3-4 Whole Grain Casserole

Yes, it has been a while since the last post...between vacation and trying new things,,no good excuses.

I do have a lovely side dish or salad to share with totallly hopes to expand upon and make it your own

The original recipe comes to me from my friend Jessica Westfall who got it from a friend. I only modified it a bit BC i live in a place where I cannot get what I nws.

½ cup whole-wheat berries, rinsed
2/3 cup long grain wild rice, rinsed
¼ cup basmati or long grain rice rinced
¼ cup oat groats, rinsed
3 small bay leaves

5 Cups boiling water

1 bulb fennel (anise) cut 1/4 “ dice
¾ cup diced carrots ¼” dice
2 small zucchini ¼” dice
2 small yellow squash ¼” dice
2 cups dried cranberries
¼ cup thinly sliced green onion
¼ cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
3 TBSP extra virgin olive oil or butter
2 tsp salt
½ tsp. fresh ground pepper
1 tsp chopped fresh thyme or 1/8 tsp. dried

Preheat oven to 350. Combine wheat berries, bay leaf and 1-½ cups of boiling water. Cover and bake 1 hour. Combine wild rice, bay leaf and 2 cups of boiling water in a 1 qt. casserole dish and bake 45 minutes. In another casserole, combine basmati with 1 ½ cup water and bay leaf and bake for 30 minutes. Discard bay leaves in all dishes. Cover and refrigerate up to 24 hours.

Heat large pot of water and 1 tsp. salt to boiling. Add diced fennel and carrots. Cook 3 minutes and add diced zucchini and yellow squash. Cook 2 minutes and drain.

Add to cooked grains in bowl with cranberries, sliced green onions and chopped parsley, oil/butter, 2 teaspoons salt and pepper and thyme. Toss well, serve hot or at room temp. Makes 10 ½ cups.