- Ready to branch out from brorown rice?

Today I'm cooking up some amazing whole grains that are just as easy to make, and so much more fun and interesting.

Many of them are also good alternatives for people with allergies.

I'll separate the wheat from the chaff with today's recipes.

Breakfast grain bowl with quinoa, steel cut oats, and chia.

Sorghum salad, three ingredients popcorn with Parmesan and parsley, chickpea and farrow stew.

It's all great, grains on Ellie's Real Good Food.

(upbeat jazzy music) - [Announcer] Funding for this series has been provided by.

(funky music) And by... (soft guitar music) - [Woman] Grapes from California.

Grown by families for families.

(upbeat music) - [Man] And by Regal Springs Tilapia.

- [Announcer] Ellie's kitchen is provided by Clarke, New England's Sub-Zero and Wolf showing test kitchen.

- Hi, I'm Ellie Krieger.

If you're intrigued by all those exotic grains that have popped up on your grocer's shelf, but don't know where to start, welcome to Ellie's Real Good Food.

Today, I'm getting granular with grains.

And my first recipe is this amazing breakfast grain bowl with quinoa, steel cut oats, and chia.

It's sort of like what your boring oatmeal wishes it could be, and it not only has to wish, but it can actually be that.

And I'm starting off here, I've been cooking up some steel cut oats, so that's going for about 10 minutes.

And now I'm gonna put in a half a cup of red quinoa.

Just gonna get that boiling together.

I'm gonna let that cook up for 10 more minutes.

I'm gonna start on this amazing topping that makes this nice beautiful hearty grain bowl into a luxurious sumptuous breakfast that you will crave all week long.

So three bananas, I'm gonna caramelize them with a little brown sugar, and serve that on top of the grain bowl.

The great thing about whole grains is that they provide so much nutrition that it's sort of mind boggling.

I mean they provide fiber, antioxidants, B vitamins, minerals, and also because they get into your system more slowly than refined grains, they don't cause that blood sugar spike that is not good for your health.

That's not why I eat them but I love to know there's that added benefit.

I'm gonna get this pan heating.

Thickening up nicely, look how beautiful that looks.

It's amazing how just changing up your grains can completely refresh your breakfast.

I'm just gonna add some milk to this.

I'm using a cup of low fat regular milk, dairy milk.

You can use almond milk, you can use coconut milk.

I really like to use dairy milk because it has so much nutrition in it, it has a ton of protein, so by doing this you're adding a lot of protein to your breakfast.

A couple of milk has as much protein as an egg.

Let that simmer for a bit and let the milk thicken up and get everything really creamy while I get these bananas going.

We need a tablespoon of butter.

It's just a little butter, and it's just a little brown sugar, and it's just all you need to make all the difference of creating a really decadent grain bowl.

You're gonna get people out of bed with this breakfast.

I wanna get these a little browned.

Wanna get them in the pan evenly.

Just one minute per side, and look how gorgeous and golden they are, and softening.

So all the sugars that are naturally in the banana have caramelized, and that's what making them beautifully brown.

I'm gonna add a little bit, just really a tablespoon and a half of brown sugar.

Little bit of time on there, and this is looking good.

And I'm just gonna put some chia in there now.

Chia's a seed, and it's really neat because it's a thickener, so it's crunchy, it's almost like a poppy seed.

You can sprinkle it on your cereal or whatever.

But when you put it into a liquid, it acts as a thickener, so it still has that nice crunch to it, but it makes everything really thick and lovely so I'm gonna take this off the heat now.

That's why you can make chia pudding, because it literally creates a thick pudding like texture.

That was just a tablespoon of chia and one teaspoon of vanilla.

And now some brown sugar in here.

If this pan starts to get a little dry, you just add a little water, splash or two of water.

(soft music) And some cinnamon, quarter teaspoon cinnamon.

Now we have the fragrant caramelized bananas on deck.

Oh boy, these are so ready, and I'm so ready for them.

Look how rich and creamy, and compellingly delicious it looks.

Some bananas on top.

