whole grains

(Note the dirty dishes in the cover photo. Because when you cook a lot, you wash a lot)

There is much to say.

But there is not time. At least not today. I would love to wax eloquently about the things I’ve learned this past semester, but if I don’t go study, the exam that is bearing down on me this coming Monday will get the best of me. I’m reminded of an exam I took my sophomore year of college, when the professor warned us that The Bridegroom Cometh for You Next Week, Lest You Find Yourself Unprepared. I’ve always been a fan of a well-placed Biblical reference used to strike fear into the hearts of unsuspecting undergraduates, but at the time I was one of the foolish, unprepared virgins who found themselves without enough oil in their lamps, and afterwards there was much weeping and gnashing of teeth.

But now I’m older, possibly wiser, not living in a dorm and not chasing boys and I would like to hope I’m less distracted than I was then, or at least I am more disciplined and more scared of failing because, well, we did move here for this.

But I digress. Here is a relatively quick, incredibly easy recipe that has all of the seasonal warmth and comfort you can hope for, full of protein, flavor and color, and I ate it for dinner today. I also made it for a lovely group of senior citizens this past semester as part of a lunch demonstration; they were kind enough to at least pretend they liked it, and I think some of them actually did.

This recipe feeds at least 4 generously as a main course.

Squash, Pumpkin Seed and Quinoa salad:

1 cup of quinoa/grain mixture/couscous
1 small acorn squash, cut in half and seeded, sliced and cut into small cubes
OR
1 small butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cut into small cubes
1/3 cup pumpkin seeds
1/3 cup dried cranberrys
1/3 cup crumbled feta
1/4 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil, plus a little
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/8 cup vinegar (rice or apple cider)
salt and pepper to taste

*I made this twice, once with butternut and once with acorn squash. I think the acorn squash was my favorite, and the easiest, because you don’t need to peel it. The butternut is squash a little sweeter, the acorn a little more buttery. FYI in case you have a preference.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. On a baking sheet, toss the prepared squash with a small amount of olive oil and salt and pepper to taste. Roast for 15-20 minutes, or until tender and slightly charred around the edges. Let cool slightly.

Cook the quinoa/grain mixture according to the package directions. While its cooking, whisk the olive oil, lemon juice, and vinegar in a small bowl. When the quinoa is finished, combine all ingredients in a large bowl. Adjust flavors to taste. Serve in bowls.

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These are my favorite biscuits.

I’ve been making some version of them for years now, but I love this version best. They take about 20 minutes from start to the end of baking, so that automatically shoots them to the top of my list. I love the nuttiness of the whole grains, the tang that the goat cheese adds, and the honey gives just a hint of sweetness.

I used to make these with plain, all-purpose flour, and of course they were delicious that way. But then I learned that the fiber in whole grains are one of the only types of fiber shown to reduce the risk of colon cancer (you can read more about that here, its actually an impressive 20% risk reduction) i.e. fiber you get from grains that have been minimally processed, like quinoa, bulgar, brown rice, etc. So you should definitely go make them ASAP.

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If you’re looking for a tasty way to include more whole grains into your life, these biscuits are an excellent place to start. Tonight we ate these with salad and grilled chicken, but they’re lovely for breakfast and go great with soup.

Whole Wheat Goat Cheese n’ Honey Drop Biscuits
Adapted slightly from the recipe found in The Joy the Baker Cookbook

2 cups whole wheat flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons butter (1/2 stick), cubed, plus 1 more tablespoon for the pan
6 tablespoons soft goat cheese
1 cup whole milk
2 tablespoons honey

Place a 10-inch iron skillet in the oven, and preheat to 400 degrees F.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, whisk the flour, baking powder and soda, and salt together. Add the butter and the goat cheese with the paddle attachment, and mix until well incorporated. There should be chunks of butter and goat cheese that are pebble sized. Turn the mixer off and use your hands if needed, to ensure the butter and cheese is mixed well throughout. Add the milk and honey, turn the mixer on low until all the liquids are well combined and there is no more dry flour. The mixture will be very sticky. Set aside.

Remove the iron skillet from the oven. Add 1 tablespoon of butter to the bottom of the skillet, swirling it around to coat the bottom. Using a 1/4 measuring cup, scoop the biscuit dough into the skillet. I got 9 biscuits, but the original recipe said it yielded 6. Bake for 13-16 minutes, or until the biscuits are puffy, browned on top and golden brown on their bottoms and utterly delicious. If you’re daring, you could drizzle the tops with honey.

Store the biscuits fully cooled in an air tight container, and try not to eat them all in one day.

Category: whole grains

real quick

whole wheat goat cheese n’ honey drop biscuits