?

Oh. My. God. This was so much more delicious that I would have ever expected. I used prunes instead of dates, and pecans instead of almonds, and drizzled a bit of honey over the top along with the olive oil for good measure--the flavors came together anyway so beautifully--thank you for this remarkable recipe!

Everyone I have made this for loves it; even though I have to sometimes to persuade them to try it. It's such a delicious, healthy breakfast!

I love this recipe, thank you. I use just almonds and changed out orange zest for the lemon. I drizzled a citrus infused olive oil on top this time and it was even more excellent.

Would regular quinoa be an OK subtitute for red quinoa?

Saw this and wanted it immediately! Didn't have much on hand, but improved with olive oil, orange zest, almonds, raisins, and flax seeds. Delish!

This is incredible. And the perfect excuse to use some pistachio oil I bought yesterday. Thanks for another winner, Amanda!

Just returned from Seattle where for lunch one day, 3 of us devoured most everything on the menu, including that day's yogurt topped with rhubarb compote, honey and toasted black quinoa. DIVINE!

Hey Amanda, really sorry I didn't link you. I always do it and just forgot this time. Will never happen again :)
I love your recipe!

I just tried this for breakfast this morning; I didn't have dates in the house, so substituted raisins. I also toasted the nuts and the quinoa in the same pan on the stove (I'm lazy). This is really well balanced both texturally and in terms of taste. I love the tanginess of the yogurt with the salt and the sweetness of the raisins. And I kept thinking of the olive oil all day. YUM! definitely having this again and I am so glad that I toasted extra quinoa and nuts--I think that the combination would be great on salad.

I saw this recipe pop while out of the country. Today is my first morning home and I went out to obtain the items I didn't have for the sole purpose of making this my breakfast.

Okay, now I'm totally hooked. I've had this for breakfast three days in a row, the first day with dried apricots instead of dates. It's great either way.

Could you toast the nuts with the quinoa simultaneously? One pan and one heat source? I'm thinking start the nuts then add the quinoa after a minute or two so they finish together?

This sounds lovely and I can't wait to try it!

Forgive me but I am new to quinoa and am still trying to figure out how to prepare it properly. In this recipe is the quinoa dry roasted?

Thanks.

I notice you do not rinse the quinoa. Not necessary in this guise?

I just enjoyed this for lunch and will definitely be making this again. Could not be easier and the result is absolutely delicious.

I also heard (http://www.sweetamandine.com/2012/01/there-you-have-it.html) that Sitka and Spruce does sautéed dates with yogurt. I've started making a snack out of dates caramelized in a bit of butter. It's like crack.

YUM. Thx for this Amanda.

I thought the same but the dates add a lot of sweetness -- but I bet it would be good either way.

This sounds really good. I would've thought a little honey rather than olive oil, but I'll give it a try. Thanks, Amanda!