Whole Grains : 4 - Sprouted Grain Puttu

I know the name sounds like a combination of latest health fad and traditional favorite. It sounds so because it is so :)) Anyways, this is my mom's recipe. The procedure seems long but its not tedious. But if you make enough of it, should last a while. Well, I don't mind waiting long time if it is so good for health. Especially, if its four different grains which are sprouted should be healthy for your body.
The four different grains she used in this recipe are : Ragi, Jowar, Bajra, Wheat. All the four grains are taken in equal proportions soaked overnight and sprouted till the shoots show off but not long enough. In India there is enough of sunshine to dry off the sprouted grains, But here, I usually use a dehydrator to dry or spread the grains on cookie sheets and place them in a oven and set at its lowest temperature. It would normally be 170 f or 200 f . Keep stirring once in a while to prevent the grain from burning on one side. It might take around 12 hrs, But don't worry it doesn't use up a lot of electricity. Once the grains are dry, you can store them in a air tight container and just run enough grains in a mixer or blender to make puttu every time you do it or you can make flour all at one time and freeze the flour or else it might get rancid quickly. My mom made this primarily as my son's weaning food, last year. But we eventually ended up using for all of us , because it is so healthy.

4 - Sprouted Grain Puttu with coconut and Rapadura

You can use this 4 sprouted grain flour to make a thin porridge like Ragi Malt by Indira of Mahanandi or into Puttu by Priya of Priya's Kitchen. Also you can add or omit any grain and use any proportions. Just use your imagination to make different combinations of grains. I one time used spelt and rye instead of wheat. I usually make a lot of flour ahead and freeze it in ziploc bags. Then I just use the flour straight from the freezer. Also I never tried eating puttu with kadala curry, the way Keralites eat. But while growing up, I was used to the sweet version of puttu with jagery and coconut. Now I add Rapadura by Rapunzel , which is nothing but jagery in powder form but organic. My husband usually likes to eat it with milk like a cereal, but me and my tot like to eat it just like that with little ghee.

Be Nourished!!!

Whole grains : Blender Barley Oat pancakes

Clockwise : pearled barley, steel cut oat groats, hulless barley, rolled oats

In this post I would like to share my favorite 'heart healthy' pancakes.The recipe doesn't use the conventional flours of these grains, but a blender method is used to get the goodness and full benefits of whole grains. I came across this recipe from a cookbook from our local library long time ago and it has been our family favorite since. Using barley makes you full quickly, so it is a good diet food.

Barley is one of the oldest cereal grains, used traditionally for making beer and also made into
bread and gruels. It was the main food of the Greeks, who valued barley's ability to give physical strength and mental alertness. Barley water, is said to be easy to digest and a tonic to the liver. Pearled barley lacks most of nutrients, because the thick outer layer is removed. Look for Hulless barley.And it is important to soak them.

While Oats are first discovered growing wildly in barley fields in Russia, northern Africa and the near East. Oats are rich in B vitamins and in calcium, iron, magnesium, phosphorous and potassium. They contain more oil than any other grain. Oats are low in gluten but contain more phytates than almost any other grain. Thus, it is very important to soak oats before preparation.

Barley & oats both contain beta-glucans and other viscous soluble fiber components which reduce absorption of fats and cholesterol. Also, the fiber tends to bind to bile acids, which are removed from the body rather than recycled, thus requiring the conversion of more cholesterol to bile acids. Thus both grains are very good in lowering blood cholesterol.Also barley helps reduce the blood glucose levels, thus it is good for diabetic people.

Blender Barley oat pancakes:

Oat groats - 1/3 cup (3/4cup if rolled oats)
Hulless Barley - 1/3 cup
Water - 1/2 cup( for soaking)
Whole eggs - 2
Salt - 1/4 tsp
Honey - 1tbsp
Whole milk - 1/2 cup
Baking powder - 1 1/2 tsp
Butter for greasing.


Pancakes stacked on the plate

Method :

Soak the oat groats and barley overnight. In the morning add eggs, salt, honey. Blend till smooth. Add gradually - milk, baking powder and blend. Let the batter stand for 20 to 30 min. Heat a cast iron pan and grease with butter. Pour a small laddleful of batter and when bubbles start forming on the cake and edges start getting hard, flip it to the other side. Finally flip them to a plate when done and stack them to keep warm. I usually make a few extra and freeze them for a quick snack to my tot. The frozen pancake can be popped into a toaster to reheat and it comes out nice and crispy.


Be Nourished!!!

Whole Grains : Bajra Khichidi

Bajra

Bajra - Pearl millet, bajri, sajje,cumbu(Tamil),Sajjalu(Telugu)

Bajra is grown in India since prehistoric times. It is the basic staple for households among the poorest people. Bajra is comparatively high in protein and has a good amino acid balance. Bajra is a reasonably good source of thiamine (Vitamin B1). It is also a better source of iron than other grains.Bajra Khichidi is a traditional Rajasthani recipe. With wholesome bajra, whole moong dal and ghee in it, it becomes a meal by itself. Comfort food yet nourishing.

Bajra Kichidi :

Bajra Kichidi with a dollop of ghee

Whole bajra - 2 cups soaked over night
Green moong dal - 1/2 cup soaked over night
Peppercorns - 5
Cloves (laung) - 3 to 4
Cumin seeds (jeera) - 1 teaspoon
Asafoetida (hing) - a pinch
Turmeric powder (haldi) - 1/4 teaspoon
Pure ghee - 1 teaspoon ( I mean it when I say pure. check out my next post on pure ghee)
Salt to taste
Water - 5 cups


Grind the bajra into a coarse mixure. Wash the dal thoroughly. Heat the ghee in a vessel and add the peppercorns, cloves and cumin seeds. When the cumin seeds crackle, add the asafoetida, add the turmeric powder, salt and water . Add dal & bajra. Cook it on a medium flame. When the mixture begins to boil start stirring so that the khichdi does not stick to the bottom of the vessel. Cook until the bajra is soft. You may add more water if you feel that the consistency of the khichdi is not right. Serve hot with ghee or yogurt or pickles and papad. Bajra Kichidi with ghee was our breakfast today.

