Easy chocolate orange quinoa nests recipe. Quinoa pops coated in chocolate with candied pecans and a gooey marshmallow filling. An easy festive flavoured treat that’s great fun to make with kids.
NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION
Each nest contains 235 calories, 2.2g of protein and 1.8g of fibre. One nest also contains 20% of the recommended daily amount of B12, vitamin E and 10% of your daily B2.
INGREDIENT CHOICES AND SUBSTITUTIONS
Quinoa pops – I included these to make something a little different and they’re naturally gluten free. But if you wanted to swap these for a slightly cheaper and easier to find gluten free rice pop, you can, but you’ll likely need more. Although this recipe only requires 60g of quinoa pops, they weigh basically nothing, so you may need up to 100g of rice pops.
If you want to ditch the orange extract, you can and there’s no need to sub it for anything else.
HOW TO STORE AND KEEP
You can keep these in the cupboard in an airtight container if you want, but you need to ensure the environment is cool and away from sunlight. If this can’t be guaranteed, keep them refrigerated instead.
CHOCOLATE ORANGE QUINOA NESTS
Quinoa pops coated in chocolate with candied pecans and a gooey marshmallow filling. An easy festive flavoured treat that’s great fun to make with kids.
This recipe is gluten free, dairy free and vegan. It does contain nuts, and it can be soy free depending on your choice of chocolate and dairy alternatives.
Chocolate Orange Quinoa Nests
Quinoa pops coated in chocolate with candied pecans and a gooey marshmallow filling. An easy festive flavoured treat that’s great fun to make with kids.
Course Snacks
Cuisine American
Keyword Quinoa Nests
Prep Time 25 minutes
Total Time 25 minutes
Servings 12
Calories 245 kcal
Ingredients
- 60 g quinoa pops
- 150 g dark chocolate chips
- 100 g vegan butter
- 3 tbsp maple syrup
- 1 tsp orange extract
- 75 g vegan marshmallows approx. 1 per nest
- 100 g pecans
- 2 tsp orange extract
- 2 tbsp maple syrup
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 175°c and line a baking tray with greaseproof paper.
- Mix nuts, syrup and orange extract in a large bowl.
- Move the nuts to the cooking sheet. Spread out evenly. Bake for 15 minutes then remove from the oven and set aside to cool while you prep the nests.
- Put the chocolate in a heatproof bowl with the butter, orange extract and syrup and gently melt it over a pan of simmering water, making sure the bowl doesn’t touch the water. Stir until smooth, then take off the heat and stir in the puffed rice, coating them gently with the chocolate until they are all completely covered.
- Divide the mixture between 12 cupcake cases (silicone ones are easier to hold their shape) and push the mixture up to make the nests like a well in the centre. Put in the fridge for 1 hr.
- When they’re almost set, add your marshmallows to a heatproof bowl over simmering water along with 4 tbsp of cold water and stir frequently until they’ve melted and have a smooth consistency. Add approximately 1 ½ – 2 tsp of melted marshmallow to the centre of each nest, then immediately top with your prepared nuts. The marshmallows will work like a glue setting as it cools to hold the nuts in place.
- Place back in the fridge for another 30 minutes or so and leave them to set.
