Steel-cut oatmeal has been a long-time favorite Winter breakfast for me, but lately I’ve been branching out, inspired by the fact that we have a ton of other whole grains in our pantry such as oat groats, spelt berries, wheat berries, farro and rye berries.  These grains all came from Cayuga Pure Organics, a bean and grain farm located near Ithaca, NY that is a provider for our CSA.

I’ve been treating these grains the way I would treat steel cut oatmeal, and it’s my new favorite way to start off the day! Follow these instructions to turn any whole grain into a warm, hearty breakfast flavored just to your liking.

Instructions:

Heartier whole grains such as rye berries and wheat berries cook quicker if you soak them overnight prior to cooking. A single serving is about 1/2 cup of dried grain. Just measure out the grain and put it in a bowl covered by at least a couple of inches of water (preferably filtered). Cover, and leave overnight.  The next morning (or some hours later), strain the grain and put it in a heavy pot with water in a 2:1 water:grain ratio.  Don’t worry about using too much water as this type of grain doesn’t turn into a porridge, the individual rye berries retain their integrity so you can just strain the grain when it’s cooked through, or fish it out with a slotted spoon.

Bring to a boil and simmer, covered, until they tastes done.  These rye berries took about 40 minutes. They’re still al dente even after all that cooking, and they’ll pop in your mouth when chewed. At that point, you can add whatever flavorings you want, sweet or savory.   I like a touch a sweetness, so here I grabbed a small handful of raisins and sunflower seeds and it was perfect. Other great sweet options include maple syrup, honey, cinnamon, vanilla, walnuts, almonds, cashews, fresh apples, bananas, etc.  For the more savory side, Alexa adds things like sesame oil, soy sauce, steamed vegetables, balsamic vinegar, and pine nuts.  What flavor combinations come to your mind? We’d love to hear your favorites, it’s going to be a long Winter and we’ve got a lot of grain to get through!

Similar Posts

• Letting the Vegetables Shine
• Creamy Garlic Polenta with Sautéed Mushrooms
• In a New York State of Black Bean Burger
• Barley Bowl
• CSA Soup

While you wouldn’t know it from the warm, balmy weather in New York City over the past few days, but Autumn has arrived. And with it comes the wind, drier air, cooler weather, and…….cold season! In my other life as an acupuncturist, I’m often advising patients on how best to adapt to the changing seasons. One of the ways I suggest during this seasonal shift is to incorporate medicinal foods which boost immunity, and this recipe is packed with them!

Miso is a superfood. Made from soybeans (or another legume) fermented with rice (or another grain) and salt, the result is a pungent, salty, umami seasoning paste. Used for thousands of years in Japan and China, the bacteria used to ferment miso is the same used in the production of soy sauce and sake (some of my other favorites). Since miso is fermented, the paste is considered ‘live’, so it is advised to not boil miso, and instead add it to the warm soup at the end of cooking so that the bacteria remains unharmed. It is thought that the bacteria in miso help promote intestinal health, eliminate toxicity in the body, and support the body’s immunity. All those old people that they find living in Okinawa, Japan? They all eat miso soup before each meal! You can find miso paste in well-stocked grocery stores and health stores in the refrigerated aisle, usually near the tofu and tempeh.

In addition to miso, this recipe includes 4 different mushroom varieties which help boost immunity. When choosing mushrooms for their health benefits, it’s a good rule to stick to the Japanese varieties. In this soup, I used shitake, maitake, enoki, and bunashimenji. These varieties all exhibit immune-boosting, antimicrobial, antiviral, anti-cancer and blood pressure-regulating effects; there is much exciting research being done on the effects of these medicinal mushrooms. While you can probably find shitakes at most supermarkets these days, these other varieties can only be found at Asian markets. I rely on H-Mart, a Korean grocery chain in Queens, for my (organic!) mushrooms.

Another ingredient that I rely on H-Mart for is fresh soba noodles. Soba noodles are made from buckwheat, and while you can definitely use dried soba noodles for this recipe, I find that the fresh ones cook faster, since I can just throw them in the soup while it is simmering. In the picture above, you can see that they come coated with flour. I find that the soup is clearer (and doesn’t thicken) if you rinse off the noodles prior to adding them to the soup. If you use dried noodles, just cook until almost done in boiling water before adding them to the soup.

