I moved to Maine to get away from the heat. Even though I'm one to be cold easily, I'd much rather prefer a blizzard to the triple threat of a hazy, hot and humid day. I turn into a cranky lady who wants nothing more than to take 10 cold showers a day or find sanctuary in an air conditioned store with an iced drink. Today marks the third day in a row where the temperature is climbing above 90 degrees, with relief coming tomorrow in the form of a lovely 80 degree day. I know this is nothing compared to the heat the burns through the South and that I'm pretty lucky to live in a coastal town, so I'll be thankful that this isn't how the weather will be all summer.
In the heat, I need a nice cool meal. Raw and uncooked is best, or if something must be cooked I garnish it with a couple of ice cubes. A few weeks ago I came across a lovely raw way to access some lovely carbohydrates and protein --
Angela's Raw Buckwheat Porridge. I had heard of being able to eat buckwheat raw after it has soaked for a few hours, but never had any motivation to try it until this heat. After soaking the buckwheat overnight and rinsing the groats, the meal comes together much like a smoothie. Not only is this dish cool and refreshing, but it's full of fiber, amino acids, and is great for your heart. Although Porridge is typically a food for breakfast, I ate this with lunch with a hearty salad on the side. It was akin to eating a cookie batter, only more nutritious! It got me thinking about seeing how doing something similar to this with quinoa would work...or at least be interesting.
Raw Buckwheat Porridge
- 1 cup raw buckwheat groats, soaked for at least 4 hours or overnight and rinsed well
- 3/4 cup unsweetened almond milk (or any other milk of your choice)
- 1 teaspoon organic pure vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 4 tablespoons raw and unsalted almond butter
- 1/2 cup walnuts
- 1 teaspoon garam masala (or cinnamon to make it a bit sweeter)
- Extra dark chocolate (I think I used a 88%), shaved, for garnish
In a blender, mix the rinsed buckwheat, almond milk, vanilla, salt, and almond butter. Taste and make amendments according to what you're going for. Serve in two bowls, garnished with walnuts, garam masala/cinnamon, and dark chocolate, if you're feeling extravagant.
Serves 2.
I feel like this has an unlimited amount of variations -- you can mix in fruit, add seeds and dried fruit, or even blend in cooked veggies like carrots or beets to make it a fun color.
What are you doing to stay hydrated and keep cool in this heat? I'm thinking about bringing my lunch to the beach with Andrew today and going for a swim. Thank goodness we live near beaches -- otherwise we'd be eating our lunch in the bathtub!
