Like any grain, quinoa can be ground into flour for baking or pressed into flakes to use like oatmeal. Purchase a box of quinoa flakes that are commercially pressed -- or make your own with special equipment. You'll need a home roller grain mill, which can be a stand-alone product or an attachment on a stand mixer.
Once you have your grain mill, press the quinoa straight from its raw state.
If you have a grain mill with different roller settings for thickness of the final product, choose the one you prefer. Brands list their settings as numbers or as millimeters.
Pour 1 to 2 cups of raw quinoa into the funnel compartment, known as the hopper, at the top of the machine or attachment. How much you add depends on the capacity of your mill and how many flakes you want.
Place a bowl underneath the base to catch the flakes. Many mills come with a receptacle for catching.
Turn it on and watch your grains come out as flakes. If you have a hand roller, you'll need to turn the crank to create the flakes. The speed at which the grain is flaked depends on the type of mill you have. Use the flakes immediately, or store them in an airtight container or sealed plastic bag in a cool, dry cupboard for three months. Store the flakes in the freezer for up to six months.
Quinoa flakes cook up into a creamy hot cereal in about four minutes. Top the cereal with dried fruit, fresh berries, chopped nuts, honey or brown sugar and milk. Use them as you would oats in baked goods, such as cookies and quick breads, or turn them into crunchy, sweet granola.
When you cook whole quinoa, recipes often recommend that you rinse the seeds first to remove a natural, but bitter, coating of saponins, a class of chemical compounds. Much of the quinoa you purchase commercially has been pre-rinsed. Rinse the raw quinoa in a mesh strainer and allow it to completely dry before pressing the grain into flakes if you prefer, but it isn't a necessary step.