Objects and Subjects

I'm taking an amazing art class for adults at my children's school. Taught by the fabulously talented Rachel Rabhan (the upper school's art teacher and an incredible artist), the sessions are part drawing, part soul searching, and part therapy. A great (and very diverse) group of people get together once a week for an intimate, sensory, and cathartic experience. I'm not being paid to write this! I'm just fascinated and I feel privileged. Last week, Rachel asked us to bring in to class an object that is important to us. 
I brought a little elephant sculpture that belonged to my mother. It was the only object I took from her bedroom after she passed, exactly three years ago. She collected elephants with their trunks pointing upwards, for "good luck," she said. I needed to bring it home with me. During class, when explaining the meaningfulness of the elephant, it hit me how things are never important, unless they have a value added by another human being. The value, ultimately being feelings, which are intangible and amorphous, takes a physical form in the object, and that's why we cherish objects.
For the last three years, I've been saying kaddish the day before Chanukah, and the immense sadness of her passing, and the duration of her long disease invade me again. Not that there's ever a day in which I don't think about her and lament her absence, but when her Yor Tzeit comes, it becomes more intense, sharper and darker than usual. I'm relieved her pain is over, though. But I'll never recover from not having been able to say goodbye to her in person.
She always pushed forward and never surrendered, not even for a minute. So I know she would have preferred me to celebrate her than to cry for her (although I just feel like crying). So, last Friday, I made challah in her honor.
I chose the braided bread for many reasons.
1. The spiritual link that keeps Jewish women from every generation together and turns them into sacred beings.
2. Because the first time I ever realized challah could actually be baked at home and not bought at a store, was when my mother decided to bake one (and only) at home. I was about 7 years-old and when the shiny, golden, perfectly braided loaf came out of the oven, I thought my mother's capabilities were out of this world. Unfortunately, when we tried it, it tasted like beer. Something must have gone wrong with the yeast. She never attempted it again, but here's where I come, giving continuity to her initiative.
3. Because it felt good to think of her while kneading the dough and turning powder and liquid into edible glory worth a special blessing during the most important day of the week, seems like a miracle by itself.
4. Because I thought a bit out-of-the box for this recipe and imprinted it with my own personality; and she always encouraged me to be original, even if that wasn't always the safest way to go, nor greatly appreciated by me at the time.
5. Because going back to objects and people: challah is full of value, meaning and feelings. It represents Jews of every age, nationality, social status and for all generations. It's physically a gorgeous, delicious, sweet, rich bread, but most importantly, it's sacred to bake it, eat it and share it at your table with people you love.

CHALLAH A'LA IRONY OF BAKING

Ingredients

• Vegetarian (contains honey)
• Free of: eggs, dairy, nuts, soy
• Contains wheat and gluten

Just a couple of notes:

• Fresh yeast is sold refrigerated, compacted into 2 oz "cakes." Make sure it's not passed its expiration date. You can keep fresh yeast frozen for a long time. Just thaw it in the fridge the night before using.
• Use pure honey, but don't bother splurging in "raw" honey, as the challah will be baked anyways and all the raw benefits are lost with the heat.
• Yes!!! you can use warm water instead of the green tea. But green tea adds antioxidants and a bit of UMAMI taste. I use 2 tea bags for the 4 cups of water to brew the tea.
• When baking bread, ALWAYS use warm liquids, NOT hot, as you may kill the yeast (yes, it's alive) and your dough won't rise. The best way of testing the temperature (besides a thermometer, of course) is by feeling the liquid with your inner wrist, and if it feels warm and comfortable, the yeast will like it too.
• Don't add more salt than stated in the recipe, as it could also kill the yeast. But don't omit salt completely either, as besides imparting flavor, it conditions the dough.
• This recipe is EGG FREE, so you may taste the dough.
• Add and extra 1/4 to 1/2 cup honey if you love sweet challah

4 cups warm brewed green tea (105-115 F)

2 (2 oz) bars FRESH yeast

16 oz. pure honey

2 1/2 lbs white whole wheat flour (King Arthur's), plus more for flouring surface

2 1/2 lbs bread flour ("high gluten")

2 tablespoons chia seeds, ground

1 ½ tablespoon fine sea salt

1 ½ cups grape seed or rice bran oil, plus 2 tablespoons for oiling the dough

 Method

In a small bowl, dissolve yeast in warm tea, stir 1 tablespoon honey and set aside (until tea starts sizzling with tiny air bubbles or if using water, until foam forms, about 10 min).

