hot quinoa and oat cereal with goji berries

Get out a heavy bottomed saucepan or Dutch oven and add in the ½ cup quinoa, ½ cup steel-cut oats, ½ cup goji berries, ¼ cup raisins, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, ½ teaspoon cinnamon, ¼ teaspoon ground cardamom.Pour in the 4 cups water and give it a stir.Now there are two ways to cook this up. I will give you the overnight version first, and then the instant version below. I have tried the cereal both ways and love it.Here's the overnight version.Turn the heat up to medium-high and bring the cereal mixture to a boil. Don't stray to far as this comes to a boil within 5 minutes or so.Turn off the heat, give it a quick stir, cover and then let it sit out overnight. Yep, that's all there is to it. Easy peasy.When you wake up and patter into the kitchen you will see that the grains have absorbed all of the water. Give the cereal a quick stir and turn on the heat to medium-low. Stir occasionally, adding water if needed, (I didn't need to add any additional water, as mine still had some water left) until the cereal is warmed through, about 5-8 minutes.If you want to make this up fresh one morning, go for it. It really only takes 30 minutes for the whole process. Follow the first 2 steps and then when the cereal comes to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer (uncovered), stirring occasionally until the grains are tender, 20-25 minutes.Top the cereal with a splash or two of maple syrup and then throw on whatever your heart desires. The cereal is a bit sweet due to the cardamom and cinnamon so you may not even need to top it with anything.I love topping mine with some toasted walnuts, dried cranberries, dried cherries, or blueberries, and sometimes I will even throw on a sliced banana. In the summer, I love topping it with some fresh sliced strawberries and blueberries.Got leftovers? Just re-heat the cereal in a sauce pan, covered, over medium-low heat. The cereal will thicken as it sits, so you will want to add a bit of water to thin it up as it's cooking.