Raw granola

Raw granola (Photo by bodhilens)

I've been trying to incorporate more raw food into our diet to replenish enzymes in our bodies. This is one of our favorite raw food dishes, a super-nutritious and tasty alternative for cereal. I learned a lot of interesting and helpful information from raw foodists on YouTube. Sprouted grains and seeds are so alive that they give us extra boost of energy.

Ingredients (for 8-10 servings):

1 cup of hulled buckwheat

1 cup of oat groats

1 cup of hulled sunflower seeds

1 cup of  raw almonds

1 cup of shredded coconuts

1 cup of dry fruits (e.g., cranberries)

1/2 TBSP of cinnamon powder

1 pinch of natural salt

1/2 tsp of vanilla essence

2-3 TBSP of raw honey

2-3 TBSP of coconut oil (or melted butter)

1/2 cup of yogurt and 1 tsp of fruit spread/jam for garnishing a small bowl of raw granola

Directions:

1. To sprout grains and seeds, put them in separate bowls/containers and wash them well, soak them in water for a few hours to overnight (e.g., buckwheat and sunflower seeds for a few hours, oat groats and almonds overnight), strain water and leave them wet in the bowls, rinse them with water again and strain water twice a day until they germinate/sprout. Buckwheat gets slimy when soaked in water, so rinse them a few times after soaking. When it's warm, buckwheat and sunflower seeds sprout in a day or two (i.e., tiny white tails grow visibly). It's hard to tell when oat groats and almonds germinate, but I consider them ready for use around the time when buckwheat and sunflower seeds sprout. 

2. When all grains and seeds are ready for use, rinse them with water again and spread them on a cloth to air-dry them for an hour or so. 

3. Crush oat groats, almonds, and dry fruits in a blender. 

4. Mix #3 with the rest of the ingredients in a big bowl. 

5. This raw granola goes well with yogurt and fruit spread. 

You can dehydrate this raw granola if you like it crispy and crunchy and want to store it in room temperature. I don't bother to dehydrate it. I keep it in fridge, and it will stay fresh for several days. 

Gifts from birds 2: Black bindweed (wild buckwheat)

Black bindweed aka wild buckwheat (Photo by bodhilens)

I finally identified one of the mystery plants growing around the bird feeder in our yard: black bindweed (aka wild buckwheat). Now it totally makes sense to me that this plant looks like a tiny version of morning glory without big flowers (They belong to the same family), and that the seeds just look like those of commercial buckwheat. It's this plant's second year growing on this spot, and this spring I led it to climb the feeder while containing it within a 30cm radius of the feeder. It's not gorgeous but pretty in its own way. I've read birds love the seeds, but I've never seen birds picking them from the plant. I guess they prefer commercial safflower seeds in the feeder hanging above the plant. When I picked some seeds and put them out on a plate, a few doves were eating them, though. When more seeds get mature, I'll see if my cockatiel likes to eat them.

Speaking of safflower seeds in the feeder, birds scatter a lot of them around the feeder, and some of them do sprout. I let a few sprouts grow this spring. I had to scrape a lot of aphids off when they were young, but they eventually bloomed and produced seeds. Safflower is called "benibana" (red flower) in Japanese because the flower can be processed as a natural red dye for food and cosmetics. Also, safflower flower tea/infusion is believed to promote "women's health." So I'm considering letting more sprouts grow next spring and making use of not only seeds but also flowers. It's so difficult (and painful) to harvest flowers and seeds because they are covered with thorns, though.

Safflower (Photo by bodhilens)