In a very large bowl (I mean huge), combine flours and salt. Make a well in the center.

Pour in the remaining honey, ground chia, oil and yeast mixture into well. Just don't discard the honey container, as you'll use the left over honey in the bottom for glaze.

Mix and knead until smooth. Do it with an electric mixer with the dough hook, or roll up your sleeves and enjoy using your hands. Dough should be elastic, and should spring back when poked with your finger.

Half the dough and shape into 2 large balls. Place in 2 separate bowls covering each all over (including bottom) with 1 tablespoon oil. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and let rise on a warm place for 1-1 ½ hours (until it doubles its volume).

If you prefer, cover the challah dough and refrigerate before it starts rising, leaving it in the fridge overnight (as opposed to 1to 11/2 hours at room temp), then proceed with the next step

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Punch down dough and separate an olive-size piece of dough, saying the blessing, and burn the piece.

In a floured surface (I like working on a floured large piece of parchment paper to avoid sticking and for easy clean-up) shape each challah, by forming long "snakes" of dough by rolling pieces of dough against the surface or between your hands.

Use 3 "snakes" to make regular 3-strand braids (the challah looks even nicer when the center of each strand is thicker than the tips).

Or use 6 strands and working from right to left, follow an "up 2, down 1" pattern, until you've used all the strands. 

You can coil one large strand into a Rosh Hashanah-shaped challah or into small "knots" to make challah rolls.

Make little balls (size of a golf ball) and place them randomly in a baking pan, looks wonderfully complicated after baking, and you get a pull-apart challah.

*You could wrap challah dough at this point and freeze it until the day you'll be using it. Just thaw before baking.

Place challah loaves on parchment-lined rimmed baking pans and allow to rise for 30 minutes more.

Add a teaspoon or two of warm water into the glass where the honey used to be. Cover and shake it, so the water dissolves any honey in the container.

Brush loaves with honey-water mixture.

Bake for 30 to 40 minutes until golden brown. Or until the challah sounds hallow when tapped in the bottom.

Enjoy!

Recipe makes 4 humongous loaves, or about 8 medium ones.



The Cookie Fit vs. The Fit Cookie

 I sadly admitted a while back that snacking is my children’s main meal of the day (probably, your kids' too, you know it!). When mine were little, I thought I would teach them how to eat properly, sitting down at a table full of healthy, well balanced and delicious food three or four times a day;  table mats set with napkins, a plate, a bowl, a spoon and a fork. Then I began snacking up on my own words, as despite all my beliefs, we had ended up swapping dishes for Ziploc bags and polka-dotted BPA-free, ergonomic, spill proof vessels. Their contents were enjoyed always on the go and at random times.

The abundance of newer portable foods, just states that I’m not alone in this. However, even if I had given in in the snacking, I wasn’t willing to compromise the quality of the snacks. Fresh, freeze-dried, dry, and/or pureed fruits, veggies, yogurt, air popped popcorn (once they were old enough not to choke on them), granola, edamame, and National king of kiddie snacks: Cheerios…I made sure they weren’t only empty calories.

One day, things changed. At pick up from pre-school, a mother holding a warehouse club-sized box of Oreos (which by the way, end up being some of the most allergy-friendly goodies around, as they are dairy, nut and egg free) stood up at the classroom door to greet her child with the cookie sandwiches. My son, who was next in line and observed the process, hopeful and excited--instead of saying hi to me--, asked what his snack was.

