Savory, filling buckwheat with sweet and tangy kefir make for a power packed breakfast. The addition of dry roasted walnuts and smokey sweet poppy seeds plus a good swirl of toffee flavored buckwheat honey makes a very easy, plan ahead breakfast that doesn’t disappoint.

Partnering with Lifeway Kefir to share a wholesome breakfast option that is lactose free and full of protein, to get you through busy mornings, slow weekend mornings or work as a light lunch option. Easily made and assembled the night before for a no rush, big flavor satisfying meal.

What is buckwheat?

Buckwheat is a psuedo-grain. It looks like a grain, eats like a grain and cooks like a grain but is not a grain, making it gluten free. Despite it’s name “buckwheat”, buckwheat is related more to rhubarb than wheat or grain. It is also a source of complete protein, 6 grams per cup of cooked buckwheat. In addition to being gluten free and a good source of protein, it contains an impressive list of vitamins and minerals.

Here are a few honorable mentions:

Folate

Vitamin B1, B2, B3, B5 and B6

Calcium

Iron

Potassium

Magnesium

Zinc

How do you cook buckwheat?

There are a few ways to prepare buckwheat. Usually it calls for butter, which you can add, but to keep this dish lactose free, we’re skipping it.

Much like rice or quinoa, buckwheat is cooked in water and covered to steam through. Fluffed up and enjoyed sweet or savory. A childhood favorite is buckwheat with milk and jam or honey, for breakfast or a very light supper.

One cup of buckwheat willcook up fairly generously into about 4 cups of cooked buckwheat. It is economical, delicious and in recent years more accessible inside of larger grocery stores.

How long will cooked buckwheat last in the refrigerator?

After prepared, cooled and covered, buckwheat can stay refrigerated the day it was cooked plus 3 days after. If prepared at night, it would be 72 hours starting the next day.

Buckwheat Honey

Buckwheat honey is honey made from the nectar collected from buckwheat flowers. The flavor is between a caramel, molasses and toffee. It is unique and much like buckwheat has a host of nutritional benefits.

Buckwheat honey claims:

Natural cough suppressant, rivaling Manuka and other honey.

Immune boosting and anti-bacterial properties.

Powerful anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory

Contributes to visibly better skin

Ultimately it is incredibly delicious and if you’ve been enjoying clover and wildflower honey, this will be a welcome new flavor.

Kefir

We have kefir in our fridge for everything from drinking to baking. In it’s cold and creamy, straight from the fridge form, kefir has gut friendly probiotics, protien, vitamins and is naturally 99.9% lactose free. Lifeway kefir has a proprietary blend of 12 live and active cultures that make up every bottle of kefir.

Kefir is a cultured dairy drink, much like yogurt, labneh, and sour cream, the process of fermentation starts the conversion of lactose, which makes it a great dairy option for people who are either lactose intolerant or lactose sensitive.

What does Kefir taste like?

It is creamy with a small amount of tang, not unlike yogurt. The consistency is less viscous than a yogurt and slightly creamier than straight milk. It is a very mild and pleasant flavor, that blends well with other natural flavors, like vanilla, strawberry, coconut or chocolate.

Dry Roasting

A fantastic way to quickly add flavor and texture to nuts.

The best way to store nuts is in the freezer, especially if you buy in bulk. To revive their flavor and crispness, a quick toss in a dry skillet will do the trick.

This process goes quickly, and the nuts can easily burn if left alone or not removed from the pan.

Which nuts can you store in the freezer?

Walnuts

Almonds

Pinenuts

Macadamia

Pecans

This recipe calls for walnuts, but pecans would work well here too.

Heat a nonstick skillet on medium high flame for 1 minute. Place dry nuts into pan and shake ever so often until they become fragrant, slightly darker and they make a denser chattering when hit against each other. The total time for this quantity is about 3 minutes of hands on cooking.

Poppy Seeds

Poppy seeds come from the poppy plant. They are small round seeds that are edible. The myth regarding avoiding consumption of poppy seeds before certain medical tests is in fact not a myth.

Aside from the controversy surrounding poppy seeds, they are incredibly good for you as an edible culinary element to meals.

Much like kefir, buckwheat and walnuts, poppy seeds are a good source of protein, and minerals, like calcium, iron and zinc.

Poppy seeds are also a great source of dietary fiber and magnesium.

What do poppy seeds taste like?

They are crisp and have a toasty warm flavor. They add a nice texture and a unique flavor that combines with walnuts, cherries, honey, buckwheat and kefir into a unique and delicious bite.

Recipe

Kefir Cherry Buckwheat Breakfast Bowl

Makes 4 servings

Ingredients:

1/3 cup buckwheat groats

3/4 cup water

pinch of kosher salt

Vanilla Kefir

1 cup cherries pitted

1 cup walnuts dry roasted

1 tsp poppy seeds per serving ( more or less, depending on preference).

Buckwheat Honey

Cooking Buckwheat

Rinse buckwheat under coldwater. Heat a small sauce pan (4-6cup size. any larger and the water will evaporate too quickly. Smaller and there will not be enough room for the buckwheat to cook).

Toast buckwheat groats for 2 minutes on medium low, followed by water and salt.

Increase the heat to medium high, until water comes to the boil.

Do not stir. Cover the pot and reduce the heat to medium low.

Cook covered until water has been absorbed, about 10minutes.

Listen to your pan, a crackling sound may indicate that your water has fully evaporated.

Buckwheat should have a soft and fluffy texture, with a little chew. The groats should separate and not stick to each other once fully cooked.

If your buckwheat feels al dente, and the starting liquid has been absorbed, add water starting in 1/4 cup increments. Covering and allowing to continue cooking until groats are ready to eat.

Once cooked, turn off the heat and allow to stand on the stove, covered, for 5 minutes.

They can be enjoyed warm with cold kefir, cold the next day with cold kefir or reheated again throughout the week.

Assemble

Spoon 1/3 cup buckwheat into a bowl or cup.

Pour over Lifeway Vanilla Organic Kefir 1/3 of the way up

Sprinkle with poppy seeds, cherries and walnuts

Swirl over Buckwheat honey

Enjoy!