For the Weekend: Not Your Average Breakfast

I have been unusually inactive this week. Little tummy still had a fever all week so I took her to the doctor for the third time yesterday in two weeks. This time they sent us over to the children’s ER to find out what was going on. Having a fever for 9 days is not a good sign and not having any other symptoms makes finding the cause a little more difficult. After a urine sample was taken by a catheter and an ultrasound of the kidneys we found the problem. She has a UTI caused by an abnormality in her right kidney. She’s on antibiotics now and we have an appointment in a couple of weeks with a pediatric urologist to see how serious it is.

I’m exhausted you guys. This was the last thing I was expecting to learn about my perfect little girl yesterday. I am a little confused as to why it took this long for the problem to show itself. If it wasn’t for her doctor urging us to go to the hospital we would be a lot more confused so I thank him. I have been weighed down with a few things on my mind lately. I really didn’t need this, but all I can do is keep going.

With all this information to take in we need a little comfort this weekend. I loved this comforting breakfast with an Asian twist I made a few weeks ago. Breakfast has been a real struggle for me after saying good-bye to gluten. I wanted a good scramble and I didn’t want beans. The idea for these Quinoa Scramble Spring Rolls popped into my head. Every spring roll needs a dipping sauce so for these I whipped up a Wasabi Chickpea Miso Sauce. The use of powdered wasabi instead of fresh made the sauce less intense. If you would rather use another sauce go for it.

If you have used rice paper before you know it is a finicky ingredient to work with. This makes the assembly more time-consuming. If you can get helpers then it will go by a lot faster. Perhaps you could make it an assemble-your-own-roll breakfast. As always, if you’re looking for perfection the process becomes more a chore and less a joy. So please have fun with it!

Quinoa Scramble Spring Rolls

vegan, soy-free, nut-free, gluten-free

makes 8 spring rolls

Ingredients:

1 teaspoon olive oil
2 cups cooked white quinoa
2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
1 teaspoon turmeric
salt and pepper, to taste
1/4 cup vegetable broth
handful fresh spinach (about 20 leaves), chiffonade
2 tablespoons sliced kalamata olives
3 green onions, thinly sliced
4 radishes, trimmed and julienned
8 sheets rice paper rounds
bowl of hot water

Directions:

Heat the oil in a non-stick skillet and saute the quinoa for 5 minutes.
Stir in the yeast, turmeric, salt, and pepper. Cook for an additional minute.
Add broth and cook for a few more minutes.
Stir in olives, spinach, and green onion. Cook until the spinach has wilted. Remove from heat.
Prepare rice paper one at a time by dipping them into the bowl of hot water until softened. The hotter the water the quicker it will be. So as the water cools you will need to submerge the rice paper for longer periods of time.
To assemble add a layer of radish, top with about 1/3 cup quinoa mixture, and wrap rice paper around filling like a present.
Serve with Wasabi Chickpea Miso Sauce (recipe below) and enjoy!

Wasabi Chickpea Miso Sauce:

2 tablespoons water
2 tablespoons coconut aminos
2 tablespoons chickpea miso
1 teaspoon brow rice syrup
1 teaspoon wasabi powder

Combine all ingredients in a small non-stick saucepan.
Heat on low whisking until everything is mixed and dissolved. Don’t let it come to a full boil.
Remove from heat and serve with rolls.