What the Buck is Buckwheat??!!

What the Buck is Buckwheat??!!

Buckwheat is actually a fruit seed that is related to rhubarb and sorrel making it a suitable substitute for grains for people who are sensitive to wheat or other grains that contain gluten.

Buckwheat would have to be one of the healthiest foods that you are NOT eating if you aren't already and is a great wheat alternative!

The benefits of eating buckwheat:

- Improves Digestion.

- Is a Source of Protein.

- Maintains Cholesterol Levels.

- An Anti-oxidant.

- Naturally Gluten Free and Non-Allergic.

- Low in Calories.

- Improves gut health.

- Great for your skin and hair.

Buckwheat is a powerhouse of niacin, riboflavin, thiamin, vitamin B, Pantothenic acid, folate, pyridoxine, etc. These nutrients are necessary to improve the condition of the damaged and dry scalp.

I absolutely love buckwheat in its natural form and also as a flour! You can eat and buy buckwheat as both groats and flour. Its easy to make the buckwheat flour simply by placing the groats in the food processor and grounding them down.

Nutritional Value of Buckwheat:

Dietary fiber 5 g

Fat 1 g

Folate 24 mg

Iron 34 mg

Magnesium 86 mg

Manganese 86 mg

Niacin 6 mg

Pantothenic acid 6 mg

Phosphorous 118 mg

Protein 6 g

Vitamin B6 13 mg

Zinc 1 mg

One of my favourite things to make with buckwheat is bread/wraps.

All you need is buckwheat flour and filtered water. Now as some of you may know I am not the best at measuring how much ingredients is needed to make some of the food I create, I just make it up as I go a long and put in what I think is the best amount.

For my rustic looking buckwheat bread/wraps I would say that I have used 1/2 cup- 3/4 cup of buckwheat flour and then just poured in the water as I stirred it into the flour. You want to create a smooth batter like consistency, not too thick however, imagine you are making pancakes, you want the consistency to be like that.

Once you have made your batter, use coconut oil to cook in a pan and season with a little bit of sea salt (if you are using the buckwheat bread/wrap for a savoury dish).

I used mine as wraps for lunch, filling it with avocado, spinach and a lentil mince I had made the night before, topping it off with some nutritional yeast. YUM!

Give it a try! You can even use these buckwheat wraps as a healthier alternative for soft crackers on a platter!

Enjoy!

Renee xx