I'm gonna top that with some walnuts because I love that crunch.

And I like to do an extra little drizzle of milk just because it's good, and it looks beautiful too.

Now that is a beautiful breakfast.

Breakfast grain bowl with quinoa, steel cut oats, chia, and caramelized bananas.

(Spanish music) Becca is a mom who would love to incorporate more whole grains into her family's menus.

But she's finding her repertoire is pretty much limited to brown rice.

Plus, she's dealing with a tough crowd.

- I'm in a grains rut.

I usually use brown rice to cook, and I really like it, but I'm not a big fan of other grains.

I've tried quinoa a couple times, I couldn't stand it.

And I get nervous because I'm gluten intolerant so I'm always afraid if I add something new to my diet, I might get sick, plus my kids can't stand grains.

Guys, what'd you think about grains?

- The only grain I like is rice.

- I don't care for grains.

- See?

Can you help me out?

- Becca welcome.

- Hi, thanks for having me today.

- I'm so glad you're here, and I have a great solution for you and the kids that's not only delicious, it's gluten free, and it's also one of the most versatile grains out there.

- Terrific.

- It's the newest old grain, I would say, newest ancient grain, and it's sorghum.

We're gonna make it into this beautiful sorghum salad that's super easy, and also, I've popped some for you.

- I've never heard of popped sorghum before.

- Lemme just show you what sorghum is in the first place.

This is what it looks like uncooked.

It's a whole grain, and it's nutrient rich.

It's also so easy to cook.

I have boiled water, and you put in sorghum.

And you don't even have to worry about the amount because you can drain it after.

We'll just make that much.

And you just just basically cook it covered, simmer that, for 50, 60 minutes, and then you drain it.

- Oh, so it's a long time it need to cook.

- Yeah, it does, it needs to cook a long time.

I'm gonna start off toasting some cumin seed.

Just for a few minutes in a dry skillet.

Just two teaspoons here for this salad.

While that's going, I'm gonna finish chopping up this cucumber that goes into the salad.

If you want to just zest this lime for the dressing, that would be great.

So yeah, these ingredients kind of inspired by classic Indian flavors.

- I can tell.

I like Indian food, so that's good.

- And then if you could cut that lime in half, and then just juice it into there, just squeeze it.

- Sure.

- Yeah, that would be great.

- My daughter, my six year old really likes to help me cook these days when I do cook which isn't too often.

- I love that.

- But I would love to have her help me make a dish like this some time because she would really enjoy that I think.

- And the thing is, when you cook with kids, you get them, immediately they become interested in trying it.

- Yes, yes.

- If they're involved, they become invested in it.

They care about it now.

- Definitely.

- So now to release the flavor even more from these cumin seeds I'm just gonna smash it with my knife like this.

- I'm learning a lot of new things about cooking in general today, which is great.

- Oh good, that's awesome.

We'll finish up the dressing, you just need three tablespoons of canola.

And I'm using canola oil here because it has a really neutral flavor, and I want all the other flavors to really be bright in this, if I want a super neutral taste then I use a canola.

- Okay, good to know.

- So some salt and pepper.

And that's our dressing, maybe you wanna whisk that up.

- Sure.

- And I'll start to pile everything in here.

I think it's funny also, and it's nice to teach your daughter perhaps, and your son how easy it is to make dressing.

- Yes, your homemade dressing, it's great.

- Yeah, so simple.

So I just cooked this, drained it, and cooled it.

And the thing is, this is great in salads because it just really holds up well.

It doesn't get mushy, it doesn't-- - This would make a nice side dish for a barbecue or a picnic too.

- Totally.

- That would be a good addition.

- I like how you think.

(laughing) If you wanna actually put the cucumber in.

- Into, sure.

- The bowl, into this bowl, that would be great.

Cucumber, cumin seed.

- I like the colors in this too, I like the green.

- Yeah, it's just fresh, very fresh looking.

We can toss this, and then if you wanna drizzle that dressing, then we'll toss it all together, and we have a salad.

- Just drizzle it all over, okay.

- Just go for it.

