Did you know that quinoa can also be used to create baked goods like breads, pastries and even cakes? Quinoa can be ground into a fine flour which gives baked goods a unique texture and flavor.

The nutritional value of quinoa is kept when it is used in its flour form, which makes it an attractive substitute for the usual baking flour. For people with gluten sensitivity, quinoa flour will allow them to enjoy breads and pastries that do not contain wheat as an ingredient. With quinoa flour, you can expand your quinoa menu to include desserts and pastries that are both satisfying and nutritious.

While quinoa flour is readily available in some supermarkets and health food stores, you can also make your own quinoa flour at home. To make quinoa flour, you will need a blender of a food processor. Here are the steps on how to make quinoa flour.

1. Decide how much flour you want to make. 1 cup of quinoa grains will yield about 3/4c of quinoa flour. Do the math.

2. Rinse the grains thoroughly. Rinse it several times until the rinse water no longer has a soapy residue. This soapy residue is called saponin, which coats the quinoa and gives it a bitter taste which deters bugs and insects from eating it. Most commercial quinoa grains are pre-washed.

3. Toast the quinoa seeds lightly to enhance the nutty flavor in your quinoa flour. In a non stick pan, saute the quinoa seeds until they turn golden and begin to pop.

4. Remove the toasted quinoa seeds from the pan, and set aside to cool.

5. Put the quinoa grains in a blender or food processor. Run the blender or food processor until you ground the quinoa to reach the fine and even consistency of flour.

Store the flour by putting it in an airtight container and keep in a refrigerator until you are ready to use it. Do use it as soon as you can. Due to the high fat content of quinoa, they do not keep very long.

When baking with quinoa, it is important to start with recipes that already call for quinoa flour. Quinoa flour is unlike your all purpose flour and may not hold well in your usual baked recipes. This makes substituting with quinoa flour tricky. What many bakers are wont to do is to substitute only a portion of the flour requirement with quinoa, to ensure that the finished product retains the desired structure.