MAY RECIPE: The Seasonal Casserole To Go
This is a great casserole to make ahead of your busy schedule. What I like most about it is that you can totally individualize the recipe; it can be made with any of your favorite veggies, with or without cheese or meat, and even without eggs! It takes about 2 hours to make, but it’s well worth the effort. The entire dish can be cooled and refrigerated for easy spatula servings into wax paper baggies for lunch on the go all week long. Yay!
PART 1
Soak 1 cup whole grain millet and 1cup whole grain amaranth overnight under 2 inches filtered water in the medium saucepan you plan to cook it in. Soaking whole grains does 3 things: 1) it makes the grain's vitamins & minerals more assimilatable, 2) it initiates the sprouting process and then many more amino acids develop for your body to make proteins from, and 3) it makes the complex carbs much easier to digest.
Okay, the next day, strain off the soak water and refill the pot with 3 cups filtered water. Bring to a boil, stir in 1/2 tsp whole sea salt, reduce to a low simmer, put the lid on the pot at an angle so the steam can escape, and simmer for 25 minutes.
This thick gruel is a nutrient-packed base for any meal. Use it for breakfast or dessert alongside raw nuts & seasonal fruit, OR with beans or stir-fry!
PART 2
Stir-steam a bunch of diced seasonal veggies (below), and then mix in a dozen beaten eggs along with the simmered millet & amaranth (high quality meat & cheese optional) and pour everything into a casserole dish to bake.
INGREDIENTS
8 cups diced seasonal vegetables:
in spring/summer use: yellow squash or zucchini, asparagus, broccoli & bok choy
in fall use: carrot or parsnip, green beans & collard greens
in winter use: yam, burdock root, yellow onion & kale
3Tbsp ghee or coconut oil
1Tbsp yellow curry powder
3-4Tbsp Ohsawa or Eden brand shoyu or tamari soy sauce (or 1Tbsp sea salt if you can’t do soy)
1Tbsp minced fresh rosemary and/or marjoram & dill
12 high quality eggs (the eggs can technically be left out because the amaranth holds the ingredients together pretty well after the dish cools)
Optional: 1/2 c. drained sun-dried tomatoes (kids usually don’t like these)
Optional: 1 cup grated organic cheese (I like goat cheddar!)
Optional: 1lb cooked & diced high quality, consciously raised meat like organic chicken or grass fed beef
HOW TO
Sauté most dense veggies (root vegetables & onion) in ghee or coconut oil in a large wok or deep pot with a fitting lid with curry powder and 1 cup water for 2 minutes, stirring every 30 seconds. Next add less-dense veggies (green beans, summer squash, broccoli, asparagus, etc.) and stir, then saute for another minute. Next add dark leafy greens like kale or collards, cover the skillet and let saute another minute. Uncover skillet and stir greens into bottom of pan until they’re all slightly wilted and wet looking. Turn off the heat & add shoyu or tamari soy sauce and herbs. Stir in sun-dried tomatoes (optional), a dozen beaten eggs, 4 cups simmered millet & amaranth, and optional cheese/meat. Pour into buttered 9 x 13” casserole dish (use two baking dishes if needed) and bake uncovered for 35 minutes at 350°. When a wooden skewer stick comes out dry, it’s done! Let cool for at least 20 minutes.
Lemon juice squeezed over each serving tastes fantastic! Refrigerate the rest for easy meals to go. I just put a 4” square of it into a wax paper bag and take an avocado along for a hearty lunch away from home. Having this dish ready in the fridge is a God-send on those rushy mornings!
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