For me the meaning of a better quality of life begins at the table that’s why we’ve brought in our resident vegetarian and food policy expert Tiffany Griffin to share some basics on healthier eating habits through the vegetarian lifestyle. ~ Heather Watkins Jones
I first heard of spelt at a “meeting of the minds” in Durham, NC. I brought my banana pizza to the potluck, resulting in a number of strange glances and comments from the peanut gallery (“banana pizza?!?!?”), after a few adventurous souls vetted the delectable flavors of roasted banana, sugar, cinnamon, and creamy cheese, someone exclaimed, “and this crust! Is it spelt?!?” I thought to myself, sp-who?, sp-what? Audibly I uttered, “nope, whole wheat,” trying to conceal the fact that I had never even heard of spelt. When I got home that evening and fished around on the internet, I learned that spelt was similar to wheat—but has 30% more protein and is well tolerated by folks who are sensitive to wheat. Score and score! … and much more to learn, for there are a lot of grains out there! Sooooooo many grains that I decided to dedicate the entire month of May to grains on my website Como Water!
Trying out new grains for a particular bread, cereal, pasta, sweet baked goods, or savory side dish might seem daunting, but it need not be. For me, the first step was simply to get name recognition. So in this post, I’m giving you my “A to Z of grains.” Each grain below marked with an asterisk (*) is gluten-free and those with the hyperlink are ones I’ve used in recipes on my blog (click the hyperlink to get the recipe).
| Amaranth | Barley | *Buckwheat | Bulgur | Cracked Wheat |
| Durum | Farro | Kamut | *Millet | *Montina |
| Popcorn | *Quinoa | *Rice | *Rolled Oats | Rye |
| *Sorghum | Spelt | *Teff | Triticale | Wheat |
Let go of your fears and give some of these new to you grains a try. I’ve had a lot of fun playing around with these different grains and found that it’s really nice to mix it up and deviate from the typical enriched pasta or white rice. When buying grains, look for undamaged, kernel with uniform color. I tend to buy in the bulk section of the grocery store, which is also a great way to try new grains without committing to an entire package of something. When cooking grains, remember: rinse before cooking, test for doneness, and fluff before serving! When storing grains, keep them in an airtight container, in a cool dry place.
Red Lentil & Quinoa Burger - Comowater Blog
*Looking to expand your knowledge base of whole grains even further be sure to check out the Whole Grains Council website.
*Quinoa image used under Creative Commons from sweetbeetandgreenbean
*Miss Tiffany isn’t the only one who knows good grains be sure to pick up the June issue of Bon Appetit and the June/July of Fine Cooking Magazine for even more Whole Grain goodness ~ HWJ
The Blacker The Berry Food “Resident Vegetarian” Tiffany Griffin is a Psychologist by day and successful food blogger in her other waking hours. Check out Como Water to keep up with all of her veggie eating adventures.
{ 10 comments… read them below or add one }
I have never had Quinoa but it’s becoming very popular and it’s definitely sparked my interest. I do like other grains like coucous so I just might enjoy that also.
Jehan,
Quinoa is fast replacing rice in my house as the grain of choice. Although there is no taste difference my husband is partial to the Red Quinoa over the white. You definitely have to take the leap and give it a try.
I eat a lot of quinoa, bulgar, faro and couscous (although the latter is not really a grain). Spelt and spelt flour is the one that I’ve been dying to try! There’s a blogger who bakes with it all the time, and her desserts and breads look delicious. And healthy.
Agree that we overuse wheat too much in our diets… and there are so many other grains available. I use spelt flour and other gluten-free flours to bake. I now use brown rice pasta instead of the usual whole wheat. Quinoa is so easy to make… great to use in pilafs and to stuff peppers and tomatoes.
And keep those great vegetarian ideas coming…
Great post Tiffany and it’s good to see you out and about. Heather it’s a pleasure to meet you and thanks for having Tiff at your place.
Thank you Sandra, the pleasure is all mine. I am so happy to have Tiffany on board there are so many incredible and knowledgeable voices out there in the food world that need to be heard.
Thanks for nifty, handy grain guide. I’m definitely starting to venture out of my normal grains.First with quinoa, then barley for my risotto recipe. Sorghum and spelt are next on my list!
Thank you so much for this info, Tiffany! I am slowly getting over my fear of cooking with different grains. I think it’s important to expand my horizons for my health and my taste buds.
I second Mei-i – thanks for the nifty grain guide. I try to incorporate a range of grain in my diet but there’s a few on your list I haven’t yet tried. Thanks for such an interesting and informative post, Tiff and nice to meet you Heather.
Thanks for all of the comments! Hugs to all!