I showed him the sweet, bright orange clementine I had brought…Seizures of anger and a Tony Award-deserving tantrum followed. The cookie-holding mom offered some to my child, who was by then (and less than a minute had passed) lying on the floor kicking the puddle formed by his own tears. Thoughtfully, she had brought the big box for sharing and everything went back to happiness. She was sweet and generous about it, but I was pretty annoyed with her, my son, and the clementine.

Since that day on, I decided all I could do was prepare my children tasty snacks, that although would never be welcomed as an Oreo, would at least be delicious, attractive, portable, and would offer more than just a sugar rush. I didn’t want any artificial ingredients, I tried to include as many whole grains and as little sugar as possible, and I made sure there were real foods and nutrients. I’m constantly in the kitchen trying new ingredients, tweaking and testing. Here’s a winner (aka approved by both of my children) for the season:

CHAMOMILE-PEAR MINI SCONES

These are a great option for people suffering from allergies to eggs, dairy and nuts, and can be made gluten free. You can add other seeds, shredded coconut, nuts (of course, if there are no allergies). You can also switch the fruit you are using. They are delicious with berries and fresh herbs during warmer seasons.

The zest of any citrus fruit works really well too. You could substitute other herbal teas for the chamomile, or experiment with Rooibos* (red tea) or a bit of minced fresh ginger for a more grown up punch.

Substitute vanilla extract for the seeds of one vanilla bean, and/or for 2 teaspoons or orange blossom water* or rose water*. This is one of those recipes that you can customize as you please. Just keep the amounts of chickpeas, liquid sweetener, oil, flour, quinoa flakes, chia, salt, baking soda and fruit constant, and the rest, make it your own!

I did mention above that you can substitute the chamomile, however, besides a plesant floral taste, this herb has anti-irritant, anti-inflammatory and anti-microbial properties. It's been used since antiquity to alleviate sleep disorders, anxiety, skin conditions, stomach aches and menstrual cramps. So...it might be a good idea to keep it if your child reacts like mine did when I offered him the clementine!

NOTE:  High doses of chamomile can cause drowsiness. People allergic to the daisy flower family can present a severe reaction to chamomile. Do not use chamomile during pregnancy (it could stimulate the uterus), or if you suffer from bleeding disorders (it can thin the blood).

Oh, no!!! I just feel like an ad for cigarettes (in the old days) or a farma product, where they first tell you how amazing, life-fixing, fun, to conume the product is, and then a disclaimer follows, ruining the party. But I did feel a big responsibility, especially with pregnant women, as I had no idea chamomile could be dangerous when expecting.

Ingredients

1 bag chamomile tea, optional*

1 (15-OZ) can chickpeas*, rinsed and drained

7 ounces pure maple syrup, honey, or coconut nectar

4 oz, mild tasting extra virgin olive oil OR expeller pressed grape seed oil*

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract* 

8 ounces whole oat flour (gluten free)* if necessary

3 ounces quinoa flakes*

2 tablespoons chia seeds*

½ teaspoon fine sea salt*

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 medium pear, cored and coarsely chopped

*These ingredients can be found here

Method

Preheat oven to 325 F. Line two rimmed sheet pans with parchment paper and set aside.

Pour the contents of the chamomile tea bag –if using-- in a spice or coffee grinder and grind until it looks like powder. Measure 2 teaspoons of ground chamomile and set aside. Reserve the rest for another use.

Process chickpeas, maple syrup, oil and vanilla until chickpeas are coarsely chopped. Empty mix into a large bowl. Add flour, measured ground chamomile, quinoa flakes, chia, salt and baking soda into bowl with chickpea mix. Mix with a spatula or wooden spoon. Once dough comes together, add in chopped pear and mix until incorporated.

Scoop dough into small balls with a mini ice-cream scoop. Place scones onto prepared baking sheets, keeping 1-inch separation between each. Bake for about 20 minutes until they look dry, and feel set and crusty when touched gently. If still in doubt, break one of them and make sure its interior looks done.

Let cool and enjoy or wrap in plastic and freeze. For best taste, reheat before serving.

