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Easy Recipe for Savoury Millet Cake

Easily Digested Wheat Substitute Could Regain Popularity

May 3, 2009 Elaine Walker

With so many people developing wheat intolerance, millet is a good substitute. Try this easy recipe for millet cake and serve it with soup or stew for a budget meal.

Millet is one of those very old grains, like spelt, that is easily digested, but has largely been ignored by the western world. It has traditionally been mixed with other seeds and used to feed birds.

Milllet as Wheat Substitute

Apart from bird seed, it is a good wheat substitute, high in protein and easily digested by human beings as it is not acid-forming. It has a mild nutty flavor and can be used in cereals, sweet and savoury dishes, in salads, unleavened bread and cakes. Some cultures use a fermented form of millet to produce an alcoholic drink.

Millet in China

According to the Cambridge Encyclopedia, millet was cultivated in China as long ago as 5000 BCE. This was before rice became the staple food. However, millet is still an important part of the Northern Chinese diet. Millet was later gown in India and Egypt. Today 70% of the world’s millet crops are grown in West Africa as it tolerates the heat and thrives in a dry climate. Perhaps this grain will be better suited to the changing world climate? As people focus on more sustainable crops, millet may well find its way back into the recipe books in the west,

Easy Recipe for Millet Cake

Millet is rich in vitamin B6, calcium, iron and potassium. It is a good source of magnesium and zinc and will make a tasty budget meal as well as introducing variety into the family diet. Try this easy recipe for tasty millet cake.

Savoury Millet Cake

Ingredients

8 ozs / 225g Millet
3/4 pint / 400 mls chicken or vegetable stock
4 tbs butter
3 eggs
4 tbs milk (soya or dairy)
Salt and plenty of freshly ground black pepper
1 tsp Oregano
1 tbsp finely chopped almonds

Method

Rinse millet in cold water and drain.
Pour stock into saucepan and add millet.
Bring to the boil.
Skim surface gently with a spoon if necessary.
Cover and simmer on low heat for about 25 minutes until all the liquid has been absorbed.
Remove from heat, cover and leave to stand for 10 minutes.
Add butter and stir well.
Beat eggs and milk together.
Add salt and black pepper, oregano and almonds.
Stir into the millet.
Grease an oven proof dish and pour in the mixture.
Bake in a hot pre-heated oven (220C) for 10 to 15 minutes.

When cooked turn out and slice. Serve with a spicy chickpea stew or a thick lentil dhal for a budget meal.

Experiment with different ingredients for variety, for example

try adding a cup of finely chopped spinach with a pinch of nutmeg and no oregano
fry a cup of finely sliced mushrooms in some olive oil and stir into the mixture before baking
substitute almonds for finely chopped cashew nuts.

The copyright of the article Easy Recipe for Savoury Millet Cake in Recipes is owned by Elaine Walker. Permission to republish Easy Recipe for Savoury Millet Cake in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

Millet Is A Wheat Substitute