Immune Boosting Mushroom Miso Soup with Soba Noodles

• Mushrooms (any combination of Japanese mushrooms); shitake caps sliced, others may remain whole. (Freeze shitake stems, as they are excellent to make a stock, but don’t work in this recipe)
• Fresh ginger (to taste)
• Miso Paste (to taste)
• 1 cup of washed and julienned kale
• Soba noodles
• Cubed tofu
• Garnish ideas: Sliced radish, black sesame seeds, sesame oil, scallions, soaked wakame seaweed

1. Add sliced mushrooms (except enoki, which don’t have to cook) to pot of boiling water with 1 tablespoon (or more) of freshly grated ginger. Lower heat to a simmer and cook for 5 minutes.
2. Add kale, soba, and tofu. Cook for 3-5 minutes until noodles are cooked through. Turn heat down to low and add enoki mushrooms.
3. Ladle out about 1 cup of warm broth into a small bowl, and dissolve about 1 tablespoon of miso paste into it. Add miso-broth back into soup. Taste, and dissolve more miso paste in as taste dictates. I find that some days I crave a bland bowl of soup, and others I want a more pungent salty experience.
4. Ladle into serving bowls and top with garnish of choice. Above I used sliced radish, black sesame seeds and a drizzle of sesame oil.

In addition to the health benefits of the miso and mushrooms, this soup also features ginger and kale, medicinal/nutritional powerhouses themselves. So when you are feeling slightly under the weather, OR even before you get to that point, stock up on this soup so that you remain healthy all fall and winter long!

Similar Posts

• CSA Soup
• Simple Miso Soup
• Letting the Vegetables Shine
• Barley Bowl
• Creamy Garlic Polenta with Sautéed Mushrooms

Let the dinners of fresh, local, organic vegetables begin! The Forest Hills Tuv Ha’aretz CSA kicked off a couple of weeks ago, and we have been really enjoying all the early summer vegetables. When the vegetables start rolling in, it really puts the “you-don’t-have-to-do-much-to-fresh-ingredients” principle into use, ’cause it’s true! With veggies this fresh, it just takes a brief steam, a squeeze of lemon, a pinch of salt, or a drizzle of good quality olive oil to transform an ingredient to a meal. Last Tuesday night, we enjoyed red quinoa, mung bean sprouts, sauteed garlicy spinach and quick ‘pickled’ japanese salad turnips. A sprinkle of garlic scapes (immature flower stalks), balsamic vinegar and olive oil is all the dressing it needs.

Building a Farm Fresh Bowl: A Story in Pictures

Wash greens well. My favorite way to wash greens: Rinse in a colander, then spin wet dirty greens. The dirt separates from the greens due to centripetal force; I call this kitchen physics. Keep greens wet–the water will help the greens cook.

Heat some olive oil, and add chopped garlic or garlic scapes. Add wet greens and cover, with the heat on low, for 5 minutes. Uncover, and drizzle balsamic, and sprinkle with salt and pepper.

These are garlic scapes. They are a delicious spring delicacy.

Since I tried them for the first time last year, I have been waiting to eat Japanese salad turnips again. They are a sweet, delicately pungent vegetable that takes very well to light pickling. To add some crunch and acidity to the vegetable bowl I made this lemony turnip ‘pickle’. Slice turnips, add zest of lemon, lemon juice, olive oil and salt and pepper. Toss and let sit for a few minutes before serving. (When zesting use organic citrus whenever possible since the pesticides reside in the peel.)

Round out the meal with bean and whole grain of choice (we’ve been on a millet kick lately, but ran out hence the red quinoa), and dress with oil and vinegar… Bon appetite!

Similar Posts

• Barley Bowl
• CSA Soup
• Simple Miso Soup
• Creamy Garlic Polenta with Sautéed Mushrooms
• Farm Fresh Roasted Vegetables

I always feel better after a simple meal of grain + veg + sauce. Especially in the winter season, with the plethora of root vegetables available, simple meals like this are only a roasting pan and steamer away. We had carrots and rutabaga left over from last week’s winter CSA share, which I roasted with with beets. All were tossed in olive oil, salt, pepper with a sprig of rosemary (I love the way the house smells in the winter with rosemary roasting in the oven).

The roast vegetables were served with steamed broccoli and that toothsome wonder, barley. When eating like this frequently, some people worry about getting bored with the same old thing every night. And the answer is SAUCES! I have a few standard sauces in my repetoire that can be mixed together on a whim, and used to top not only roast vegetables, but fish, tofu or tempeh.

Miso Sesame Sauce:

• 3 part sesame oil
• 2 part miso paste
• 2 part rice wine vinegar
• 1 part honey (or 1/2 part sriracha)

Similar Posts

• Letting the Vegetables Shine
• CSA Soup
• Simple Miso Soup
• Creamy Garlic Polenta with Sautéed Mushrooms
• Farm Fresh Roasted Vegetables

You can really roast anything. It’s also a great way to use veggies that are on their way out, although this was NOT the case tonight. The reason I wanted this simple roasted dinner was that the veggies were SUPER fresh, and when that is the case, there is very little cooking that needs to be done.  Any cooking should just bring out the flavor of the vegetables.

