Make some Millet Madness!

 

Nothing says comfort food like Millet. It is such a special whole grain with such unique characteristics. It doesn’t cook or taste like anything else.

Every now and again I get a huge craving to make a pot of millet. So when I stepped off the plane from my summer trip and felt the cool breeze of fall – I was inspired to turn on my pot and cook up this yellow wholesome grain.

I was feeling like something hearty and colourful for dinner. Since I had so much produce ready to harvest in my garden, I couldn’t help but get my hands on it after 12 days away. I was low on time and didn’t have any beans ready so for a protein boost, so I decided to make a “fully nourished” sauce complete with  protein, fiber and chlorophyll.

If you don’t know much about millet here are the specs:

Where: Millet is from Eastern Asia, and was a diet staple in Northern China until  618 A.D.  It has remained an important crop not only in Asia but elsewhere in the world.  It’s cited in the New Testament, and was a dominant cereal crop into the Middle Ages.

What: Millet is gluten free and high in amino acids (protein!), phosphorus and the B-complex vitamins.  It is very easy to digest and alkaline-forming.  You can cook it with more water for a millet-mash, or cook it with less water for a fluffy pilaf.

How: Cook millet by first rinsing thoroughly in a fine mesh colander.  Then add to pot and heat on low for 1 to 2 minutes (dry toasting) until water is evaporated.  Add water (1 1/4 cups water for 1 cup dry millet), bring to a boil and simmer, covered for about 25 minutes (until water is absorbed).

Storage: Millet can be stored in a glass jar in a cool dark cupboard.  If purchasing more than a two month supply, store in the fridge or freezer (tightly wrapped).

Use: Make millet into porridge, veggies burgers, toss it into a soup or salad or just a cozy and colourful side dish – that you can add anything into.

 

Tell Us….

Have you ever made Millet?

What recipes have you made with Millet?

What do you love about Millet?

So get a little mad and make some Millet in your kitchen!

Here is what I put together, in less than an hour!

Garden Fresh Millet Bowl

1 cup millet, rinsed and drained

1/2 butternut squash, cubed and roasted

1 handful swiss chard, chopped into bite size pieces

1 cup green beans, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

3 tbsp olive oil

1 tbsp sea salt

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

1/4 cup cherry tomatoes, sliced

Preheat oven to 350F.

1. Peel and cube butternut squash in to small pieces, toss with olive oil and sea salt. Place on baking sheet and bake in warm oven for 45 minutes – 1 hour. (Toss and turn after 30 minutes).

2. Rinse millet in a fine mesh colander and drain. Place into pot and dry toast for 1-2 minutes on low heat until water evaporates.

3. Pour in 1 1/2 cups of water, bring to a boil and then lower heat and simmer with the lid closed for 25 minutes (until all the water has absorbed).

4. Wash and chop swiss chard, green beans into small bite size pieces and mince the garlic.

5. In a saucepan over medium heat, add 1 tbsp olive oil + minced garlic. After about 1 minute add in the green beans and stir for another 2 minutes. Add in swiss chard and lightly saute until just soft, but still bright green. Turn off heat.

6. Once squash and millet are done, toss all ingredients into a large bowl and mix together.

7. Garnish with chopped parsley, cherry tomatoes and sea salt to taste.

 

 

Green Hemp-Tahini Sauce

2 tbsp tahini (sesame paste)

2 tbsp water

1 scoop Ruth’s Hemp Protein Power with E3 Live + Maca

1 tbsp tamari

1 tbsp lemon juice

pinch of sea salt

Blend all ingredients in a Vita- Mix!! For a smoothie creamy sauce!

Tell Us….

Have you ever made Millet?

What recipes have you made with Millet?

What do you love about Millet?