- It looks fantastic.

- Well thank you for sharing your story, and thank you for being here.

- Thank you for having me.

I feel like I really learned today.

- Oh, I'm glad.

- A new addition to my repertoire, so it's great to have some other alternatives.

- Exactly.

- Alright.

- Bon appetite.

Sorghum salad.

- Delicious.

- It's delicious.

(soft music) I'm here with Vance who's the co-buyer at Monsieur Marcel in the original farmer's market in L.A.

There's so many wonderful grain varieties here that I'm absolutely inspired.

And what I love about it is that there's always something to explore, that I learned about a new grain from Vance today that I had no idea about.

- Yeah.

- And it's called Job's tears.

- Well, Job's tears, what is this thing?

It actually has a really super long history, like millennia in Asia.

And a really simple cooking process, you just boil them in salted water for about 30 to 45 minutes until they're chewy and plump in texture.

- Which is, by the way, how you cook pretty much any whole grain.

- Pretty much anything, exactly.

- So it's not complicated, you boil it.

- You boil it.

(laughing) But the cool thing is is that, keep the boiling water, the cooked water because in other Asian cultures, that water is drink as a tea.

- What's interesting about that, saving the water, is that barley is very rich in water soluble fiber.

(humming) And so that's probably what's, besides the water soluble nutrients that would also be in that cooking liquid would also probably be some of that beautiful fiber that fills you up, it's that gummy fiber that you get from oats.

- Right, right.

- And that's quite filling, and so on.

- As an ingredient, you're not gonna find a lot of recipes out there, but that doesn't matter.

- Right.

- Just substitute any other grain that you might have in the recipe, substitute with the cooked Job's tears.

Bingo, you've got a great dish.

- Absolutely, and I think that there is an interchangeability for a lot of grains.

You can just really play and you can see how the different nuances of the grains will change that recipe in a way.

- Totally, totally.

- That's really cool.

And so another one that I think is really hothese days is freekeh.

- Talk about fiber, this is super high in fiber and high in protein and actually beats quinoa.

Freekeh is, actually it's wheat grain which has been harvested earlier while it's still green.

That grain is then roasted.

It's a grain which has this roasty toasty flavor which is beautiful.

- And it has a greenness to the flavor too.

- If you're making bowls, like a really nutritional bowl, what a great ingredient for that.

Or if you're making a stuffing for a bird, it's a great ingredient for that.

The cooked freekeh works great for that.

- Just start with it cooked.

You can even do, maybe you're doing stuffed cabbage or something like that, wouldn't that be good?

- Yeah, perfect, that'd be great.

- And a lot of times, I wind up saying, you can use it wherever you would use rice.

Has this really caught on in your opinion as a person who works in this wonderful store?

- There are some more well known buzzwords, like farro or quinoa, those have become the staples, but now given that's a staple, people are on to discover the next thing, and there's more interest in finding unique grains.

Grains with flavor, grains with heritage, grains with nutritional properties.

And depending upon the customer, just, the interest is really growing.

- That just fills me up to know that people are into whole grains as much as I am, that's terrific.

- Yeah, it's so much fun.

- Well thank you so much.

- Thank you it's a pleasure.

(upbeat music) Three ingredient popcorn with parsley and Parmesan.

This is such a good way to season your popcorn.

It's only three ingredients, and I get oil, salt, and pepper for free in my three ingredient recipes.

Going in with oil, two tablespoons of olive oil.

I use regular olive oil for this because it has a higher smoke point.

Getting that on a medium high heat.

And then I put in my three test kernels.

The test kernels go in because when one or two of those pop, then I know the oil's hot enough.

You could do lots of different things with popcorn.

Which, by the way, is a whole grain, and a really healthy whole grain that has all the nutritional power of any other whole grain.

I'm gonna put about half a cup of parm in this.

Looks about right.

And chop some parsley.

Just love those little flecks of green in the final product.

And I love the olive oil flavor in this too, so this really has that Italian flair with the parsley, the Parmesan, and olive oil.

Hear that sizzling away.

Let me know when one pops.

