Buckwheat Sprout Salad
Buckwheat has always been a favourite with me as it has a distinctive taste and can be served in many ways. It is very rich in nutrients and in some parts of the world is the principle grain eaten. As flour it is used to make traditional Normandy pancakes and Tolstoy mentions it in his novels as the staple of Russian peasant people. It can be served in place of brown rice but cooks faster. It can be served as a warm grain in place of porridge for breakfast for those wishing to avoid gluten and wheat. Although its name might make you wonder it is completely unrelated to wheat and is gluten free. It can also be bought as flakes for Museli, porridge and puddings. I enjoy this grain most when it is sprouted, make sure you purchase unroasted buckwheat groats to sprout.
- 1. Soak them for just 15 minutes, rinse them well and leave in a sprouter to drain. (For the following salad as a main dish allow about 6 tablespoons of buckwheat per person per person)
- 2. Rinse them thoroughly twice a day, using 3-4 cups of water. The rinsing water will be quite thick and sticky, because of the starchiness of the grain. Make sure that you rinse well and in warm weather increase rinsing to 3 times a day After just 36 - 48 hours you will have sprouts about the length of the grain. This is long enough, so rinse again well and mix with other salad ingredients.
- 3. Mix the buckwheat sprouts with an equal quantity of 2 or 3 other prepared vegetables I like a simple mixture of celery, chopped tomatoes or tiny match sticks of raw carrot and parsnip, and fresh chopped parsley, basil or watercress.
- 4. I usually serve the salad undressed, with a choice of a simple French dressing or the following Avocado dressing
- 1 Ripe Avocado peeled, stoned and mashed
- 1 cloves of garlic
- 1 Tbsps. lemon juice
- 1 Tbsps. of olive oil
- A few Tbsps. of water
- A little Herbamare (herb salt) to taste
For a simple 100% raw meal serve this salad along side another green leafy salad. (Remember to get these out of the fridge - they taste better at room temperature) Chew it well and eat it slowly. Enjoy a small cup of warm (not hot) fennel or similar herb tea afterwards if you still feel hungry and set aside an apple and a few walnuts to eat in an hour or so if you still feel hungry. You may find that eating in this way is energising and less bloating.
Avocado Dressing.
Mash avocado with a fork and slowly blend in other ingredients, seasoning to taste.