Refreshing "Wet/Dry" Drink

Recipe from Cool Waters by Brian Preston-Campbell
Husband-Tested in Alice's Kitchen
Makes 6 cups

My good buddy, Janabai, invited a few of us to her cute little cottage for a lesson on how to make croissants.  She made us a lovely lunch while we did all the waiting for the dough to do its thing.  She also made this fabulous drink that we gulped in unlady-like fashion!

6 cups still water
2 Tablespoons dried goji berries
2 Tablespoons dried currants
2 Tablespoons dried cherries
2 Tablespoons dried cranberries
4 whole cloves, crushed

Heat the water to 100F.  Pour into a bowl or jar, add the remaining ingredients, and steep at room temperature for 1 hour.
Cover and refrigerate for 8 hours.
Strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a pitcher and serve cold.

Tip:  Save the rehydrated fruit for another use, such as a delicious additions to your favorite stuffing recipe or blended with yogurt for a nutritious smoothie.

Citrus Couscous Salad

Recipe from Cooking Light

Husband-Tested in Alice’s Kitchen

When the weather is fine we gather with a group of friends once a month for a picnic.  Everyone brings their own plates, cutlery, and drink plus a dish to share. The food is always excellent and “real.”  At our last picnic, I brought this delicious salad.  I made it in advance and kept it at room temperature for serving.  We loved the citrus flavored couscous mixed with the sweet currants and apricots and the crunchy nuts.

2 cups fresh orange juice, divided

½ cup water

1 teaspoon Kosher salt

1 2/3 cups whole-wheat couscous

½ cup dried apricots, sliced

½ cup dried currants (raisins can be used as a substitute)

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

1 cup chopped seeded cucumber

¾ cup chopped green onions

½ cup coarsely chopped pistachios or toasted cashews*

¼ cup chopped fresh mint

¼ cup fresh lemon juice

2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Bring 1½ cups orange juice, water, and salt to a boil in a medium saucepan; gradually stir in couscous. Remove from heat; cover and let stand 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork. Place couscous in a large bowl.

Combine ½ cup orange juice, apricots, currants, and vinegar in a small saucepan; bring to a boil. Remove from heat; let stand 15 minutes. Drain and discard cooking liquid.

Add apricot mixture, cucumber, fresh mint, lemon juice and olive oil to couscous, tossing to combine.

Note:

To toast the cashews, heat an oven to 325F. Spread the cashews onto a sheet pan.  Roast in the oven for 10 minutes or so. 

Blue Dog Bakery & Café-Inspired Wheat Berry Salad

Serves 8-10

Husband-Tested Recipe from Alice’s Kitchen

My husband and I recently had a very pleasant lunch at the Blue Dog Bakery & Café in Louisville, KY.  It was a lovely day, so we sat outside on the walk and watched the trains go by.  The meal was fabulous, sharing an incredibly delicious tuna salad, a soup featuring sweet corn and poblano peppers and a fancy summer berry cream tart, but the star of the lunch was the wheat berry salad.  As I ate it, I wrote down all the ingredients I could see and taste.  The waitress did say that it had walnut oil in it.  She also said that they vary the dried fruit.  Ours that day had raisins.  Friends of ours said they’ve had it with currants.  I love dried cranberries, so I used those.  Later on, I made a quick trip to Lost River Market & Deli for some winter wheat berries (from their bulk section) and made what I think is a very close version of Blue Dog’s salad.  It takes a bit of time to make because wheat berries take over an hour to cook, but once the berries are cooked, the salad comes together quickly.  Make this a day before you plan to serve it because it will taste even better the next day.  Perfect for a party or a picnic.

3 cups cooked wheat berries* (About 1 cup raw.)

2 cups (10 ounces) frozen lima beans, cooked per package directions

1/8 cup walnut oil

6 Tablespoons sunflower or canola oil

1/8 cup raspberry wine vinegar or sherry vinegar

1 cup dried cranberries, raisins or currants (Plump the dried fruit in very hot water for about 15 minutes.)

