Wheat Berry Salad

We've been incorporating more whole grains into our meals, and I'm always on the lookout for new ways to use wheat.  If you are looking for something healthy and delicious for your next potluck or barbecue, look no further.  This salad is amazing!  

Wheat Berry Salad (adapted from a recipe by Ellie Krieger at Food Network)

Ingredients

2 cups hard wheat berries (I used hard red wheat)

1 cup chopped pecans

5 ribs celery, finely chopped

1 cup tart dried cherries, chopped

1 bunch green onions, white and green parts thinly sliced (or substitute a handful of fresh chives, sliced)

1 cup finely chopped curly parsley (about 1/2 of a bunch)

6 tablespoons olive oil

4 tablespoons lemon juice (juice from 2 lemons)

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Directions

In a large pot combine the wheat berries and enough water to come 2 inches over the wheat berries. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for 1 hour, or until tender. Drain and let cool. Toast the pecans in a medium dry skillet over medium-high heat until fragrant, 2 to 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Watch nuts closely so they don’t burn.

In a large bowl, combine the wheat berries, pecans, celery, dried cherries, green onions, parsley, olive oil and lemon juice. Season, to taste, with salt and pepper.

Getting Ready to Garden

I know it's only the 2nd of April, but I'm feeling the gardening bug growing stronger every day.  And yes, I know that we've had a week of freezing temperatures at night with everything from sunshine to snow during the day.  That may be my reality for now, but in my mind I'm dreaming of beautiful red tomatoes, fresh basil, cucumbers, green beans, a variety of peppers, and zucchini.

In addition to the veggies, I'm planning an herb border that will include curly parsley, chives, rosemary, sage, and thyme.

A few weeks ago some friends invited us to dinner and served a salad of curly parsley and sun-dried tomatoes topped with grilled chicken and a basil dressing to die for.  I've always enjoyed parsley, but having it as the base of a salad was divine.  So, parsley is definitely in the garden plans this year and going forward.  I'm also planning to incorporate the "Back to Eden" gardening techniques.  If you haven't heard about this, check out the video and FAQs at http://backtoedenfilm.com/#movie.

Enough about me.  What are you dreaming of for your gardens this year?

Scrappy Aprons

The inspiration for these aprons came as a result of cutting hundreds (literally) of squares for patchwork quilts.  I had a few squares that weren't quite the right size, but not enough for an entire quilt.  At the same time a friend asked me to show her how to make an apron.  Wa-la!  Patchwork aprons.  This is the perfect way to use up small pieces of woven fabric left over from other projects.  You could also use squares cut from men's or women's shirts, nightgowns or dusters, or almost anything that isn't too worn.  If you have a few fat quarters hanging around, you can get 2 10-inch squares from each piece.

Basic Apron

Basic Apron with Bib

The basic apron uses 7 10-inch squares and 2 yards of 1" grosgrain ribbon in a coordinating color.

The basic apron with bib uses 10 10-inch squares and 3 1/4 yards of 1-inch grosgrain ribbon in a coordinating color.

Basic Apron with Bib and Ruffle

The basic Apron with bib and ruffle uses 13 10-inch squares and 3 1/4 yards of 1-inch grosgrain ribbon in a coordinating color.  For the ruffle, make sure you have 3 squares of the same fabric.