Makes about 75 mini scones

 

Giving Thanks

I have to be honest. I'm impartial to Thanksgiving. After 13 years in the U.S., even if I like the National holiday, it doesn't evoke in me any particular nostalgia, joy nor excitement. I do like the food (although...what's up with sweet potatoes with marshmallows??? as a side dish!!! Will never understand that one...), and I like the fact that it's a day in which people in the whole country get together with their families, not only to prove the Universal dysfunctionality of the institution, but to pause and reflect in the good things life has given them and feel thankful.
However, since I didn't grow up celebrating it, it doesn't stir me inside like some other times when I wished I had my family around and I hoped I could bring my childhood back. I guess that once a year, I get to just enjoy, without too much thinking, missing or feeling. And I'm thankful for that!
And while I'm thanking, I want to thank YOU, the people who read this blog. Some times, I don't even understand why you actually read it, and some others I feel a bit proud of this attempt at connecting personally with others through better food.
My friend D, who recently ditched me (and the sadomasochistic life in NYC) for the 'burbs, called this week. Her baby just started solids, and she wanted to share (orally, not in written) that the only food the 7-month-old accepts and likes is the white soup from this blog! Her call made my YEAR!!! Thank you baby E and thank you D!

Thank you to all of you who email and facebook me, talk to me in the elevator, at Fairway, at gatherings, or those of you who even dare to post comments on the blog!!! Thank you for the old loyal friendships and also for the new ones. Thank you for thinking of me, and again, for accompanying me through my writing, my recipes, my attempt at taking pictures and at getting my toes wet in the scary waters of cyberspace, and all my ridiculousness. I'm sure you have a zillion more important things to do, so THANK YOU for taking the time.

And...thanks to Jean-Georges Vongerichten (or perhaps pastry chef Johnny Iuzzini???) for the original molten chocolate cake recipe that I've adulterated in a zillion ways and that for some reason, it always comes out delicious (hot and chocolaty. I guess nothing can go wrong with that!).
This is the Reece's cups inspired version kissed with Thanksgiving squash.
Have a lovely Thanksgiving!

PB-CHOCOLATE MOLTEN CAKES

Ingredients

• Contains peanuts, eggs and gluten

- For gluten free: substitute spelt flour for the same amount of gluten free oat flour or super fine rice flour

- For peanut free: Substitute peanut butter for the same amount of extra virgin olive oil

-For egg free click here

• Free of dairy, soy, refined flour and refined sugar

Makes 12 individual cakes

• 2/3 cup creamy all natural peanut butter (unsweetened)
• 8 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped *
• 6 eggs, prefereably organic
• 1/2 cup squash puree (unsweetened)
• 1/3 cup evaporated cane juice (sucanat) or coconut sugar*
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt*
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract*
• 4 teaspoons whole spelt flour*

* You can find those ingredients here

Method

• Preheat oven to 450 F. Place 12 foil (or other self standing) cupcake liners on a sheet pan. Set aside.

•  In the top of a double boiler set over simmering water, heat the peanut butter and chocolate together until the chocolate is almost completely melted. While that’s heating, beat together the eggs, squash puree, and sucanat, salt and vanilla with a whisk or electric beater until light and thick.
• Whisk together the melted chocolate and PB; it should be quite warm. Pour in the egg mixture, then quickly beat in the flour, just until combined.




• Divide the batter among the molds. (At this point you can refrigerate the desserts until you are ready to eat, for up to a day; bring them back to room temperature before baking.)

• Bake the molds on a tray for 6 to 7 minutes; the center will still be quite soft, even liquid, but the sides will be set.


• Invert each mold onto a plate and let sit for about 10 seconds. Unmold by lifting up one corner of the mold; the cake will fall out onto the plate. Serve immediately.

The Magic Glove: Confessions of a Germophobe

Everyone who knows me, could attest organization is not my forte. I'm definitely not a neat freak, I function making last minute decisions, and with a weird abstract order in my head that shows up as brief moments of clarity once in a while. I'm sure that if I ever make a debut on T.V., it will be at the show hoarders where the hosts will rescue our family of four from a gigantic mountain of cookbooks, magazines, financial research printouts and imported (Chinese) crappy toys received as party favors. 

