Tuesday, 6 December 2011

Well, if you knew how good this stuff is you would be as excited as I am that it worked! (1 out of 3 experiments that is).

First I soaked Garbonzos/Chickpeas overnight and ground them in the blender. I didn't bother straining them, and didn't measure the water. (why??) Anyway, I managed to make a thick porridge, but I scorched it and even though it sort of solidified, I threw it out without trying it.

Next, I did two batches. I ground 2 cups of Garbonzos in the Wonder Mill Electric, which went alright, but it had a little trouble feeding the big beans, (just like it says on Willitgrind.com) and I kept having to shut it off and shake it a little. Smaller Garbonzos would probably solve this! Anyway, I set that soaking with 10 cups of water overnight. I also ground (easily) 3 cups of Yellow Split Peas. These are Garbonzos without their hull/shells and are usually sold along side of Lentils. This was a finer flour, so I left it soaking in 9 cups of water.

Next morning, I made Yellow Slit Pea batch first, and it was so easy! Just pour the watery part into a pot and bring to a boil, stirring constantly, then pour the sludge that had settled to the bottom of the other container into the hot liquid while stirring and it will thicken up quickly, (5 minutes?). Stir in in the salt and curry durring the water phase. (Recipe below)

The other batch did not fare so well... I scooped off 2 cups of water, and then strained everything, which didn't work so well. It didn't thicken up, but I realized just as I wrote the numbers, that I was supposed to take 4 cups off. Duh! That's what happened.

Soak Yellow Pea Flour overnight (or 12 hours) in a covered bowl. Put a small amount of oil in your cooking pot, stir it around to coat the bottom and add the Curry and Salt. Pour the the water off the top of your soaked flour, saving the starch to add after boiling. Boil the liquid, stirring to keep from scorching. Add the starch, stirring well to keep any lumps from forming, (a whisk would be helpful). Now, it will get really thick, within about 5 minutes. It should be about like refrigerated pudding in thickness. Turn it off, oil a Square Pyrex dish or other mold and scoop all of it in. Smooth it out, and refridgerate for at least 4 hours. Cut into big chucks and freeze what you will not use within a week.

Cut a chunk into cubes and fry in sizzling oil on each side until crispy. Enjoy in a Stir-fry or with sour cream and salsa. Use your imagination!

Well, I blanched 3 cups of almonds, and dehydrated them for 12 hours at about 75 degrees and 150 for another 12 hours. I ground about a cup, and got a lot closer to the right consistency, but there was still to much moisture to call it a flour. The Almonds went through the mill just fine, and I got a high yield, but the result was just a bit to sticky. I am going to chop the remaining nuts and dehydrate them some more. :)

Wednesday, 30 November 2011

I wanted to get this done sooner, but I did not have any regular almonds, and because I bought Raw Organic Almonds for special Raw recipes ($8+ per lb vs. $5), I didn't want to use them for blanching and cooking. Well, I bought 1 lb of regular Almonds just for this, and blanched them today. It came out to about 3 cups, and I have them dehydrating in my oven right now. So, I will post part 3 once they are dry and I can get to it! Plus, expect pictures.