How To Use Whole Wheat in Kid Friendly Recipes

Hi,  This is Heather, I write the blog Cooking With My Food Storage.  Sueann asked me if I would share one of my favorite whole wheat recipe with you today.  I’m a busy stay at home mom and one of the things that is important to me is to provide my kids with lots of experiences with healthy foods.  My kids are pretty normal, they would be happy to eat Cheetos and fruit snacks all the time, but that is not the diet I want for them.

One of the ways that I have helped my kids eat healthier foods is by choosing kid friendly foods that I make with whole wheat. When I started using whole wheat it was pretty easy to get them excited to each homemade whole wheat pretzels.

As I have introduced my kids to more whole wheat recipes I have found that it is really helpful to start with kid friendly recipes.
  

This Kid Friendly Whole Wheat Pretzels is everything my kids want in a recipe: 

• Dough they can play with.  I always give them a little dough to shape, they love it.  My 1st grader is getting old enough that he can help me shape the pretzels.
• Sprinkles, when making this for the kids I always let them choose the toppings.  They always choose sprinkles.  If you are a kid everything tastes better with sprinkles.
• Finger Food, there is something about being able to pick food up in their little hands that really speaks to my children.  
• Dip, when we eat soft pretzels we always dip them in something.  Try peanut butter, cream cheese, apple sauce, or caramel sauce.
• Start with recipes that are half whole wheat and half white four.  My little kids tummies are pretty sensitive to any change and for us it has been best to make the change gradually.

How to Shape Homemade Pretzels

Step 1:  Roll section of dough into a long “snake”  Place in an upside down “U”Step 2:  Cross the the ends over each other. 
 

Step 3:   Cross the ends over each other a second time.

Step 4:  Bring both of the ends straight up and afix to the loop.  Press Firmly into place.

Step 5:   Adjust so that each of the holes are nicely shaped.

Whole Wheat Pretzels With Sprinkles
 
from: Cooking With My Food Storage
Adapted from:  White Wheat Pretzels from King Arthur Flour


PRINTABLE RECIPE

The Pretzels
1 tablespoon sugar
2 cups room-temperature water
1 tablespoon active dry yeast OR 2 1/4 teaspoons (1 packet) instant yeast
2 1/2 to 3 cups All-Purpose Flour
1 tablespoon salt
3 cups White Whole Wheat Flour or Traditional Whole Wheat Flour

The Water Bath
6 cups water
2 tablespoons baking soda (optional, I usually make it without)

The Glaze
1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water and a pinch of salt
Sprinkles (I like the crystal sugar kind), or Kosher sale  or seeds to sprinkle on top of the pretzels
               
Dissolve the sugar in the water and add the yeast in the bowl of a stand mixer.  Add 1/2 cup all-purpose flour and let sit for about 10 minutes to get your yeast going. Add the salt, and the white whole wheat flour. Stir well, then add the balance of the all-purpose flour, a cup at a time.

Knead dough, either in your mixer or by hand, adding more flour as necessary, until the dough has formed a smooth dough. It should be a little tacky and slack, but not sticky. Put the dough in a bowl and drizzle a little oil on it to prevent the formation of a skin due to air exposure. Cover the bowl with a damp towel or plastic wrap and let rise until doubled in bulk.

Preheat the oven to 450°F. Grease two baking sheets or line them with parchment paper. Start heating the water up to boil.

Punch the dough down and knead it briefly to expel any air bubbles. Let the dough rest minutes.  Roll the dough into a thick log.  Divide the dough in half and keep dividing the halves into halves until you have 16 more-or-less equal-sized pieces.

Roll each piece into a rope about 1/2-inch in diameter. The best way to do this is to roll each piece halfway out, and then let it sit to relax. Go back to the first piece and finish rolling it out. The important thing here is to avoid tearing the dough.

Take each rope and make a loop with fairly short ends. Fold the loop over the ends to form the traditional pretzel shape.

By the time that all of the pretzels are formed, the water should be boiling. Turn it down to a simmer and add the baking soda (if you are using). Carefully pick up the pretzels and add them to the water. Cook about four at a time, making sure that there is plenty of room. The pretzels will expand quickly and dramatically. Cook for about 1 minute. Use a spatula or a slotted spoon to transfer the pretzels to the prepared baking sheets.

When all of the pretzels are done, brush with the egg wash and sprinkle with sprinkles or kosher salt. Bake the pretzels for 12 to 15 minutes until well browned. Yield: 16 pretzels.        

Pureed Wheat Berries???

Really...pureed wheat berries? This is a technique I had never heard of, but had to try with my family and it WORKED! Because of the nutritional value of wheat berries, I thought I needed to try to give them to my kids. However, although my kids are great at eating wheat berries in soups with corn, where there is no texture difference, trying to throw them in other foods was not acceptable to my kids.

So...I tried this and it worked GREAT! I now can put pureed wheat berries in smoothies, creamy soups, cheesy casseroles and just about everything else! Why would you do this??? Because high-fiber diets are being recommended by every health professional out there!!! Why not add "natural" fiber and protein to everything your family is eating???