Be Nourished!!!

Whole Grains : Jowar vada

Treasure Hunt - Pearls in a Jewelery box !! nope, Wholesome Jowar

Yet another important whole grain. Jowar is considered fourth most important cereal grain in the world. We always use Jowar flour to make Jowar roti ,but I am posting a recipe for vadas using whole jowar. For a novice like me, Making vadas is much easier than trying a hand on much complicated Jowar roti. This is my mom's recipe. Hope You will like it too.

Jowar Vada (or) Jonna Garelu:


Whole Jowar - 2 cups soaked overnight.
Onions - 1 medium finely chopped
Green chillies - 3 finely chopped
Cumin seeds - 1tsp
Salt to taste
Oil for deep frying, preferably peanut oil.

Jowar Vada ready to munch on...

Soak the jowar overnight or 7-8 hrs. I usually soak it in the Blender or Mixer Jar. Next day drain the remaining water and grind it after adding salt. It does not become into a smooth dough or may be I am not patient enough!!!. Now add onions, green chillies, cumin and mix it with the dough by hand. Heat sufficient oil, take small lemon sized balls and press on a greased, thick plastic paper and deep fry until done. You can eat them like that or with a pickle or any chutney of your choice. Wholesome goodness of Jowar in tastey vadas was our breakfast today.

Be Nourished!!

Whole Grains : Bulgur (NOT Cracked Wheat) Upma

Cracked Wheat and Bulgur

Confusing title! Ain't it? Well I guess Its not confusing if I say that ' Bulgur and cracked wheat are as different as me and my husband!!' Now I don't wanna grab 'poor' hubby dear in between while he has no clue, But I just want to emphasize the point that Bulgur is different from cracked wheat. Both are made from whole wheat, but the key attribute of traditional bulgur production is that the grain is parboiled (soaking, steaming,drying(usually by spreading in the sun) like the parboiled rice and then de-branned. On contrary to cracked wheat, which is made from crushed wheat grains which have NOT been parboiled. So why am I using Bulgur for cracked wheat in my upma recipe? Well its just a matter of choice...But may I propose to you a concept called 'phytic acid and gluten'. This is not some lecture on chemistry but a simple but important fact for us to know. All grains contain phytic acid(an organic acid in which phosphorus is bound)in the outer layer or bran. Untreated phytic acid can combine with calcium, magnesium, copper, iron and especially zinc in the intestinal tract and block their absorption. This is why diet high in whole grains may lead to serious mineral deficiencies and bone loss.The modern misguided practice of consuming large amounts of unprocessed bran often improves colon transit time at first but may lead to irritable bowel syndrome and, in long term many other adverse effects.On the other hand refined flours and grain products are devoid of nutrition.There is a fix again! so what to do? As always look back to the old ways. Our ancestors soaked, fermented, sprouted there grains. Like in idli, the rice & dal are soaked all day and fermented overnight. For pesarattu, the mung beans are soaked over night. For haleem, the cracked wheat and dals are soaked over night. And there are many more examples to follow. Soaking, fermenting, sprouting allows enzymes, lactobacilli and other helpful organisms to break down and neutralize phytic acid and encourages the production of numerous beneficial enzymes. The action of these enzymes also increase the amounts of many vitamins, especially B vitamins.Now what is gluten? Gluten is a protein in grains, very difficult to digest. Grains fall into two general categories. Those containing gluten such as oats, rye, barley and especially wheat, should not be consumed unless they have been soaked or fermented. Buckwheat rice and millet do not contain gluten and are easily digestible.So soaking, fermenting, sprouting will help break the gluten for the grains.
So now you see why I am preferring Bulgur for cracked wheat in my upma recipe. Bulgur is already soaked.Well you can use cracked wheat too, provided it is soaked overnight or for 7-8hrs. Now my patient readers might start fretting ;-) about the process involved in cooking. But let me assure you that all it takes is planning ahead of time. The world has become so fast paced that we eat on the go.But it is better if we slow down and ponder on whats going inside of us, because it does make a world of difference.

Bulgur or Cracked Wheat Upma:

Bulgur - 2 cups
(or)
Cracked Wheat - 2 cups soaked 7-8 hrs
Water - 4 cups
Onions - 1 medium
Green chillis - 2
Ginger Garlic paste - 1/2 tsp
For popu or tadka - 1 tsp each : urad dal, chana dal, cumin, mustard seeds, curry leaves
pinch of asafoetida.
coconut oil - 2 tbsp s (using coconut oil is a whole new article in itself. I would be covering that soon)
cilantro - 2 tsp finely chopped
lemon juice if needed for some tangy taste.

Bulgur upma

Because of the large size of the grain, roasting is not necessary.Take the oil in a pan, add popu ingredients in the order mentioned above.When mustard seeds start sputtering add onions, Green chilies.Saute them till tender and add ginger garlic paste.Add the water and bring it to boil. Now add bulgur and if adding soaked cracked wheat, then drain the water and add.Be careful not to wash it as the wheat is soaked, it makes it difficult to handle.Cook until water is evaporated. Keep stirring once in a while. Garnish with cilantro and serve warm with some lemon juice or a pickle.It has a nutty flavor with chewy texture. It was our Breakfast today.Bulgur is more costlier than cracked wheat. So I use bulgur when I am not planned and had to fix a quick meal, otherwise I soak cracked wheat for this recipe.

Be nourished!!