Wheat Berry Salad

I have these big buckets of wheat in my house that we got as food storage for a "rainy day". I used to always grind it into fresh flour to make homemade bread with, but I've found the older and busier my kids get, the less I actually get out my wheat grinder (or bake homemade bread). I found this recipe in a little recipe book a friend compiled and I was so excited to use my wheat in some other way than for flour. I loved the hearty texture, and look forward to trying it again and experimenting with other wheat berry recipes.

**NOTE: If you do not happen to have buckets of wheat sitting around your house, you can find wheat berries at your local natural food store. Our Whole Foods grocery store sells them in the bulk section for $1.29/lb. **

Click here for Printable Recipe.

The ingredients:
1 cup hard winter wheat berries
3 cups water
1 cup finely diced red onion
6 Tbs. olive oil, divided
2 Tbs. balsamic vinegar
3 scallions, minced
1/2 red bell pepper, diced
1 carrot, diced
1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1/2 tsp. Kosher salt

Place the wheat berries and 3 cups of boiling salted water in a sauce pan and cook, uncovered over low heat for about 45 minutes or until soft. Drain.

Saute the red onion in 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium low heat until translucent, about 5 minutes. Turn off the heat and add the remaining 4 tablespoons of olive oil and the balsamic vinegar. In a large bowl, combine the wheat berries, onions, scallions, red pepper, carrot, salt, and pepper. Allow the salad to sit for at least 30 minutes for the wheat berries to absorb the sauce. Season to taste and serve at room temperature.

Enjoy!

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Six Can Refried Bean Soup

This fast and simple dish is as easy as 1-2-3-4-5-6 dumping cans into a pot. It combines the ease of soup with the heartiness of chili and makes for a perfect last minute dinner or lunch.

The ingredients:
1 can (16 oz.) spicy fat-free refried beans
1 can (15-1/4 oz.) whole kernel corn, drained
1 can (15 oz.) black beans, rinsed and drained
1 can (14-1/2 oz.) chicken broth
1 can (14-1/2 oz.) stewed tomatoes, cut up
1/2 cup water
1 can (4 oz.) chopped green chilies
1/4 cup salsa
Tortilla chips
Sour cream (for garnishment)
Shredded cheddar cheese (for garnishment)

In large sauce pan combine all ingredients (except tortilla chips, sour cream, and cheese). Bring to boil. Reduce heat; simmer or until heated through. Serve hot with tortilla chips, sour cream, and little sprinkle of cheese. Serves 8.

Enjoy!

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Food Storage Friday: Pasta con Ceci (che-chee)

I've gotten on a food storage kick recently, after the discovery of this blog, and so I've been trying to come up with recipes that use only nonperishable ingredients. After we came up with a list of things we thought we'd like to have in the rotation, my mind drifted back a few years and thought of a recipe that my fabulous cousin Melayna made me once when I was visiting. She served a mission in Italy, and she described this as the Italian version of mac 'n' cheese - fast, easy, and universally liked. I called her up this week to get the recipe and we tried it out. It turned out so good that we quickly dismissed Bean and Rice Soup from our list of food storage dinners and added Pasta con Ceci to the collection.

The Cast of Characters

2 Tbs. olive oil
4 cloves garlic (or 1 tsp. garlic powder), finely chopped
1 Tbs. basil
1 tsp. salt
2 cans of garbanzo beans
1 lb. pasta

Here's what you do:
In a large saucepan or stockpot on medium heat, heat olive oil. Saute garlic cloves, or if you're doing this food storage style, 1 tsp. garlic powder.

When the garlic starts to get all aromatic on you, add  basil, salt, and garbanzo beans (chick peas) with all their liquid. Simmer this mixture, stirring occasionally for about 10 minutes, or until the garbanzo beans get softer. After 10 minutes or so, take a potato masher to this mixture and mash until about half the beans are mashed. You still want to have some of them intact, so don't go crazy here.

Now add dry pasta and enough water to cover the mixture. Simmer 10 more minutes or until the pasta is cooked through.

You're done! One pot, 20 minutes. That's my kind of dinner. And it's tasty to boot! Matt and I gobbled it right up!
Serve with Blitz Bread for a little extra Italian lovin'.

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