What exactly is buckwheat?
Buckwheat pancakes and buckwheat honey rate high on a list of the world’s favorite foods. A wintry week end morning is the time to remember them. Any 12 year old can play chef and fix a batch of nut brown hotcakes for the family. Serve with gobs of butter and honey or maple syrup. Most people think that buckwheat is a cereal to be listed with oats, barley, wheat and rye. The true cereals are grasses. Buckwheat is a relative of the rhubarb and a member of the plant family Polygonacae. We borrowed our name for it from the Germans., who call it beech wheat because its three sided seeds are shaped like the seeds of the beech tree. There is a lot to say about buckwheat and all of it good. The plant got its start in Asia where its relatives still grow wild among the weeds. The Chinese were perhaps the first to recognize its fine qualities, and they began to cultivate it ages ago. From Asia it was introduced into Europe, and the early settlers brought buckwheat seeds when they came to the New
Buckwheat is a fruit seed and is a gluten-free alternative to grains. It is rich in B vitamins, high in fiber, and has 8 essential amino acids. Buckwheat lowers glucose levels and is beneficial for managing diabetes. It has been found to lower blood pressure and reduce cholesterol. On its own, it’s really not that tasty but baked into a cookie, it’s delicious! This recipe comes from The New Whole Grains Cookbook: terrific recipes using farro, quinoa, brown rice, barley, and many other delicious and nutritious grains by Robin Asbell. It’s loaded with information about many grains and includes photos with nearly every recipe. Chocolate Chunk Buckwheat Cookies Ingredients: 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened 1 cup brown sugar 1 large egg 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 1/4 teaspoon almond extract 1 cup + 2 tablespoons whole wheat pastry flour 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/4 teaspoon salt 1/2 cup buckwheat groats 6 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped into 1/2-inch chunks Preheat the oven to 375°. I
Is it actually a type of wheat? How does it compare health-wise to other ancient grains such as spelt? Are there any advantages or disadvantages to adding this grain to the diet? — Laurie Merges Today’s Answer (Published 06/07/2002) Buckwheat (Fagopyrum esculentum) looks like a grain and tastes like a grain but isnt one. Instead, it is a relative of rhubarb, and because it is gluten free, it is an ideal food for those allergic to the gluten in wheat and other true grains. Buckwheat is used to make flour for pancakes, pasta, bread and Japanese soba noodles. The de-hulled seeds (groats) can be ground into grits and roasted to make kasha, served as a starchy side dish by people of various ethnic backgrounds, especially Russians and eastern Europeans. Nutritionally, buckwheat provides vitamins B1 and B2, the minerals potassium, magnesium, phosphate and iron (buckwheat contains more iron than cereal grains; and nearly twice the amount of the amino acid lysine found in rice. Buckwheat bran
