Is wheat germ still in favor as a health food?

Since I eat steel-cut oat meal almost daily, I have the germ as part of the whole package. My feeling these days is, when I can manage it, to eat as close to the source as possible.

Edamame beans trump soy.
Quinoa trumps bread.

As gluten yeast and wheat free this item is now a no for me, not a fad but genuine allergies and reactions.

But In fact with all the wheat belly mania I haven’t heard as much wheat grass, brewers yeast and wheat germ proponents. Though prehaps I just automatically tune them out.

@gailcalled I am with you whole food is the safest bet, though I am not on the raw campaign. Edamame though I am wary of not just because gmos but because Imve read studies that soy is best digested when fermented only, and though ⅓ of the world pop can digest soy the remaining ⅔rds it can actually prevent digestion and eaten in large quantities can adversely effect a person’s ability to absorb nutrients.

I had to google edamame! I had a friend in USA who grew soy beans so I used to roast those beans with spices and we ate them instead of chips or popcorn. How do you eat them @gailcalled ? I bought Quinoa and it is still sitting in the cupboard. I must make some soon. I must admit my laziness makes me reach for the couscous instead. What do you think about potatoes? They are right out of the ground, that makes them pretty close to the source???

@rosehips – I don’t have problems with gluten as far as I know but it must be difficult when you do!

@rooeytoo One adjusts and since I feel healthier that is fine by me.

You might try chia seeds as they have a optimal balance of omega 3 and 6, insoluble fiber and are a good source of energy.

@rooeytoo: I buy edamame frozen in their sweet little pods. I thaw a handful at a time and pop out the beans and eat them raw, just like freshly-picked and shelled peas.

Now, Quinoa 101. (Keep in mind that I am now one of the world’s laziest cooks). You do have to rinse it several times in a fine-mesh strainer to get rid of the bitter taste.

In a saucepan bring to boil water (say 3 cups) and add a scant 1 c. of dry quinoa. Bring back to simmer and stir for five minutes, Cover, turn off flame and leave over night. Refrigerate.

I throw it into soups, bean or lentil stews and salads. I eat it with some dried cranberries, walnuts and a mild vinaigrette. You can throw in other bits of raw vegetables that seem compatible…water cress, a bit of shaved beets or carrots, raw peas, edamame beans, chopped celery, chopped fennel (if you like the taste of licorice. (When the quinoa is fully cooked, it has an adorable little white tail protruding from each individual grain.”

I have a pot in my fridge that has been there for a week. It is really a nice fast food item.

I love a naked baked sweet potato or a baked white potato garnished with several tablespoons of a mild salsa. I don’t even bother with the oven but use the microwave.

@rosehips; I would guess than anything eaten large quantities would cause digestive problems. I have a -year old nephew who is autistic and on one of the most stringent diets around, partially dictated to by his own taste buds. In addition to chicken and popcorn this month, he eats edamame beans.

Seeds 101; The other magic potion that I bother making is a combo of flax seed, chia seed and sesame seed. I grind them in a Krups grinder designed for coffee beans but I keep mine only for the seeds.

I grind each seed separately, about ¼ cup of seed…and throw the mixture in a jar, again stored in the refrigerator. Every morning I add a T. or two on oatmeal but it would do just as well in dry cereal, scrambled eggs, soups, salads or stews: it is an easy way to fell dietically righteous.

Thanks, I swear I will try it soon!

edit; ...to feel dietetically righteous.” That’s what happens when I invent a word.

I’ve been reading a bit about hemp seeds, lately. My friend had some in her fridge and she let me taste it. It had the flavor and texture of ground up pistachios! Yum! Think I’m gonna get me some hemp seeds.

I’ve been eating ground flax seeds for about 5 years now, mostly because I needed a vegetarian source of omega 3 fatty acids, the stuff that non vegetarians get from fish (of all veg forms, flax has the most). At first I used to take the flax seed oil, but then, because I wanted to add extra fiber to my diet, I started eating the ground flax seeds (you have to eat ground seeds, as opposed to whole seeds, to access the nutrient). You can just add flax (or hemp or chia seeds) to your cereal or salad, but I just put it in a glass of water and swig it down, before dinner.

Flax seeds have a nutty, slightly burnt/bitter taste to them by themselves, although when they are cooked into breads and chips and crackers, they’re delicious.

Hemp seeds, on the other hand, are nutty and slightly buttery and sweet, and and I could easily see using them for crusting things like salmon (if you eat fish) or in my case tofu, much in the same way you would use ground pistachios or sesame seeds.

Read a bit more about the “new” Superseeds, including chia seeds. Yes, the same chia seeds from which we used to grow “grassy hair” on clay pots back in the 70’s.

My cousin made this Lime Garlic Quinoa for a family function and I was hooked!

I too, like edamame right out of the pod. I get frozen Edamame from Trader Joe’s. TJ’s also has shelled frozen edamame which I put into pasta salad. You can also use it as a better tasting replacement for lima beans in succotash.