Thursday, March 28, 2019

Trying New Food Products

Have you heard of teff?


It's the smallest whole grain in the world, and a staple in Ethiopia.  The grains are about the size of poppy seeds.  They are a strong crop that grows really well in various climates and elevations, and succumbs to fewer plant diseases than other grains.  It's gluten free, higher in calcium than other grains, and high in resistant starch, which is beneficial for blood sugar levels, weight control and colon health.  It is around 14% protein, and it's also an excellent source of fibre, manganese, and iron.


We made some as a base for a saucy chicken dish.  To make the teff we just boiled 2 cups of organic chicken broth, and then added 1/2 cup of teff, covered the pot, and simmered it for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.  At first when we looked at it, we thought we weren't going to like it.  It has a different consistency when cooked, unlike couscous, quinoa, or rice.  It becomes more polenta-like in texture and consistency (grits).  We tasted some on it's own and loved it!  The chicken broth works so well with it; it was creamy, buttery tasting, and didn't need any salt or anything added.  We also tried cooking it with water, and still loved it, although it had a milder flavour.  We both agreed we like it better than couscous or quinoa.  It's our new go-to grain, and a healthy one at that!


As you might know, we love beets in our house. So, when we saw a beet crust pizza at our corner grocery store, we had to give it a try.


I liked the vegetables on top, but thought that the ham didn't really go with it.  I also didn't get too much of a beet taste from the crust.


And, because I like my pizza piping hot, I ended up microwaving a slice or two, and I think that completely ruined it.  The crust does not microwave well.  We won't be buying this pizza again.

It also doesn't look very pretty.

What does look pretty, however, is this lovely olive loaf we found at our grocery store:


I am a fan of anything with olives, so it didn't disappoint, although it wasn't very focaccia-y, for being called focaccia.  Anyway, green olives make me happy, and bread makes me happy, so #win.

We tried an amazing new snack recently - kraut krisps!


They are made from sauerkraut, so they are loaded with probiotics.  We bought the dill pickle flavour from Dad's Organic Market, and each chip was absolutely covered in real dill, and so much flavour.  The ingredients are organic, and they are all recognizable.  This was another hit!

We love to try new food products (or new-to-us foods).

Have you picked up any new-to-you food items/ products recently?

2 comments:

Lisa from Lisa's Yarns said...

Teff sounds like something I would like and it's GF! Woo hoo! I think there is teff in some of the GF breads I've tried but I've never had that grain on its own. I'll have to give it a try.

We have not tried any new foods lately! We are in such a rut of buying the same things over and over again!

Those kraut chips sound super yummy, too, as I love saeur kraut!

Amber said...

Eric is really into Teff! He has made some fake meat dishes with it because of how high in protein it is. I LOVE beets too so I totally would have wanted to try that pizza out. I am trying really hard to eat more plant based these days as it's better for our wallets and the environment!