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Originally Posted by BreakingFree
Congrats on making the switch! I actually grew up eating brown rice and wheat bread but hadn't been eating brown rice lately due to the time it takes to cook. Then someone here mentioned frozen brown rice @ Whole Foods and - woo hoo - back in the brown rice business! I also bought but haven't tried quinoa yet.
I would like to find a whole wheat bread that has a firmer texture. I currently eat Pepperidge Farm 9 Grain or 15 Grain but it's really too soft for me. I'd welcome any suggestions.
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That was probably me mentioning the Trader Joe's frozen brown rice. They are always OUT of it. I wish I had a bigger freezer, I end up buying at least 2 boxes at a time, just in case. I love it, tastes great, ready in 3 minutes, no messy pot.
For whole grain bread, my current favorite is
Healthy Way organic sprouted 20 grain. Definitely not squishy! It's weird, the website has the same logo as my bread sitting in front of me, but doesn't have the kind (20 grain) that I like. It also looks like the company is Canadian, easily available where I am in WA state, but maybe not for people in other locations.
Quinoa is great, it is easier to cook than rice. Here is my one of my favorite quinoa recipes:
Quinoa Sweet Potato Quesadillas
1 cup quinoa, washed/drained (use brown rice if you can't find quinoa) I never bother washing/draining quinoa, but I know some people say it removes a bitter taste (I don't notice this, so don't bother)
1 large sweet potato/yam (diced)
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic (I used more)
1 14 oz can of tomatoes
1 can black beans, drained
1 can green chiles
2 tbs minced cilantro
Some low fat cheese
Whole wheat, low fat tortillas
Salsa
Cook quinoa in 2 cups of water. When done, set aside.
While the quinoa is simmering, I cut up the sweet potatoes into small pieces (dice sized) and spray a cookie sheet with PAM. I bake the potatoes for around 20 minutes (shaking often) until they are soft and getting crispy. (if I don't have time, I nuke them for 5 minutes!)
Saute onion, garlic. Stir in tomato (crushed, with juice), black beans, chiles, cilantro. Add quinoa, potatoes. Season with salt and pepper (I added some red pepper flakes, because i like spicy). Stir and heat through.
Put in tortillas, add some cheese so it sticks together, grill on both sides. Top with lots of salsa. Made enough for 3 nights! (I just grilled a new one each night. Last time I made it, I added some spinach leaves to mine, it was pretty good.
For quesadillas, I either use the 2 small tortilla/sandwich method or the one large tortilla folded over like an omelette method.
Plunge to Brown Rice
Even now, I can smell its gorgeous aroma.... Still, brown Basmati is what I buy, and it's almost as tasty.... 
I even made the leftovers into a rice pudding for DH - he liked it better than with white. It's the time thing that gets me. I do cook at least a double batch and use the rest reheated. No Trader Joe's in all of Alaska, sigh. In 2000 we lived in Seattle for 8 months and I loved having TJs and Whole Foods nearby.
but Whole Foods has their own store brand plus another brand (Rice Expressions 
) of frozen brown rice. The WF kind is in a bag and you measure it out and microwave. The other is in 2 serving plastic microwaveable pouches. Never thought I'd be buying frozen rice!
