I have buckwheat. :)

[kiya]

Kevin found some at the place browngirl mentioned. I have made a kasha with mushrooms in, which would probably be better if I hadn't burnt some of it. I suspect not burning some of it would have been easier in a kitchen with LIGHTS IN.

I also burnt my thumb. (oneironaut says, "Don't do that. It hurts." Gtst would know.) And it does hurt like . . . something that hurts a blessed lot.

But I have buckwheat now. And a lead on juniper berries. And a really melted ice cube (sigh).

Comments

[kalmn.livejournal.com]

kasha? like kasha they have in russia?

in novosibirsk they had little packets of kasha in the grocery store, like quaker instant oatmeal. if i'd have known it was impossible to buy here, i'd have filled my suitcase with kasha.

[kiya]

Probably very like; the word seems to be in a bunch of languages across Eastern Europe.

Would you like some Polish kasha recipes?

[kalmn.livejournal.com]

yes, please!

[kiya]

A savory kasha:

2 1/2 c boiling salt water
2 c raw buckwheat
butter or lard

Mix the water and the buckwheat and cook over low heat until the water's absorbed. Spread the hot kasha on a clean, moist board to about a finger's thickness, let dry in a cool place overnight. Cut the kasha into cubes and fry in the lard or butter.

Used to add to gravies and roasts, especially with mushroom sauce.

A sweet kasha (Royal Cracow Buckwheat Kasha with Raisins)

3/4 cup boiling milk
2 oz butter
1/2 vanilla bean
1 c buckwheat
1 egg
4 separated eggs (the whites and yolks are used separately)
6 oz sugar
4-6 oz raisins

Mix the buckwheat with the egg and let it dry thoroughly. Add the milk, butter, and vanilla bean and cook over low heat without stirring it; when it starts thickening, bake it in a covered pot in a medium-hot oven for ~45 minutes -- the kasha should not brown. Remove the vanilla bean, let cool.

Beat the egg yolks and the sugar until they're fluffy; add lemon rind if you want it. Mix into the cooled kasha, then add the raisins, then add the egg whites (beaten as stiff as possible first).

Butter a dish liberally and put the resulting goo in; bake for ~40 minutes.

Serve with sour cherry preserves.

[xiphias.livejournal.com]

For what it's worth, I tend to get kasha at the supermarket. Both Stop&Shop and Johnny's Foodmaster tend to carry it. It's sometimes in the "ethnic foods" aisle, with the other Jewish foods. It comes in a little brown box with a celophane window in the front, and you can buy it in three forms: whole, coarse grind, and fine grind.