Friday, May 25, 2012

What's For Breakfast?

"Raw" porridge for breakfast? Yep!

Buckwheat is gluten free. It is high in fiber and protein. It has the second highest amount of protein among grains.  (3.5 ounces of whole buckwheat, almost a half cup, has four grams of protein). Be sure to use whole buckwheat!

This was my first attempt at soaking buckwheat. I soaked 1 cup over night. Here is what I wish someone would have told me in advance...
1 - When a recipe calls for 1/2 cup soaked buckwheat, I think they mean measure it after it has been soaked! Silly me, I measured it then soaked it... so my recipe was very heavy in buckwheat.
2 - When rinsing and straining buckwheat it looks similar to dividing and egg... with egg white oozing out the bottom. I rinsed and rinsed and rinsed...


So, here is what I did, which is not quite what the recipe called for.
1 - I soaked 1 cup of  whole buckwheat over night and rinsed it. Then, I put it in the blender with a little water until it looked like smooth oatmeal.
2 - I added one apple and one pear, cut into small chunks.
3 - Added two fresh dates to the blender. (Remember, dates have a pit!)
4 - I added cinnamon to taste.

How does it taste? Well, as I said, I think I was supposed to measure out 1 cup of pre-soaked buckwheat. So, it was very strong on the buckwheat flavor. The texture was kind of like a smooth, gritty oatmeal. I ate one bowl without complaining. And, I will make it again measuring buckwheat the right way! The three youngest children (who have had the least amount of processed foods in their lifetime) all enjoyed it - eating mutliple bowls. Nelson forced it down, but did not like it. Rebecca (who was introduced to fast food from breast milk on...) could not eat it. I would like to try it with a frozen banana added to it to make it colder and sweeter. I think soaking is supposed to be done at room temperature (correct me if I am wrong?). That makes for tepid food if you eat it right away.


If you plan to try this at home it makes one large serving:
1/2 cup pre-soaked whole buckwheat
1 apple, cut up
1 fresh date (not a vacuum sealed date that you have since you made Grandma's fruitcake for Christmas 2009...)
cinnamon to taste


Let me know how you like it!

2 comments:

Unknown said...

Bethany, if you desire to keep it raw, you can try fermenting the buckwheat the same way we do oats.
You cover them well with water, adding more later on in the day if they need it. Cover with a towel and allow to sit for up to 4 days.
With oats, they actually sweeten up!
Digestibility is much higher and the palette will appreciate it more as well :o)
Personally, because tradition proves they digest best fermented and cooked, we make baked oatmeal with our fermented oats.

Bethany W. said...

Thanks for your suggestion.

Bethany