It's Gluten-Free Snack Time!

I don’t know about you other GF people, but lately I’ve been craving crispy-crunchy goodies like bagel chips and crackers. Yes, there’s always Mary’s Gone Crackers, but at $3.50 to $5.00 a box (and I can finish off a box on my own in two or three days) that’s a healthy chomp out of my food budget.

Then I remembered this creative recipe I learned from holistic nutritionist Jennifer McKinley. It’s simple, yummy, and made from nothing but healthy, whole ingredients, starting with amaranth.

Amaranth is actually a seed, and is related to Swiss chard and spinach. It’s a great source of protein, and compared with wheat, has almost four times the calcium and double the iron and magnesium. It’s mild and rather sweet-tasting…. and your kids might actually like it.

You can get amaranth in your local health food store. It’s easy to cook—combine one cup of amaranth and two cups of water in a pot, add a bit of salt and fresh ground pepper to taste, bring to a boil then simmer for twenty minutes.

The wafers are crispy on the inside and chewy-creamy on the inside. Try them with a bit of applesauce, or, like I do, on their own and still hot from the pan.

Amaranth Wafers

Ingredients:

Cooked, refrigerated amaranth
Olive oil
Salt (preferably sea salt) and fresh-ground pepper to taste

1. With oiled hands (this stuff gets sticky) roll the amaranth into small balls and flatten into wafers, approx 1-1/2-2” thick. (You may want to start with just a few to see if you like them.) Place in a single layer on a sheet of waxed paper.

2. Heat non-stick skillet (preferable) over low-medium heat and add enough olive oil to just coat the bottom of the pan.

3. When the oil is hot, put the wafers in. Brown on one side, turn, and brown on the other. Drain on paper towels.

4. Enjoy!