The Germ of an Idea

    

     Not long ago I found a great recipe for Irish soda bread.  I tried it and was very pleased at the result.  Making a "quick bread" like that is indeed quick and easy since it does not entail the use of yeast that needs to rise to leaven the loaf.  But I wondered, how could I make it a little healthier?  After all, all purpose flour has been pretty much stripped of any nutrients and, while looking pretty, does little to improve one's diet.

    
     So imagine my joy when I came across a recipe for Brown Soda Bread using whole wheat flour and something I was not familiar with: wheat germ.  I had heard about it over the years as something that health nuts put on their cereal in the morning, but knew little else about it.  If I wanted to try this new healthy version of soda bread I needed to learn more and find some.  Fortunately while I was out at the Green Dragon this morning I chatted it up with a little Mennonite lady who has a booth selling all kinds of grains, including wheat germ!

     Here's what I learned.  The wheat germ is the edible section of the wheat kernel, the reproductive part that germinates to form wheat grass.  It makes up only a very small fraction of the harvested wheat, about 2.5%.  So little that it takes 50 pounds of wheat to produce a mere pound of the germ.  While it is beyond doubt the healthiest part of the grain of wheat it is typically removed during processing since it contains an oil that can, over time, become rancid.  So to preserve the shelf life of the resulting flour, the germ is extracted, along with the hull.  It is golden brown and flaky also another impediment to having smooth silky white flour for baking.

     But the wheat germ is a nutritional powerhouse!  It contains 23 nutrients and has more of them per ounce than any other vegetable or grain.  It is a better source of potassium and iron than any other food source.  It also contains large quantities of riboflavin, calcium, zinc and magnesium as well as Vitamins A, E, B1 & B3.  In addition, it has more protein (28%) than is found in most meat products.  That makes it an excellent protein supplement for vegetarians.  And because it slows the digestive process it helps folks feel fuller longer, thus reducing the tendency to snack in between meals.  It does, however, have a fairly high caloric content, so a little goes a long way, especially for those on a low calorie diet.

     So, beside including it in Brown Soda Bread, how does one include it in a daily diet?  As mentioned previously, it can be sprinkled on cereal but can also be used as a substitute for granola in yogurt to give it a nutty crunch.  Wheat germ can also replace bread crumbs when a recipe calls for them.  Another creative way to use it is to add a spoonful or two to smoothies and milkshakes.  And in baking wheat germ can replace up to 1/2 cup of flour in the recipe.

     Think I'll add Brown Soda Bread to the Super Bowl feast menu this weekend and do myself a healthy favor...