Raw Buckwheat Ciabatta Bread

During my first buckwheat experiment, I also made a raw buckwheat ciabatta bread that turned out pretty good.

I used the pizza mixture from the Pizza Kale Chips recipe in Practically Raw by Amber Shea Crawley (love this book!), added it to a couple cups of blended, sprouted buckwheat, and spread it out on a paraflex sheet to about 1/4 inch thick. Then, I dehydrated the bread at 115F-ish for a couple of hours, removed it, flipped it over onto the mesh screen, pressed in some sliced red onion (I cut the onion into very thin slices) and sliced green olives, and returned to the dehydrator for another 4-6 hours – or until soft but dry.

This was definitely a hit. I can’t wait to try it with the soaked but not sprouted buckwheat!

Side note: I’ve tried a dozen or so of the recipes (lots more to try!) from Practically Raw, and they’ve all been delicious. I’ve made the Pizza Kale Chips three times, the Sour Cream and Onion kale chips twice (I tweaked the recipe a bit), the Nut and Seed bread twice, and I’m going to be making the Raw Rice Pilaf again this weekend. (Review and re-purpose of that recipe coming soon!) Seriously, if you are looking for a new (or a first) raw cookbook, check this one out. Why? Well, aside from the tasty tidbits it contains (yes, I meant that to be  alliterate), Amber offers cooked options for all of the recipe, and she offers suggestions for ingredient substitutions.  I love that! (In case you haven’t noticed, I like to offer suggestions/substitutions, too, and I can’t stand cookbook authors/bloggers who insist substitutions can’t be made to their recipes. Ummmm…yaaaa…they can. Trust me.) 

Your Freezer is Your Friend

With winter here and bad weather coming and going, chances are pretty good you I won’t be able to get to the store some day when the craving/need for veggies hits (This actually happens pretty often, but it’s usually from laziness – ha ha!) That’s when it’s a blessing to have a well-stocked freezer.

I almost always have a couple (or more!) bags of frozen veggies in the freezer.

What is your favorite style of frozen veggies?

I actually keep quite a few things in the freezer: left-over dinners, muffins, frozen fruit (frozen bananas are overtaking the entire left side of the freezer right now), nuts and seeds, Daiya (Who knew you could freeze it?!), misc. meat substitutes (usually a bag or two of Gardein and TJ’s meatless balls), and whatever Mr. M has managed to squeeze in there.

Ignore that turkey pot pie and the dairy ice cream; those, of course, belong to Mr. M. Ah...the joys of a mixed marriage (vegan/SAD).

We use the freezer so much, we’ve seriously been discussing purchasing a small deep freeze. We’ve talked about it before, but we’ve never actually looked at and priced them, nor have we chosen a definitive place to put it in the basement. (It’s going in the make-shift pantry.) I’m excited! I hope we’re able to get one sooner than later.

Anyway, back to why the freezer is your friend. Besides the obvious benefits of being to preserve food for a length of time, the freezer can be home to some great, quick, and easy meals. This is one I came up with last week.

Veggies, Beans & Greens Saute

2 bags frozen veggies (your fav)

1 box frozen spinach, thawed and drained

1 can diced tomatoes (about 1.5 c)

1 can black olives (about 1 c)

1 can white beans (about 1.5 c)

Seasonings to taste (I like Italian flavors: oregano, basil, dried parsley, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, pepper, etc)

Thaw and squeeze the excess water from your spinach. (I heat mine for 3 minutes in the microwave then squeeze handfuls until dry.) Add to large, deep sided skillet along with frozen veggies, died tomatoes, rinsed and drained beans and black olives. (I left mine whole, but sliced/diced may be easier to spear with your fork.) Heat everything through until vegetables are thawed and beans are hot.

I eat my veggies on their own, but you may want to add them to a bed of grain, such as brown or wild rice, quinoa, or even some pasta.

Frozen Veggies, Beans & Greens Saute