However, and despite all this lack of organization, I'm very into cleanliness and mostly, into avoiding microbes. My name is Alexandra, and I am a germophobe.
It all started as a child when my mother told me to never walk into a public shower barefoot (in my early twenties, I almost killed myself in a shower at a Newark motel where Continental Airlines had put my friend and I, when our flight to Montreal was canceled. I didn't have my suitcase with me, so I thought I would improvise water shoes by wrapping plastic bags around my feet. I slipped dangerously a couple of times, but I didn't touch the floor!). It continued developing when mom explained me why I shouldn't use my favorite swimming suit again after it had been stolen in camp and eventually returned. "Never share your hair brush with anyone," she lectured me. And as I've said before, I'm a very obedient person. When I got to university, matters only got worse when I took my first microbiology class, a food microbiology one and its lab followed, and then I chose to specialize in nutrition for food service, where I had to get certified in an international food safety program. I received a special honor for great performance on the test...the problem was, and is, that some times, the more you know, the crazier you get...
I screamed my lungs out when my friend A rinsed cooked pasta with water from the sink (we were in Mexico, where the water coming out of faucets and sinks is not potable). The friendship suffered due to my hysteria, although after he became a chef, eventually learned that of course, I was right all along!

Another dear childhood friend of mine confessed that, after everything I had taught her (I repeated my mom's advice and my classroom acquired knowledge to her any time I got a chance), she was purposely not bringing flip flops to her son's swimming class. Needless to say, the boy caught athlete's foot. She told me the story and cleared that she had done it intentionally, as she wanted to avoid her child turning out like me!!! She wanted him to learn that foot fungus could be treated and wasn't a big deal.
As my friend is raising a resilient child, I've turned my oldest one in a photocopy of me. She refuses to touch door knobs and handles because "they are full of germs." She's right, though. But as I told her, she can't live staring at closed doors and waiting for someone to open them for her. I do feel a sting of pathological pride when I realize how well she understands the transmission of germs, but I don't want her to turn out like myself either, as I get sick in my head instead of sick with a cold; so I gifted an antibacterial spray to keep in her school bag and I pretend it's not a big deal.
Needless to say, my germophobia gets pumped up whenever I visit restaurants or other kinds of food service. I hate when cooks and/or servers are wearing hats or nets, but all their hair is coming out of them. Where buffets are not properly cooled, or when a cook wears a mask right under his/her nose. But what drives me the craziest are plastic gloves. For some reason, many food handlers think that the gloves are magical: just because they are wearing them, they will avoid food borne disease despite using the exact same glove to prepare a sandwich or serve a hot dog and then, charging the customer for their food, giving them change and moving on to the next sandwich, then more money, still same pair of gloves. I've seen some servers leave the establishment with gloves on, go buy a missing ingredient at a store, come back and keep preparing food, all without ever taking off their latex hand protection, and thinking they are taking extreme hygienic measures. There's a strange believe that the glove offers immunity against all microbes. Well, they might offer their hands defense against all the invisible, minuscule disease-causing agents they touch, but not your food, so good to keep in mind that in reality, if you wash your hands well with soap, and cook right away, you'll be much safer.
All this spiel, to suggest you wash your hands and then proceed to make the following recipe right away. A perfect fall/winter (flu season!!!) salad that provides everything your body needs to defend itself from the next meal you eat at a place where the server cooks your food and exchanges bills and coins with the same pair of gloves...

MASSAGED KALE SALAD WITH DELICATA SQUASH AND POMEGRANATE

Kale loves to be pampered. When you massage (gloves or no gloves, up to you) the dressing into the leaves, you are rewarded with a soft, flavorful, slightly spicy and still crispy and leathery green. Especially when you do it ahead of time, so it's nice that for once, you can (and should) dress a salad ahead of time. The colorful result of this salad only shows the presence of a huge variety of phytonutrients. With this salad, the "rainbow-a-day" is met. Full of fiber, carotenoids, flavonols, vitamins K, A, B, C and lots of minerals, this should be a keeper!
This recipe uses delicata squash, which is a variety that doesn't need to be peeled, saving a nice amount of effort. However, feel free to use your favorite kind if you prefer, just peel before roasting it.

