VEGANMOFO 2009: Fennel and Wheat Berries

Two new ingredients: wheat berries and fresh fennel. Okay, so this didn't turn out to be my favorite meal this week, but I had to do something quick, and didn't spend the time looking up the best way to prepare wheat berries. It was just a rather plain meal. Plus I had another hankering for the dressing from last night... I will aim higher tomorrow for the last day of the "Week of New"!

Roasted Root Vegetable Salad

Ingredients:
1/4 red onion, cut into wedges
1 1/2 kohlrabi, sliced
1 bulb fennel, sliced*
salt to taste
pepper to taste
apple cider vinegar to taste
extra virgin olive oil to taste
lettuce mix (I prefer one with arugula)
1/2 apple, diced
baked tofu
dressing

Directions:
1. Place the vegetables on a baking sheet and top with salt, pepper, vinegar, and olive oil. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 or so minutes, or until desired texture is reached.2. Toss roasted vegetables in a bowl with lettuce mix and apple.
3. Top with baked tofu and dressing.



Wheat Berries with Cranberries

Ingredients:
3/4 cup wheat berries
1 1/2 cups water
1 cup fresh cranberries
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
1. Place all ingredients in a pan and simmer until water has been absorbed (about 25 minutes).


Review:
*Oh my goodness, the paisley-like designs found on the inside of the fennel bulb when sliced are almost breathtaking! As I mentioned previously, this wasn't a "WOW!" meal. It was decent. It was actually pretty good, but I also feel like it was a cop-out. I'm always trying to convince non-veggers that vegans don't just eat salad. Anyhoo, the roasted veggies in their array of flavors were tasty tossed with the baby greens and apples. The arugula and other greens wilted from the heat of the roasted vegetables and it turned into a pleasant warm salad.

The cranberry/wheat berry dish was pretty much a fail. It was edible, but really unimaginative. This was not the fault of the ingredients! I liked the squeaky texture (think Israeli couscous) of the wheat berries, but the preparing them with the cranberries as I did just made the whole thing to tart and cranberry-y. I will continue to play around with the wheat berries in the future (I'm actually thinking using them instead of bread in a stuffing with all different herbs/fruit/veggies would be quite good).