vicious sweet tooth

Hey y’all! Hope you’re having a great Friday!  I’m very much looking forward to the weekend!  This weekend is the hubby’s b-day and it should be a good time.

Yesterday, I finally got around to trying out the millet I bought a week or so ago at the farmer’s market – I saw this post and pretty much followed it for cooking the millet and then I experimented with it using it in a sweet dish and then a savory one.

Millet (source)

Although Millet is most often found in birdseed in the US, it is actually an ancient seed that is a staple in many Asian countries and is cultivated in drier climates like Northern China and Africa.  It has a mild sweet, nutty flavor and is often ground into flour and used for making flat bread and other delicious foods.

I started by toasting a cup of millet in a dry skillet over medium heat

Toasting on Med heat

I toasted it up until it was fragrant and I could hear it start popping – probably about 6-8 mins.  I constantly shook the pan to make sure it didn’t burn.  Toasting before cooking is should bring out the flavor more.

Close-up of it in the skillet

After toasting, I rinsed it in cold water.

Rinsing the Millet

Next, I brought 6 cups of water with a little salt added to a boil.  In my research yesterday, I learned that once grains are added to boiling water, they should not be stirred while they cook, as this can rupture the cells and create stickiness.

Bring water to a boil

Add the millet and once it boils, cook for 12 mins at a simmer

Cook for 12 mins

Millet coming to a boil

After cooking for 12 mins, I drained the millet and water into a colander – for about 10 mins or so.

Draining in a colander

Then it was time to experiment.  Firstly, I wanted to make a sweet breakfast so I fixed it like I would oats – I used millet, a tsp of homemade fig preserves, a little bit of maple syrup, unsweetened coconut flakes and some walnuts.  Yummy!

The sweet side

Then it was time to try my hand a savory dish.  For lunch, I decided to try to make a cold salad with fresh veggies and herbs.

I used millet, diced English cucumber, fresh cilantro, green olives, and then I made a dressing out of fresh lemon juice and olive oil.  I added salt and pepper to taste and wah-la!  A healthy side dish or meal!

The savory side

For more information on Millet and other recipes, I came across this post  on Apartment Therapy The Kitchn and will probably give some of these a try soon.  I think that my “sweet” dish would’ve been a little better if I had added either almond butter or peanut butter.  The millet reminded me of quinoa a bit.  I prefer quinoa, but am glad to have tried this out.  I can’t wait to experiment a little more and will probably try it as rice or maybe even by adding it to a soup this week.  We shall see.

Other eats from yesterday included:

Toast spread with cashew cheese and cucumbers – this was eaten along with my millet salad

Toast with cukes and cashew cheese

This was an awesome combo!

And for dinner, I tried out my new green curry paste and cooked up a Green Curry Chicken over Brown Basmati Rice for me and the hubby – spicy!  It was amazing – I got a little over zealous with the curry paste, but it was so yummy!  Can’t wait to make this again soon.

Green Chicken Curry + Rice

For this curry I used:

• 1 lb of chicken breasts, thinly sliced
• 2 T of green curry paste
• 2 T olive oil
• 1 can + 1/3 cup of Coconut Milk
• 2 new potatoes
• 2 carrots
• 1 poblano pepper
• 1 med onion, cut into large chunks
• 1 Roma tomato diced
• salt and pepper

I added 1 T of olive oil and added the onions, carrots and potatoes to start cooking and getting soft.  Then I added in the remaining items and stirred until the curry paste was mixed in with the coconut milk.  I brought everything up to a boil and then reduced to medium heat and cooked until chicken was done and veggies were soft.

Meanwhile, I cooked the Basmati Rice and once that was done, I fluffed it with a fork and then served us up a plate.  We loved it so much that we both had seconds.  It was so delicious.  Super spicy, but a tone of flavor.

Here’s the brand of green curry paste I used.

Bright Brand Green Curry Paste

Before fixing dinner, I did manage to make it to the gym.

Workout:

• 10 min warm-up walking on treadmill
• 5.5 miles – 56 mins!!!! (woo-hoo)
• 8 min cool-down walking on treadmill

Yesterday was super productive as well, I spent the day running errands to get things for the hubby’s b-day tomorrow – I’m super excited about the gifts I got him and for the sweet treats we’re going to be consuming!!  I love b-days!

Peace out y’all….