We celebrated Candlemas in a small way, pancakes with our afternoon tea and sunshine fingerpainting (our first). The midwest got a big snowstorm on the first, but February 2 was bright and glorious.
I'm sorry I haven't yet followed up on my food posts. All of my cookbooks (and, well, kitchen) are packed in a storage unit in Brooklyn, so I haven't really had my resources about me. However, there were several questions about how to incorporate new grains into meals and I think, truly, the best answer is to try them at breakfast, without any seasoning, so that you can get a real sense of their flavor and texture (they really vary). I love to cook mine up with unsweetened coconut milk instead of water, so creamy and good. And then top with a small handful of blueberries or a few orange slices, maybe a dollop of plain yogurt, some toasted almonds or pepitas, and a drizzle of maple syrup. The January issue of Martha Stewart had a spread on breakfast grains (quinoa, millet, barley, farro, steel-cut oats) and different ways to top them -- it included an excellent chart with cooking times + liquid to grain ratios for fluffy vs creamy textures.
Quinoa Pancakes
adapted from EDF
1 c cooked quinoa (I made mine with coconut milk)
3/4 c whole wheat flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp sea salt
1 ripe banana, mashed well
1 tbsp coconut butter
1/4 c unsweetened coconut milk
2 tbsp pure maple syrup + more for serving
coconut oil for skillet
Whisk quinoa, flour, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. In another bowl, whisk banana, coconut butter, coconut milk & maple syrup. Add liquid mixture to dry mixture and whisk to combine.
Grease up your griddle over medium-high and make some little quinoa pancakes.
Ours were gone in under ten minutes (they fed two hungry little babies and myself. I had one. You may need to double - or triple - this recipe).
The sun shone past 5 PM today.
Yours,
+Chelsea