• Pureed wheat berries:
Cook wheat berries until they split, or are very large and soft. The softer they are, the less you will notice the texture. Use approximately 1:1 ratio of wheat berries to water and blend in blender or food processor. This is a great alternative for those who dislike the taste and texture of wheat berries. It is tasteless and there is no texture difference. These are great for creamy soups, smoothies, creamy sauces and other areas where texture would be noticed and unappreciated. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator. This is good for up to six days and can be tossed in any recipe you want!

Bulgar Wheat...what is it and how do I make it?

I initially thought Bulgar wheat was actually a type of wheat, but it is actually a way that wheat is prepared. It is very simple, and very similar to cracked wheat. I usually substitute Bulgar wheat for rice, although brown rice is very nutritional as well. Some people HATE brown rice and for those people, or for those who want to try something new, or for those of you who know what Bulgar is and really like it...this is for you!

How to make Bulgar Wheat:



• Boil whole wheat kernals (about a cup) for 45 minutes to an hour or until they are plump (picture 1)

• Drain water and sprinkle evenly over a cookie sheet and heat oven to 175 to 200 degrees

• Put in oven for several hours until wheat is completely dry - I do this overnight (picture 2 shows the dried Bulgar wheat)

• Crack in a blender or food processor. You can crack it to your desired size. If you have a lot of ground wheat powder after cracking, you can use a wire mesh strainer to strain it. (picture 3 is sifting the Bulgar and picture 4 is the final product)


Tomorrow, after your Bulgar is completely dry, I'll tell you how to cook it. For now, if you do this early, store it in an airtight container and wait until tomorrow. For those of you looking at this later in the day, boil the wheat and let it dry in the oven overnight...I always do it this way...then crack it in the morning.

Oh...FYI...you can find the mesh strainers at the Dollar Store...at least out here you can...

How do I juice my wheatgrass?

With a wheatgrass juicer. I believe you can also juice soft fruits and veggies with it, too, but you'll have to read the manual for the one you use. I've already told you about the benefits of wheatgrass juice, so we won't go into all that. Suffice it to say, I will be juicing wheatgrass and giving it to my kids...I'm sure they'll love it!!! (LOL)

So, juicing wheatgrass... First, you need to grow it out until it is at least 4-5 inches long...it will look like long grass. You also need a considerable amount because you get very little juice out of the grass. I usually sprout 2 C of wheat. I put a layer of soil on a growing tray, sprinkle the sprouts and then cover them with more soil. I water 2-3 times a day so it stays moist and then each day, just wait for a little more green to appear. Eventually, I cut it (I use kitchen shears). Put it in the funnel of the wheatgrass juicer and turn the crank (if you have a manual juicer). Catch the juice in a container and drink it!!! You can also disguise it in a smoothie...which I think is the route we'll have to go to get my kids to drink it...

Wheatgrass juicers range from a low end of $35-$40 to thousands of dollars. If you are interested, search the internet and you can find one!!! Good luck and happy juicing!!!

P.S. One of my old family friends was saying how he hated wheatgrass as a kid, but that they never got sick as kids. There were six of them. He said if they did get something it was gone in two days, tops. He said he still doesn't get sick. He said, and I quote, "So, maybe there is something to the thick green liquid that tastes like my front lawn." I thought that was pretty funny...and informative!!!

Why is Cracked Wheat So Great???

First of all, you don't need a wheat grinder to crack wheat or cook with it. Second, it takes only seconds to prepare. Third, you get all the health benefits of the wheat. Fourth, you can use it in SO MANY WAYS!!!

So, how do you crack it...it doesn't get much easier than this.

Preparation of Cracked Wheat


• Cracked wheat is easily prepared by putting whole wheat kernals in a food processor or blender and turning it on to “crack” the wheat. You can make it finer by “cracking” it longer. If you have too much ground wheat powder, you can use a wire mesh strainer to get rid of some of the powder.
• Some wheat grinders will crack wheat for you.


I know, I know...that was tough, right???

So, what do you do with it???

The easiest thing is to make the cheapest, healthiest breakfast you've ever had. Stay tuned!!!
Keep that cracked wheat ready to use tomorrow!!!

What Are Wheat Berries, and How Do I Make Them?

Preparation of Wheat Berries (this is the whole entire kernal)

Wheat berries are soaked and boiled wheat. They are loaded with fiber, protein, vitamins and minerals.

Whole wheat berries:

Soak wheat overnight in a bowl. Cook in the morning in a pan with 4 C of water to every 1 C of wheat. Cook for about 20-30 minutes, making sure to add water if needed.

It can also be made by putting 1 C of wheat and 4 C of water in a crockpot and cooking on the lowest setting for about 3-5 hours.

You want your wheat berries nice and plump. Don’t let your wheat berries cook so long that they split or the texture will be different. My picture does have a few split, but that is okay...if they all split...they are overcooked. Wheat berries blend well in recipes with whole kernal corn because they have a similar consistency. Store wheat berries in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to six days.

Note: If you don’t have time to soak the wheat first, increase cooking time on the stove to 45 minutes to an hour and in the crockpot for 6-8 hours. Your crockpot cooking time may vary, depending on how hot your crockpot gets.