BARLEY
DEAR HEALTH ENTHUSIAST,
These recipes have been complied for people who are on special anti-inflammatory diets, Blood group diets, Hyperactive diets, Blood sugar diets and wheat or meat free diets. There are many delicious ideas and you can adapt these basics to make your food both delightful and exciting. There is no reason to feel a social dropout because of a special diet. For More detailed advice: www.naturefresh.co.za
All the spectacular health benefits obtained from oat bran apply to barley as well. To lower cholesterol both cheaply and effectively, try barley. Barley also suppresses hunger better than any other breakfast cereal! Good news for slimmers and people with blood sugar problems. Like soya, it scores below 28 on the glycaemic index as opposed to most starches that are over 90-120.This means that less insulin is required to digest it.
For each person :In a cereal bowl combine: 2 tablespoons of barley flour( or soaked barley flakes) 2 - 4 tablespoons of water Microwave on full for two to three minutes or cook in pot. NOTE: A thinner mixture tends to boil over, so use less water or allow more time on a lower setting. Some people like it hard and solid like a "cake". Alternative: cook gently in a pot on the stove. SERVING IDEAS: Add 1 or 2 teaspoons of flax-seed oil, a dash of tahini and a spoon of molasses or chopped dates. THERAPEUTIC EFFECTS: Flax oil, tahini and barley are useful hormone supplements and help to balance blood sugar for many hours. Molasses is the only sugar that produces an alkaline effect, it's ideal! BREAKFAST "JUICE" 1/2 glass water, 1 teaspoon molasses, 1/2 teasp. Prime 1, 1/2 teasp. Nature Fresh Pain & therapy supplement.
10-20 mins before cooking or whilst chopping your vegetables, soak per person: 1/2 cup of barley flakes in 1/2 cup of water (preferably boiling) to soften them Stirfry your barley in a little olive oil for about 10 minutes. Use this as a rice, pasta or potato substitute or try the following combinations: 1 Stirfry with chopped onions, green peppers, pinapple, carrots, cabbage, and other veg. 2 Add tofu, chopped herbs, chilli, garlic, flax oil. 3 For dessert Serve cooked barley flakes with chopped nuts, sunflower seeds, tahini, flaxseed oil and molasses. Top with yogurt or tofu.
1 cup barley flour, 1 tab water, 1 egg (or 1 tab soya flour) made into a paste. Add 1 tab molasses, 1/2 tsp bicarb or baking powder. Heat a large pan on the stove, coat in olive oil and spread the cement like mixture onto the pan in an even layer. Reduce heat. Cut into 1/4 and turn over each section. Turn off heat and serve these wedges with butter, molasses or tofu, tahini & chopped nuts.
When I grind and sieve barley in my old coffee grinder, the coarse residue yields my "cousous" Cook these barley grits with boiling water in the same way as couscous, about 1:2 in proportion. Also try adding 1/2 portion dehusked millet or sunflower seeds to the barley grits. Serve with steamed or stir fried vegetables, lentils, beans, tofu, fried or baked fish with chilli sauce.
(especially for ladies and growing children. Delicious!) Overnight: Soak 1/2 pack of 250g dates in 1 + 1/2 cups water + 2 tablespoons High test molasses. later add: 1 teaspoon cream of tartar 1 teaspoon bicarb soda. Mix up flour: (you can substitute other types of grains: soya, sorghum, oats, etc) 1 cup barley flour (fine quality) 1/2 cup chana flour (or pea or lentil) 1/2 cup soya flour (or Nature Fresh soya) 1/2 cup ground sunflower, sesame seeds. 2 cups Morevite (cooked sorghum flour) Mix with liquid. Roll into 36 walnut sized balls and flatten on greased baking sheet. Bake 180 deg. C for 10 -12 minutes.
Barley sells at the supermarket for about R2. 50 per packet. These whole grains can be cooked as is or ground into coarse or fine flour. You will need a coffee grinder or food processor. It is a worthwhile investment for grinding barley, flax , sesame and sunflower seeds. Barley flakes, flax & sesame seeds, dates,Tahini & molasses, cream of tartar are at Pick 'n' Pay. Barley flour, all types of seeds, ground flax, Credé flax seed oil & Nature Fresh soya protein can be obtained from most health shops. Try Health Connection, Main Rd Diep River & Hout Bay. Enquiries: 715 6697 MOREVITE is at Pick'n'Pay, next to the mealie meal and flour section. It is a cooked, ready to eat sorghum cereal that is vitamin & mineral enriched. Costs R5.50 for 1 kg. Prime Quest and Nature Fresh Product enquiries: Noori Domingo +27 21 697 1144