Roast vegetables with lentils, millet and Bulgarian feta

• Beets
• Cipollini onions
• Broccoli
• Millet
• Lentils
• Bulgarian feta
• Extra virgin olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper

1. The roasting process is always the same: Turn the oven to 400F, cut the produce (broccoli and cipollini onions) into similar-sized pieces and toss with olive oil, salt and pepper. Roast in a single layer on a parchment-lined sheet pan. Check in the oven periodically, but everything should be done in about 1/2 hour.
   
2. The process for beets is slightly different: Trim beets and wrap them (unpeeled) in aluminum foil; these beets were petite, so I wrapped 4 or 5 in each aluminum foil satchel. Place the beet package in the oven. These, too, should be cooked in 1/2 hour, although with bigger beets, the time will be longer. When they come out of the oven, open the aluminum foil with care (watch out for steam) and run the beets under cold water while rubbing the skin, which should peel right off.
   
3. Millet: I use the standard 1:2/grain:water ratio, and it works well for me.
   
4. Lentils: Lentils are very resilient. I put them in a pan with water to cover by a few inches, cover and cook over medium/low. I watch closely, checking every 10 minutes as they cook, and add water as necessary.
   

When all is cooked, dress with extra virgin olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and salt and pepper. Sprinkle with feta cheese. Or not–it’s delicious either way.

Recently, I’ve been playing around with the slow and low (250F for 3 or 4 hours) roasting method after an unbelievable roasted vidalia onion I had at Jaleo in DC–Stay tuned for future post.

Similar Posts

• Creamy Garlic Polenta with Sautéed Mushrooms
• Letting the Vegetables Shine
• Warm Zucchini Salad
• Barley Bowl
• CSA Soup

Miso Soup with Vegetables, Tofu and Udon

Miso soup can be as simple as dissolving miso paste in hot water, or a bit more complicated with a traditional dashi broth. Mine usually falls somewhere in between.  I like to start by simmering vegetables, this creates a simple homemade veggie broth.

• Miso paste, to taste
• Kale, cut into about 2 inch pieces
• 3 carrots, sliced
• 3 celery stalks, sliced
• 1 block tofu, cubed
• Noodles (udon, soba, or even linguine)
• Ginger, minced, to taste (I used about 2 T)
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1/2 thai chili pepper, chopped
• 1 small onion, sliced
• 2 scallions, sliced

Put the onion, garlic, ginger, carrots, celery, and pepper in 6-8 cups water. When it boils, add the noodles and set a timer for the cooking time on the package.   In the meantime, dissolve 1 tablespoon of miso paste in some of the cooking liquid in a small bowl.  When the miso paste has dissolved completely, add the mixture back into the soup.   Taste the soup to see if it has the desired strength of flavor.   If needed, add more miso paste, 1 tablespoon at a time,  again by first dissolving it in a separate bowl, until you are happy with the flavor.   With one minute remaining, add the tofu and kale.  Add the sliced scallions, and serve immediately.

This soup really does the trick.  Follow it with a good night’s sleep and your body will be ready for anything.

Similar Posts

• CSA Soup
• Letting the Vegetables Shine
• Barley Bowl
• Creamy Garlic Polenta with Sautéed Mushrooms
• Mushroom Miso Soup for Immunity

Tonight’s Dinner:

Tomorrow’s Lunch:

Similar Posts

• Moroccan Carrot Cumin Salad
• Mushroom Barley Soup
• Slow Cook While You SLEEP!
• Something from Nothing
• Pantry Pasta

To roast a squash (and the process works the same for any hard-skinned winter squash), cut in half, scrape out seeds, and place cut side down on a lined baking sheet and bake in a 400F oven for about 30 minutes, or until the top gets moist and glossy, and the skin gets soft.

Cut Squash

On the way into the oven

Done when the surface gets shiny

And the inside gets soft

Since it had such nice seeds inside, I thought it would be great to roast them. Then we can use them on a salad, or as a topping for rice…

I picked off most of the pulp of the squash from the seeds. Honestly, though, I think I could have done a MUCH better job of cleaning the seeds—I got a little impatient, and I think the roasted seeds took a hit because of it. Oh well. I set a heavy bottomed skillet over med/high heat and threw in the seeds. I continuously tossed, adding a drop of olive oil when the pan started to get to dry and the little bits of squash were burning (I would have been able to avoid this had a patiently cleaned and air dried the seeds). After about 8 minutes, they had browned and I tossed in some salt, then transferred the seeds to a paper towel. When they fully cooled, they never got as super-crunchy as I wanted them to. I will have to try it again with the next squash.

Similar Posts

• CSA Soup
• Simple Miso Soup
• Letting the Vegetables Shine
• Barley Bowl
• Farm Fresh Roasted Vegetables