 

Gourmet and Gluten Free

Despite what people might think, eating a gluten free diet is not limiting at all. In fact you can get more variety eating a gluten free diet than most people do eating their average diet. When people don’t have any limitations, it is ironic, but that is when people tend to eat the same thing day in and day out. When one is restricted to a specific diet either for health reasons (allergies, intolerance’s, sensitivities or digestive problems) – it forces you to become more creative and add more variety to your everyday eating.
On Wednesday night at my “Gourmet and Gluten Free” cooking class, my participants learned just that. By incorporating gluten free foods in your diet you can have more variety, colour and balance then you ever would have dreamed. For example we made these delicious “Everything Cookies” (recipe below) that had just about everything in them – except for gluten! Based on the response – these cookies tasted better than anything they had ever expected. Also included in the menu was a creamy carrot ginger apple soup, a quinoa pilaf salad with cashews and cherries, a tofu vegetable stir fry with buckwheat soba noodles, black bean and yam burgers, a pesto sauce on brown rice penne pasta and guacamole with blue corn chips. As you can see, there is no lack of flavour, variety, colour and texture in this menu. Gluten free grains are also extremely high in protein, calcium, vitamins, minerals and best of all they don’t make you bloated! You don’t have to be intolerant to gluten to have this variety in your diet – just be creative and have fun.

A word on Gluten:

Gluten is the protein in wheat that many people nowadays have difficulty digesting. If someone is gluten intolerant, they are likely to have Celiac Disease. This can be an extremely severe situation for some people as everyday digestion is compromised causing inflammation of the small intestine.
People who suffer from Celiac Disease need to stick to a gluten free diet indefinitely.
If someone is just simply sensitive to gluten containing foods it is important to stick to gluten free foods as much as possible to keep the gut lining nourished and soothed.

Examples of Gluten Free Grains:

Grains & Grain Products
GF Grains: amaranth, arrowroot, buckwheat, corn (cornmeal, corn grits), fava, flaxseed, garbanzo bean (chickpea, besan, gram or channa), hominy, hominy grits, kasha (toasted buckwheat), millet, pure uncontaminated oats, quinoa, rice, sago, tapioca

GF flours: bean flours (garbanzo, fava, romano), pure buckwheat flour, buckwheat bran, cornstarch, cornmeal, corn bran, garfava flour (garbanzo + fava bean flours), mesquite flour, quinoa flour, montina flour (made from Indian rice grass), nut flours and nut meals, pea flour, potato flour, potato starch, rice flour (white and brown), sorghum flour, soy (soya) flour, teff (or tef) flour

Breads and baked goods made with GF grains and free of other gluten-containing ingredients

Pastas made from rice, beans, corn, potato, quinoa, soy, wild rice and other GF grains
Cold cereals: puffed corn, amaranth, buckwheat, millet or rice, rice flakes and soy cereals
Hot cereals: hominy grits, soy grits, cream of buckwheat, cream of rice, puffed amaranth, rice flakes, quinoa flakes, soy flakes
Rice: brown, white, basmati, jasmine or wild rice
Grains: buckwheat, millet, amaranth, rice, corn, quinoa

Corn or rice tortillas

Everything (but gluten) Cookies

Ingredients:

1/3 cup maple syrup or agave
1/3 cup honey
2 tbsp brown rice syrup
2 tsp. vanilla
2 Tbs. almond butter
1/3 cup tahini
1 cup quinoa flakes
¼ cup puffed amaranth
¼ cup brown rice flour
½ cup sunflower seeds
½ cup pumpkin seeds
½ cup chocolate chips
¼ cup ground flaxseeds
1/3 cup currents
1/3 cup sesame seeds

Procedure:
1. Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly grease 2 large cookie sheets, or line with parchment paper.
2. In a small bowl, whisk together the maple syrup, honey, vanilla, almond butter and tahini.
3. In a medium bowl, mix together the remaining ingredients. Pour wet mixture over dry and stir to blend well.
4. Drop by tablespoonfuls onto prepared bake sheets.
5. Bake for 10-15 minutes, until golden brown. Cookies will firm up as they cool.

Makes 20-24 cookies.