Not Just For The Birds

Once upon a time, North American’s used the small, round, yellow grain called millot as a bird food. They didn’t eat it, even though it was protein rich and very healthy. African’s have always known better and eat the grain daily.

Today, North American’s eat millot. It’s eaten like rice pilaf or couscous and the mild, sweet flavour is very tasty.

I love indulging in a new grain because rice can get boring. And a new grain that pairs perfectly with cheese – well I think that millot and I are match made in heaven.

Cheesy Millot Polenta - serves 4

1 cup millot

5 cups chicken broth, homemade or purchased

3 tablespoons butter

1 cup cheddar cheese

1 pinch of salt and pepper

1. Rinse and drain the millot, like you would with rice.

2. Toast the millot in a medium sized dry pot at medium high heat until you can hear it begin to pop and turn a golden brown colour, about 7-8 minutes.

3. Add 4 cups of the broth and the butter. Bring mixture to a boil and then reduce it to a simmer for about 20 minutes.

4. After 20 minutes of cooking, stir the polenta every few minutes to prevent it from sticking on the bottom of the pot. Add additional broth if the polenta seems too thick. Continue to cook and stir until the polenta reaches a creamy texture, about 35 minutes in total.

5. Stir in the cheese and season with salt and pepper. Enjoy!

So, in honor of Easter, and in honour of millot being eaten by more people than just birds, here’s a fun egg dying craft where you can use veggies to naturally dye your eggs!

I did not have time to try natural egg dying this year (since I am in Hawaii right now!) but this post from the Vegetable Gardener looked too good to miss sharing! 

Let me know how your eggs turned out?

I know they'll look truly original, smell amazing, and I bet they would be a little safer to eat too!