"whole grain" news and stories

A study done by the USDA has shown that increasing the amount of whole grains in your diet can have multiple health benefits, including lowering the blood pressure of individuals who have slightly elevated cholesterol. The participants went on a controlled diet for a few weeks, then the refined carbohydrates they ate were all replaced with whole grains that had both soluble and insoluble fiber (barley, whole wheat and brown rice). Some diets had an equal amount of the two types of fiber, while others had more insoluble fiber. The blood pressure for all the study participants decreased on the whole grain diets, though women did better on the diet higher in soluble fiber (more barley).

One other interesting result of the study was that once whole grains were added to the diets from the controlled baseline diet, the number of calories that study participants also increased. Even so, they lost an average of 1 kg each (2.2 lbs) during the several-week program.

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Replacing the fat in baked goods is something that we have done a few times now, but for some people fat is not the issue that they want to tackle - it's sugar. Baking without sugar is much harder than baking without fat because fats contribute to the texture of the finished product, but not as much to the flavor. Granted, a buttery flavor can be nice, but I have had fat free cookies (made with applesauce) on numerous occasions that have tasted quite good, even if they are lacking in the texture department.

Few things are better than a tall stack of pancakes on a lazy Sunday morning. Waffles, scones, omelets and bacon are all nice, too, but light pancakes dripping with syrup are hard to resist. If those pancakes are anything like the Whole Grain Pancakes with Blueberry Maple Syrup from 101 Cookbooks, the task might be near to impossible. The pancakes are light and flavorful, due to the buttermilk that Heidi used to make them, and the maple syrup is mixed with whole, fresh blueberries and cooked into a smooth topping. The syrup is a long way from the blueberry-flavored pancake syrups that are stocked in many diners, much lighter and fresher.

As if the sound along weren't enough, Heidi actually thinks that these are the best pancakes she's ever made. Given that the published cookbook author has been blogging for more than 3 years, that's saying something.

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The recommended daily guidelines for Americans suggest that at least half of all the grains consumed during the day be whole grains, which comes out to be 3 -5 servings daily. Aside from whole grain breads, like those made from whole wheat flour instead of wheat flour, there are quite a few other foods that will let you get those servings in. The ten most popular sources of whole grains are whole wheat (flour), whole oats/oatmeal, whole-grain corn, popcorn, brown rice, whole rye, whole-grain barley, wild rice, buckwheat and triticale, and as they are the most popular, they are also the most readily available.

Oatmeal, corn, popcorn and both brown and wild rice are easy enough to add into your weekly diet, and barley can stand in for rice or potatoes at many meals. Rye and buckwheat can be found in many breads, most of which will make superb sandwiches during the week. To add them in at home, you can try buckwheat pancakes or a blueberry buckwheat bundt cake. Triticale is a hybrid of rye and wheat, found mostly at health food stores, and can also be incorporated into many recipes.

A great source for some whole-grain recipes online is Bob's Red Mill website, which covers recipes for all of the top 10 grains.

In the market, sometimes you win and sometime you lose when you are picking out a new product to try. The Strawberry Yogurt O's from Trader Joe's, unfortunately, fall into that later category. I am a big fan of their other O's, both the plain and the honey-nut. They are light and flavorful and the honey variety has a fantastic honey taste. These, on the other hand, are small and dense, with little to remind the eater of the delicious taste of the other O's cereals. Instead of tasting vaguely oaty, they taste like whole wheat flour.

Their release can be attributed to the popularity of other yogurt-flavored cereals, but these don't have as much to recommend them. Other brands are very sweet, a fact that is often the primary criticism of them. The Strawberry O's themselves are not very sweet at all, any sugar overpowered by the wheat flavor. The yogurt covered freeze-dried strawberries, on the other hand, are incredibly sweet, with a hint of salt underneath and the non-yogurt covered berries were tart, making a strange contrast to the rest of the cereal.

Will I buy them again? No, but there is potential in these. All Trader Joe's has to do is add the yogurt flavoring to their standard O's and ditch the whole wheat ones.

[Photo by Nicole Weston]