With
the way America eats processed food, I keep wondering if there will be
an even more “Modern Day Word of Wisdom”...and then, I realized that
this is it. Wheat is the beginning of learning to eat fresher,
non-processed, low sodium, nutrient rich foods. We need to be healthy
enough to serve the Lord. “To work and not be weary, to cook and not
faint!”
The
combination of processed foods (in this case, wheat products), and our
sedentary lifestyles (compared to how humans have worked and eaten up
until the past 100 years or so), we are not feeling well...and our
health care is actually “Sick Care.” Most medicines are for sick
people.
Foods
should be looked at as your healthcare...I have a food motto: “Eat
real foods. Not too much. Mostly plants, and way less sugar.” In this
crazy busy lifestyle that most of us lead, this is hard. So, I try to
eat real food as often as possible. What is real food? Most of what is
in the grocery stores are edible food-like substances. They are so
highly processed and shaped into looking like real food that they lack
the actual nutrients that our bodies NEED. If you knew what it feels
like to eat real food day after day, you would begin to change your life
tonight...which is why you’re all here.
Change
your idea and cooking techniques slowly. Don’t be an all or nothing
eater. Don’t be hard on yourself. Don’t get frustrated, just do what
you can today and plan to improve each day/week. Planning ahead is the
key. Gradually learn how to cook and eat real food....so that it
becomes the way you eat. Enjoy real food...it’s part of our human
experience here on Earth.
Why whole wheat grains/flour? Health benefits include: (only when you omit all purpose flour products from your diet)
stroke risk reduced 30-36%
type 2 diabetes risk reduced 21-30%
heart disease risk reduced 25-28%
better weight maintenance
reduced risk of asthma
healthier blood pressure levels
reduction of inflammatory disease risk
Oh, and you’ll look younger and feel better...just a side note.
Whole Wheat flour
|
all purpose, enriched bleached
|
BRAN which is where almost all the fiber is and nutrients such as magnesium, riboflavin, thiamin, phosphorus, niacin, iron and zinc
GERM
has nutrients such as vitamin E, magnesium, riboflavin, thiamin,
phosphorus, niacin, iron, and zinc, and the part of the grain from which
a new plant would sprout
ENDOSPERM which is mostly starch
|
made up of the endosperm which is mostly starch
After
the wheat berry is stripped down to the endosperm, then, they put back
in some nutrients to enrich it (artificially): niacin, iron, thiamin,
riboflavin, folic acid
|
Serving size: 1/4 cup
102 calories
fat .5g
sodium 2mg
carbohydrates 22 g
fiber 3.7g
sugar <1g
protein 4g
|
Serving size: 1/4 cup
100 calories
fat 0g
sodium <1mg
carbohydrate 22g
fiber <1g
sugar <1g
protein 3g
|
It’s ALL about the FIBER and NUTRIENTS!!!
|
Wheat basics:
Storage:
grind up enough for a week and then store it in your pantry, cool, dry,
airtight. That’s it. I grind and then store both white wheat and red
wheat for a week. When I’m making a batch of 4 loaves of bread for the
week, that’s when I grind the rest of the flour I might need for the
rest of the week.
Red wheat - (called red because that’s that color of the kernels) has more protein, including more gluten and is used for breads
White
wheat - called white because of the color of the kernels) has lower
protein and can be used as “cake flour” (muffins, cookies, quick breads,
cakes...depending on how fine you grind the flour)
- Wheat berries - it’s what you’re buying in the #10 can
- Cooking wheat berries: cook them like you would rice, double or triple the water, 45-60 minutes.
- Sprouting wheat berries: in a jar, soak, rinse, rinse, rinse, warm, dark, POP! I was successful on my first try! Google it...great instructions. EASY!!
- Storing Wheat Sprouts: Replace the nylon net or cheesecloth with plastic wrap or the metal jar lid to help keep it moist but not wet. Store in the refrigerator. Use within 5 days.
A few good tools to have:
- Grinding dry wheat berries: Nutrimill $280 (you can buy it online)
- Cracking wheat berries: food processor/mini prep ($30), about 20 seconds. Cooks faster because the wheat berries have been opened allowing the water to penetrate more quickly
- A Bosch mixer or a kitchen aid. A bosch will last you a lifetime though...worth the $$.
- a wide mouth canning jar and some cheese cloth (for sprouting wheat berries)
Nutrition on Sprouted Wheat:
Once a wheat grain has started to grow, the chemical make up of the
grain changes. They now contain enzymes that help improve your health by
aiding in digestion, neutralizing toxins, and helping to cleanse the
blood. Sprouted wheat grains are a great source of antioxidants. They
supply numerous minerals such as calcium, iodine, iron, potassium, and
zinc. Sprouted wheat grains contain an array of vitamins including A,
B1, B2, B12, C, and D. When examining the nutrient density of sprouted
wheat to unsprouted wheat on a calorie-per-calorie basis, you’ll find
that sprouted wheat contains four times the amount of niacin and nearly
twice the amount of vitamin B6 and folate as unsprouted wheat; moreover,
it contains more protein and fewer starches than non-sprouted grain and
as a further boon, it is lower on the glycemic index making it more
suitable for those suffering from blood sugar issues.
Using it all:
Wheat berries or sprouted wheat berries:
Sprouted grain can be eaten in its raw form, cooked or ground into
flour and baked as previously mentioned. Take care to note, however,
that cooking damages the grain’s micronutrient profile as many of its
vitamins are fragile and not heat stable; however, sprouted flour still
packs a more comprehensive nutritional punch than regular wholemeal
flour and is significantly easier to digest. I personally haven’t had
time to dry the sprouted wheat berries and then grind them into flour. I
just use them raw. You can add them to soups made with stock (chicken
or vegetable), as an addition to almost any green salad. As a mix-in
into bread dough (whole or chopped or blended into a blender first) adds
a nutty flavor. Mixed in with a rice dish. Added to rice pilaf,
kneaded into pizza dough, chopped and added into the “right” kind of
cookie, added into muffins or pancakes, casseroles, stuffed peppers,
meatloaf, meatballs, pasta sauce, mushroom and sprout sauce. Added to
sandwiches (like a tuna, avocado, chicken salad, or egg salad).
Sprinkle on top of yogurt or add to a stir fry.
Cracked wheat
(which is just wheat that has been “broken” up a bit), cooked up into a
breakfast cereal...google “cracked wheat recipes” and you’ll find
thousands.
Grinding
both red and white wheat berries into flour to be baked...into breads,
muffins, pancakes, cookies, scones, biscuits...these are things
Breakfasts
(real food, high in fiber and nutrients): Toast and fruit, hot
cereals, pancakes, vegetable crepes, waffles, muffins and eggs, scones
and eggs, fruit and nuts...I LOVE REAL BREAFAST FOODS!!!! It is a great
start to your day and makes you feel so good.
Lunches/dinners: breads, salads, soups, casseroles, pizza, sandwiches
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