Citrus EVOO Millet
BREAKFAST
Winter is citrus season.
Did you know?
Several years back, I had wondered what fruit was "in season" in the winter. Strawberries shone in the spring, summer berries in, well, summer, and autumn was for apples and pears. But winter? I supposed only cranberries and pears spanned both autumn and winter.
I noticed that grapefruit tended to go on sale in December and January. And then I noticed something else: delightful "new" varieties of oranges (new to me, you understand).
Cara cara, blood oranges, Valencia . . . not to mention mandarins and tangelos and more. It was time to think beyond the humble navel orange (though these certainly have their place as well).
In the summer, I love to eat millet with fresh blackberries (and balsamic vinegar, no less!), but coming to experience the nuanced sweetness of cara cara oranges brought a new variation to the breakfast table. Alongside the fruity richness of extra virgin olive oil, these sweet-tart oranges brightened the sun-starved mornings.
Five simple ingredients (+ salt) pack both a flavor and nutritional punch. This delicious, winter breakfast is packed with coveted omega-3s and polyphenols. There's also a nice array of fiber. Just millet, flax, walnuts, extra virgin olive oil (EVOO), and oranges (+ salt).
I typically cook up 1 cup of dried millet, which allows for leftovers to eat this again (depending on serving size) or use for other purposes (e.g., in a lunch, dinner, or throw into muffins). You can also use leftovers in place of rice in this dish.
Feel free to reduce the amount of millet you cook up if you don't care to have leftovers around. But if you plan to eat this more than one day in a week, it's nice to save the time and have it ready to go (simply heat it up in the microwave as is or in a pot with a bit of water).
To soak:
1 cup millet
water, enough to cover millet 1/2 inch
To cook:
1 cup water
1/2 tsp. salt
To serve:
Cara cara oranges (or blood oranges, navel, Valencia, etc.)
Extra virgin olive oil
Flax meal
Walnuts
Ingredients
Citrus EVOO Millet
Soak the millet overnight: Place 1 cup millet into a medium bowl and cover with filtered water. Optional: add in a bit of acidic medium, such as plant yogurt or whey, sourdough starter, or apple cider vinegar (~ 1 tsp.).
In the morning, drain and rinse the millet.
Cook the millet: Bring 1 cup water, 1/2 tsp. salt, and the rinsed millet to a boil in a small saucepan. Reduce to a simmer, cover, and cook for about 14 minutes (until most of the water has been absorbed). Turn off the heat and let stand for 5 minutes before fluffing (like rice).
Meanwhile, prep your toppings: Peel the oranges and slice the segments as desired (you don't need to go through the effort of removing the membrane, but it's a neat skill to gain!). Chop walnuts.
Spoon millet into warmed bowls, stir in flax meal, drizzle over olive oil, and top with orange and walnuts.
Serves 2 (+ extra millet)
Instructions
Start your day with a little bit of "special" as you sink into the joy of wintery citrus.
Last updated: December 19, 2024