Getting there, oh, there goes one.

We have action.

So now, in goes a half a cup popcorn kernels, lid on.

Give it a little shake.

You don't have to shake it the whole time, just an occasional shake, I would say a frequent shake is good.

(upbeat jazzy music) Every time I pop popcorn, I'm this excited.

I don't know if I had so much fun.

The popping slows down, a few pops, like now.

Pull it off the heat.

And in this case, I'm gonna add the seasonings in now because I want it to melt into the hot popcorn a little so it doesn't sink to the bottom.

A little quarter teaspoon of salt, and you can totally do black pepper in here too if you want.

Just toss that real quick.

Then the cheese melts a little onto the popcorn.

And then into the popcorn bowl.

Little flecks of green, Parmesan cheese, what.

And there you have it, three ingredient popcorn with parsley and Parmesan.

(upbeat jazzy music) Chickpea and farro stew.

It's thiwarm, homey, one pot meal that is so satisfying and so incredibly easy to make.

You know like pasta fagioli, right, it's kind of a take on that.

I'm gonna start with two tablespoons of olive oil.

And I'm gonna purree some chickpeas.

These are the beans in this fagioli.

That's the Italian word for beans.

And I'm gonna purree these because I'm going to add them at the end, and it will give this beautiful silky thickness to the stew, give it this other level of body.

(whirring) Just gonna put an onion in.

And so this stew starts like so many great stews, right, with onions, celery, carrot, and garlic.

Classic for a reason.

I'm actually gonna save these cery leaves and I'll use them as garnish at the end.

Just gonna dice up the celery and carrot.

(soft music) I like to do a finer dice for this, kind of to mimic the shape of the farro.

Put my garlic in.

So that flavor base, it's a beautiful flavor base right there, just gonna let that sweat out a little bit more.

But I wanna tell you about farro while we're waiting for that to happen.

So farro is a whole grain, ancient variety of wheat.

It was actually a staple in Rome, and still really popular in Italian cuisine.

And I was actually inspired to make this dish by a meal that I had when I was vacationing in Italy.

I'm gonna throw in my sprig of rosemary, some chicken broth, and you could use vegetable broth here, and then this dish would be vegetarian.

A can of diced tomatoes, with the juice.

Bring that to a boil along with the rest of my chickpeas, so this is all together two cans of chickpeas drained and rinsed.

Some salt and pepper, half a teaspoon of salt.

Freshly ground black pepper.

You can see it's gonna be such a homey meal, but it will have this beautiful elegance to it.

That's boiling, I'm just gonna put in a half cup of the farro.

And mine will take about 30 minutes to cook.

(soft music) This is looking great.

Right now I'm just gonna add finishing touches here.

That beautiful thick chickpea purree.

Which adds a creamy layer.

Some flecks of green, there's lots of veggies in here, lots of colorful vegetables.

Just gonna run my knife through these baby spinach leaves, coarsely chop them.

Just throw that in until it wilts.

It's hearty and satisfying, and 100% good for you.

It is time to serve this beauty up.

(upbeat jazzy music) A nice big bowl of gorgeous stew.

I'm gonna garnish that with some Parmesan cheese.

Pretty much can never go wrong with that.

And the celery leaves.

Give it a taste.

Chickpea and farro stew, now this is how you do whole grains in the sweet spot where delicious and healthy meet.

Mine.

And there you have it, three ingredient popcorn with parsley and Parmesan.

I can't do it.

(laughing) I'm gonna get one.

I don't know how to do this.

(laughing) That was so close, one more.

Dang.

Anyway, it's delicious.

- [Announcer] For these recipes and much more, go to ElliesRealGoodFood.com.

Also, connect with Ellie on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest.

Funding for this series has been provided by.

(funky music) And by... (soft guitar music) - [Woman] Grapes from California.

Grown by families for families.

- [Man] And by Regal Springs Tilapia.

- [Announcer] Ellie's kitchen is provided by Clarke, New England's Sub-Zero and Wolf showing test kitchen.

(rain pattering) (flute music) (soft music)