Note on seeding pomegranates: Of course you can buy the arils already extracted, but seeding a whole pomegranate is not as intimidating as it seems. Either one of the following methods works beautifully, it's fun, and kids love helping out:

1. Underwater: With a serrated knife, quarter the pomegranate, and working with a quarter at a time, submerge pomegranate in a large bowl 2/3 full of water. Seed with your hands keeping the fruit under water. The seeds will go to the bottom while the white, inedible membrane will float. Discard white skin, drain water and voila: you have all the seeds left and no messy spots or splatters anywhere.
2. Pinata style: This is Yotam Ottolenghi's method from Plenty- Cut the pomegranate into two horizontally (at the equator). Hold one half over a large bowl, with the cut side against your palm, and use the back of a wooden spoon or a rolling pin to gently knock on the pomegranate skin. Continue beating with increasing power until the seeds are coming out naturally and falling through your fingers into the bowl. Once all are there, sift through the seeds to remove any bits of white skin or membrane.


Ingredients

• Vegan, free of: gluten, wheat, dairy, eggs
• Contains nuts, but could walnut oil can be substituted for extra virgin olive oil and pistachios can be substituted with roasted squash seeds (or pumpkin)

1 Delicata squash, halved, seeded and cut into 1/2-inch thick slices

5 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil*, divided

5 tablespoons balsamic vinegar, divided

2 tablespoons toasted walnut oil*

1 tablespoon hot water

1 small clove garlic, peeled

1 1/2 teaspoons raw honey*

1 teaspoon coarse Dijon mustard*

1 bunch of kale (any variety), washed, patted dry, tough stems discarded and leaves sliced into bite size portions

1 pomegranate, seeded (see methods above)

2/3 cup roasted pistachios*, shelled and coarsely chopped

Sea salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

*available at http://astore.amazon.com/ironyofbaking-20

Method

Preheat oven to 425 F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment.

Place squash pieces on prepared sheet and drizzle them with 1 tablespoon olive oil and 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar. Mix with a spatula or your hands to coat evenly. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and roast for 20-25 minutes, until it browns outside and softens inside; tossing every 10 minutes.

While squash roasts, place remaining olive oil, and balsamic together with walnut oil, hot water, garlic, honey, mustard, a bit of salt and pepper in the bowl of a blender or a deep cup,  (if using an immersion blender) and mix until the dressing is well emulsified. Adjust seasoning. 

In a large salad bowl, place kale and add 1/4 cup of dressing. Massage the dressing onto the leaves until they are all covered. Add more dressing, if desired, or cover the rest and refrigerate for up to 4 days.

When the squash is ready, let it cool while you seed the pomegranate.

Add pomegranate seeds to kale, then roasted squash and top with chopped pistachios.

Mix well and add more dressing, if desired.

Variations:

-Add 1 cubed avocado
-Instead of pistachios, roast the squash seeds and top the salad with them
-Add peeled and sliced Fuyu persimmons (instead of squash, or along with it)
-Some goat or feta cheese goes really well in this salad

Pajama days

I've spent this week revamping the blog. I hope you find it cleaner and easier to follow. Also, if you look at the right side column, you'll find the link to my new aStore. I've picked in amazon.com the non-perishable ingredients that I often use--but are some times not available in regular grocery stores--and I've put them all in this aStore. So you can click on it, select the ingredients, purchase them (with the online security that amazon offers) and get them shipped directly to you. No time or gas wasted searching for them! Yes, I do get a small commission, but it will not cost you anything extra. Amazon is the one splitting it with me! Please let me know if you find it helpful and if you have any comments or suggestions. I'd love to learn what you think.  

