Monday, February 12, 2007

Discovering Buckwheat flour...

We're still searching for an inexpensive (current source costs me $7.50 to make two loaves) source for organic spelt flour (we've switched to spelt for its nutrition and because it doesn't hurt Annika's tummy), and yesterday morning I found us completely out of bread AND spelt flour. My kids didn't want eggs again for breakfast, so I was feeling pretty pinched. I went through my crazy pantry and found a small bag of buckwheat flour, leftover from some bread experiment a few months back. With nothing to lose and two hungry kids, I tried making buckwheat crepes! DELISH! I just substituted the buckwheat for the spelt that I normally use in this recipe:
1.5 cups flour
1 Tbsp sugar (I use raw, organic, free-trade sugar from Rancho Vignolo, which I've read is actually very nutritious and good for us!? I see you can buy it at Simpl Delicious, too.)
1/2 tsp baking powder (without aluminum -- from Cooper's bulk or Simply Delicious bulk)
1/2 tsp sea salt
2 cups milk
2 Tbsp melted butter
1/2 tsp vanilla
2 eggs
This recipe made enough for the 3 of us for two full meals. I cooked up the rest of the batch today and that half up there is the only scrap left. My kids inhaled them, and even proclaimed that they didn't need maple syrup as they tasted good by themselves! So, there you go. A last ditch resort served up a new favourite food!

Here's a little info that I found when I googled buckwheat:
Buckwheat has a variety of healthful properties. It’s an excellent plant source of easily digestive protein and contains all eight essential amino acids, so it’s close to being a "complete" protein. Buckwheat is also high in fiber (a big bonus for celiacs), B vitamins and, according to a USDA study, keeps glucose levels in check better than other carbohydrates -- which is good news for celiacs who also have diabetes. It’s also said to lower blood pressure and reduce cholesterol.
So, now I want to try growing it! It's in the same family as rhubarb (which I LOVE) and sorrel (which I want to try growing this year) and is therefore a fruit, not a grain as the name would have you think. When it's roasted it's called Kasha.

1 comment:

ASK ME HOW I CAN HELP YOU!! said...

Hi again,
great information...i never knew about buckwheat but have heard it mentioned so often!
Lisa