The Complete Whole Grains Cookbook: 150 Recipes for Healthy Living

Judith Finlayson
Robert Rose Publishing (2008)
ISBN 9780778801788
Reviewed by Irene Watson for Reader Views (11/10)

 

The back of “The Complete Whole Grains Cookbook” says “While recent research has linked the consumption of whole grains with a wide variety of health benefits, the sheer deliciousness of this nourishing fare is often overlooked.”  We often think of grains as being a peasant food and it may be, but we also need to look at how nutritious they really are.

Our family loves grains which comprises of at least three meals per week, so I was delighted to be able to review a recipe book that was devoted to grains only.  For the purpose of the review we are asked to test three recipes.  The first recipe I tested was “Barley-Stuffed Peppers with Crispy Bread Crumbs.”  We often see recipes using rice-stuffing so testing this one was of interest to me.  Using cooked barley, onion, and ground beef gave the regular flare but adding 4 cloves of garlic, 1 tablespoon of ground cumin as well as paprika, oregano, and chipotle pepper certainly gave the stuffing Southwestern or Tex-Mex undertones.  Combine this with a side salad and you have a very delicious dinner dish.  This is a large recipe, tastes great the second day, and the remainder frozen.  There was no issue after the peppers were thawed and heated - they were no different than when eaten immediately after baked.

The second recipe I tested was “Moroccan-Style Couscous Stuffing.”  The addition of almonds, dates, dried cherries, orange zest and cinnamon gave this stuffing sweet undertones that enhanced the flavors of roasted chicken.  We weren’t sure if we were going to like this stuffing considering we’ve always stuffed the chicken with a bread/sage stuffing, but to our surprise we liked this rendition better.  I’m glad I tested this recipe because it will be served again.

The third recipe I tried was “Buttermilk Buckwheat Pancakes.”  We love buckwheat and when used in pancakes it brings delight to our palates.  I’ve made buckwheat pancakes before but never used molasses. To me, this is what made these pancakes shine above any others using buckwheat.  Topped with agave nectar, we smiled as we ate them - they were gooooood!

There are so many more recipes I’ll be making from “The Complete Whole Grains Cookbook” now that fall is in full swing and the days are getting cooler.  I find grains very warming and comforting on cold days.  I believe that vegans will find many recipes in this book being many use grains as their source of protein. Recommended!

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