In a way, I'm glad I've been mostly working from home these days, as there's been no happy weather. After everyone was slowly trying to get life back to "normal," in recovery from the hurricane, here came a nasty snow storm. Wind breaking and turning inside out everyone's cheap umbrellas (yes, there's is actually a quality and endurance difference, but I'm still buying the $8.00 ones, which end up being more expensive, but the Burberry's one will have to wait), slushy sidewalks, red noses, wet everythings and dark skies...

It's tea drinking mood, sweats (OK, pajamas), thick socks, fluffy sleepers, soups, crockpot-cooked meals and porridges time. Yes, smooth, warm, creamy, slightly spiced, sweet and comforting porridges. Warmth sliding down the throat, smoothly, delicately, comfortably... Needless to say, lots of oatmeal. But today I was in the mood for something different.
I had some left over coconut milk in the fridge and I decided to give millet a try for breakfast.
Most of us have at some point heard the word millet, but few people keep it in their cupboard. Well, here we go, then: millet is a main ingredient in birdseed and just as it happens with quinoa, amaranth and buckwheat, it is not technically a grain, but a seed that behaves like a grain.
The term millet, actually refers to a variety of grains from the same grass family, not a specific one, and that's why it can be white, red, yellow or grayish.
A tiny round ancient seed, that resists draughts well, millet originated in Ethiopia, and it's a common ingredient in African, Indian and Asian cuisines. Before the discovery of the New World, it was a popular food in Europe, that eventually was replaced by potatoes and corn, and reserved mostly for animal feed.
However, with the current revival of ancient grains, the increasing incidence of celiac disease and gluten intolerance (millet is gluten free), and the recognition of whole, unprocessed grains as health-promoting and maintaining foods, these little guys are making a comeback.
They are mild in flavor, easy to digest, inexpensive and high in heart-protective magnesium and contains a good amount of protein. Millet is also a good source of phosphorus, which is necessary for cellular and genetic structure, bone formation, and energy production; manganese (an essential enzyme activator), powerful antioxidants and fiber.

For best tasting results, it's good to toast millet before cooking it. Millet should be placed in a hot, dry skillet over medium high heat, and moved around constantly with a heat-proof spatula for about 5 minutes. Until a toasty smell and mild browning are perceived. Then, it can be cooked in cold liquid (3 parts liquid to 1 part millet, for a rice-like texture, or a bit more for a loser, creamier one) for about 25 minutes. Then it should stand in the pan, covered with heat turned off for 5-8 minutes.

PEAR AND COCONUT MILK MILLET PORRIDGE

You can substitute coconut milk for almond, hemp, hazelnut, rice, whole dairy milk, or even water. Although I did love the richness and the slight sweetness of the coconut milk in this recipe.

It doesn't require the addition of sweetener, as the pear melts into the millet, and the spices just enhance it a bit more.

INGREDIENTS

• Vegan
• Free of: dairy, nuts, eggs, sugar, soy, wheat and gluten
• Super ingredients: millet, pear, ginger, nutmeg, cinnamon

1/4 cup millet

1 soft pear, seeded and cubed

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

1/8 teaspoon ground (freshly, if possible) nutmeg

1 cup canned coconut milk

Cinnamon, to taste

METHOD

Heat a small sauce pan for a couple of minutes, until very hot. Lower flame to medium high and add in millet.

Cook the grain, mixing constantly with a heat-proof spatula until it smells toasty and browns a bit. Do not burn!

Add in the cubed pear, ginger and nutmeg, mix to distribute and pour in the coconut milk.

Bring to a boil, lower the heat to medium, cover and let cook 25 minutes.

Turn heat off and let porridge rest, still covered for 5 minutes.

Serve on a bowl and sprinkle with cinnamon.

Serves 1 (generously), but recipe can be doubled, tripled or made to feed as many breakfast eaters as you want.

NOTE: Recipe can be prepared in a slow cooker overnight, and then you'll wake up to a warm breakfast ready to go (just remember to toast milled before placing it on the crockpot)