Amaranth porridge with blueberry sauce
May 27, 2018 at 11:24 pm (Alma's faves, B plus (3.5 stars, like a lot), breakfast, Fall recipes, Grains, Monthly menu plan: brunch, Spring recipes, Website / blog, Winter recipes) (toddler-approved)
About once a month I make this recipe from Naturally Ella for Blueberries ‘n’ Cream Amaranth Porridge. Derek won’t eat it, but Alma and I like it a lot. Amaranth has a somewhat odd sticky, grainy texture, but the addition of the creamy blueberry sauce helps transform it into more of a traditional tasting breakfast porridge.
I usually make it on the weekend, since it takes about 30 minutes to make. I always make extra amaranth and freeze it for a quick mid-week breakfast. Here’s how I cook the amaranth.
In a 2-quart pot, soak 1.5 cups of amaranth overnight. In the morning, drain the amaranth, and return it to the pot with 3 cups of water and three pinches of salt. Bring the amaranth to a boil, turn the heat as low as it will go, and reduce to a simmer. Cover and let simmer for 15 minutes. Remove from heat and let sit for 10 more minutes. Stir to mix in the extra water on the top of the amaranth.
Alternately, I’ve had success making amaranth in my instant pot electric pressure cooker. Lasttime I tried 1 cup of amaranth with 2 cups of water on high pressure for 3 minutes + natural release. It came out well, although it was sitting on keep warm for about an hour. Alma and I ate more than 2/3 of it for breakfast, so next time I’d try 2 cups of amaranth with 3.75 cups of water for 3 minutes + NR. I’m also curious to try a pot-in-pot method, so I don’t have to clean the large insert, but I suspect the cooking time will go up.
To make the blueberry sauce I follow the original recipe but cut the maple syrup down a tad and use vanilla extract instead of a vanilla bean:
- 1 cup blueberries (I always use frozen, I wouldn’t waste fresh in this dish!)
- 2 tsp. maple syrup (or 1 ripe pear, see note below)
- 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
- 1 to 2 tablespoons heavy cream (I haven’t tried coconut milk yet)
- pinch of salt
Note: I’ve also left the maple syrup out and added a ripe pear to the sauce. Once I just finely diced it (with skin on) and let it simmer with the blueberries. Another time I had a bunch of overripe pears and I cooked them into pear puree first (simmering them then pureeing them with my stick blender). I then used the puree in the blueberry sauce. Alma and I enjoyed both versions.
Banana Oat Nut Pancakes
May 27, 2018 at 11:13 pm (Alma's faves, breakfast, B_(3 stars, like), Derek's faves, Monthly menu plan: brunch, Website / blog) (toddler-approved)
We have tried a lot of banana oat nut pancake recipes. This recipe from Cookie and Kate is currently one of our favorites. We probably make it once every couple months. I usually add pecans as well. It’s not really a light and fluffy pancake — more hearty and dense, especially if you add blueberries. Read the rest of this entry »
Beluga lentil and beet salad with walnuts
May 27, 2018 at 11:03 pm (Alma's faves, B plus (3.5 stars, like a lot), Beans, Fall recipes, Instant Pot, Monthly menu plan: dinner, My brain, Salads, Spring recipes, Winter recipes) (toddler-approved)
This is not really a recipe so much as a dinner idea. I basically serve beluga lentils and sliced cooked beets on a bed of salad greens, and drizzle with Annie’s tahini dressing. I usually also roast some walnuts (or sometimes pepitas) to sprinkle on top. Occasionally we will skip the Annie’s and use feta instead, or add both.
I make this salad at least once a month, and everyone is always happy. When I tell Alma (at 3 years old) what we’re having for dinner, she says “oh, yum, I like that.” Derek is less excited about the idea (it sounds too boring) but once he actually eats it he’s always happy. I like it too. Plus it’s relatively easy to make and can be (mostly) frozen for a quick weeknight meal. Both the lentils and beets freeze well, as does Annie’s dressing. (You could even toast your walnuts and freeze them I suppose, although I haven’t tried it yet.) So all I have to do is pull out all the frozen components the night before, and then wash some salad greens. Read the rest of this entry »
The captious vegetarian 