1 cup walnuts, toasted and roughly chopped

2 cups diced celery

1 shallot, minced or 1 cup sliced scallions

Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

Place the warm, cooked and drained wheat berries in a large bowl. The wheat berries should be soft, but slightly chewy. After draining the lima beans, add them to the wheat berries and toss to combine. Combine walnut oil, sunflower oil and vinegar. Add to the winter berry/lima bean mixture. Toss. When bean mixture has cooled a bit, add the dried fruit, walnuts, celery and shallots. Toss. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

*Cooking Winter Wheat Berries using the Rice Cooker:  Place 1 cup of raw wheat berries in a dry skillet over medium-high heat.  Toast, stirring constantly, until the grains pop and deepen in color, about 4 minutes.  (This step is optional, but I think it adds a nice toasty flavor.)  Place the wheat berries in the rice cooker bowl and cover with hot water; let soak in the machine for 1 hour.  Drain the wheat berries and return them to the rice cooker bowl.  Add 1 cup of water and a pinch of salt; swirl to combine.  Close the cover and set for the regular/Brown Rice cycle.  When the machine switches to the Keep Warm cycle, let the wheat berries steam for 15 minutes. Fluff with a wooden spoon or rice paddle. (Recipe from The Ultimate Rice Cooker Cookbook, also Husband-Tested)  

*Cooking Winter Wheat Berries using the Stovetop:  Add 1 cup of winter wheat berries to a large saucepan filled with enough salted water to cover them by a few inches.  Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer, partially cover and cook the wheat berries until they are plump and tender, about 75 to 90 minutes.  Test as you cook; cooked wheat berries are still somewhat chewy.  Drain. (Also Husband-Tested)  

Red Cabbage Salad with Warm Pancetta-Balsamic Dressing

Recipe from Bon Appetit Magazine

Husband-Tested in Alice’s Kitchen

Here’s a wonderful sweet, savory, salty, crunchy, positively addictive salad that goes great with grilled meat or fish.  This takes little time to prepare and tastes great left over.  Take this to your next “covered dish” party.  You’ll get rave reviews!  Buy your ingredients at Lost River Market & Deli, our favorite community-owned grocery store!

¼ cup dried currants, raisins or dried cranberries

3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar or red wine vinegar

6 cups thinly sliced red cabbage (from about 1/2 medium head)

1 3-ounce package thinly sliced pancetta (Italian bacon) or bacon, finely chopped

1 tablespoon finely chopped shallot or sweet onion

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

½ cup whole almonds or walnuts, toasted, coarsely chopped

¼ cup chopped fresh Italian parsley

Place currants in small bowl. Heat vinegar in saucepan over medium heat until hot (do not boil). Pour vinegar over currants; let soak until currants soften, 15 to 20 minutes.

Place cabbage in large bowl; set aside. Heat large nonstick skillet over medium- high heat. Add pancetta; sauté until brown and crisp, about 5 minutes. Add shallot to pancetta and drippings in skillet; sauté 1 minute. Remove from heat. Stir in currant- vinegar mixture and olive oil. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Pour pancetta mixture over cabbage and toss to coat. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Let stand 5 to 10 minutes. Add almonds and parsley; toss to blend.

Other ideas:

• add a few shavings of raw carrot to the thin-sliced cabbage
• make into a main dish by adding a little grilled chicken on top
• sprinkle goat cheese on the warm salad
• add some diced apple

Wheat Berry Breakfast

Recipe from 101 Cookbooks

Husband-Tested in Alice’s Kitchen
Serves 6

When I asked my husband to taste test this healthy breakfast, he agreed, but without very much enthusiasm.  He always thinks I’m plotting to pull him out of his Steel Cut Oats in the Crockpot breakfast rut.  To make my offer seem safer, I told him I’d make it for his supper.  After my husband tried this, he said, “Wow! I didn’t see that coming!” He absolutely loved it!  I did too.  He later told me, “You know, you could put this in a pie and bake it.”  Hmmm.  He may have something there.  Well, back to the recipe.  Wheat berries can be found in the bulk section of Lost River Market & Deli (or your favorite health food store.) When cooked, they are delightfully chewy. Mixed in with the wheat berries are sautéed pears and fresh cranberries, toasted pecans and a selection of dried fruit.  Drizzle this delicious pile with a mixture of non fat Greek plain yogurt and maple syrup and you’ll have the fuel you need to get your day off to a great start!  Just 

¼ cup of plain cooked wheat berries = 150 calories, 6 grams fiber, 32 grams carbohydrates, 6 grams protein and that's not counting all the other healthy ingredients in this breakfast! 

The original recipe yielded 6 servings.  Since it was just the two of us, I prepared the 3 cups of wheat berries as called for in the original recipe and then I only used half of the prepared wheat berries for this dish and halved the rest of the ingredients.  I used the other half of the prepared wheat berries to make Wheat Berry Salad with Citrus Dressing later.  The recipe below is the original recipe.  Be sure to try this for your next Meatless Monday meal.  If your mornings are rushed, prepare the yogurt mixture and cook the wheat berries the night before and store in the fridge.  In the morning, you can prepare the rest in the time it takes to brew your coffee!

The night before:

Combine 2 cups wheat berries (I used winter wheat berries) 6 cups water, and 2 teaspoons Kosher salt in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil, lower the heat, and simmer, covered, until plump and chewy, about an hour or so. (While the wheat berries are cooking, go for a walk or watch an hour of your favorite t.v. show.)  The only way to be sure they're done is to taste a few. Drain and set aside to cool.  Cover and refrigerate until you are ready to use them.  (This should yield 3 cups of cooked wheat berries which you will need for this dish.*)

Whisk 1 cup Greek non fat plain yogurt and ¼ cup maple syrup together in a bowl.  Cover and refrigerate until you are ready to use. 

The next morning:

Core and chop into ¼ inch cubes, 2 firm pears.  (Apples would be a good substitute.) Set aside.  Place a large skillet over medium high heat.  Add ½ cup pecans. (You could certainly substitute with walnuts.)  Stir these around a few minutes until toasty and fragrant.  Pour out the pecans onto a cutting board to cool.  (If you wish, you can chop the pecans up a bit.)  In the same skillet, add a scant Tablespoon of extra-virgin olive oil and a scant Tablespoon of unsalted butter.  When the olive oil/butter begins to sizzle, add chopped pears.  Sauté the pears in the olive oil and butter for about five minutes, or until they get a bit golden.  Add ½ cup fresh cranberries (I had cranberries left over from Thanksgiving in the freezer and just used some of those.  I thawed them in the fridge the night before.) Cook for another minute or so - just until the cranberries soften up a bit and a few of them begin to split open.  Add the 3 cups of cooked wheat berries,* the pecans and 1/2 cup assorted dried fruits, chopped (I used dried currants and dried apricots.  Raisins would be nice. The original recipe called for dried persimmons, dates, and crystallized ginger) to the skillet and toss gently.  Turn out onto a platter or serve in individual bowls ladled with a generous amount of the maple yogurt. 

Stuffed Sweet Dumpling or Acorn Squash

Recipe from http://www.inspiredbites.blogspot.com Husband-Tested in Alice's Kitchen

Lost River Market & Deli has some lovely squashes right now. Enjoy this as a side dish or for a belly-warming Meatless Monday dinner. http://www.meatlessmonday.com You’ll like the nuttiness of the brown rice and pecans, the sweetness of the squash and currants, and the taste of the tender spinach. This is yummy as is, but we thought we might add mushrooms and/or beans to the mix next time for a little variety. (For a clean-up hint, see the note at the end of this recipe.)

3 sweet dumpling squash or acorn squash
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
¼ cup toasted pecans
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/3 cup red pepper, diced
1/3 cup green pepper, diced
1 small stalk of celery, diced
1/3 cup sweet, white onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
¼ cup currants
1 cup baby spinach

½ cup brown rice
1 ¼ cup water

Add the rice and water to a small pot. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 40-45 minutes. When it’s done, all the water will be absorbed and the rice fluff with a fork. (I made brown basmati rice in my rice cooker.)
While the rice cooks, preheat the oven to 360 degrees.
Cut the squashes lengthwise in half. Scrape out the seeds from each squash half. Season the cavity with salt and pepper. Place cut-side down on a sheet pan (a cookie sheet with sides) and cook for 30-40 minutes. When it is done, you will be able to press on the skin, and it will give because the inner flesh will be softened.
While the squash cooks, heat up the oil in a large pan and sauté the peppers, celery and onion, seasoning with kosher salt and freshly ground pepper, until translucent. Add the currants, garlic, and spinach. Cook just until the spinach begins to wilt. Add the cooked rice and the toasted pecans. Place the mixture into the squash halves. Bake uncovered for 25-30 minutes at 350 degrees.

Note: To clean up the sheet pan after baking the squash, add about ¼ cup baking soda, a drop of liquid dish soap and hot water to the pan. Leave to soak a few minutes. The mess should clean right up!