Maple-Pear Breakfast Millet

There's something about millet, pears, and maple syrup. 

Maybe it's the buttery, floral millet. Or the deep, sweet maple. Or the juicy, fragrant pear.

Or maybe, it's the way they combine.

Pears are perfect right now. Foraged and given a month's time in a sack to ripen, some are good for pear butter or baking. But not the Bartletts. They are special. They can stay on the tree until almost ripe, and then be left on a counter, or other convenient spot, a few days to finish off.  They are undoubtedly my favorite of the foraged pears, because they require no refrigeration and still ripen to juicy, thin-skinned perfection.  

...The best for fresh eating, or in this case, topping your morning cereal. 

Maple and pear are two flavors meant to be combined, and ideal this time of year.

Maple - Pear Breakfast Millet

To one cup of warm, cooked millet*, add

1/2 a Bartlett Pear, sliced, unpeeled, and

2 teaspoons pure maple syrup.

Mix it up and devour.

Serves one.

* instructions on how to cook millet here

Millet & Zucchini

Millet has all the buttery, floral goodness of a fresh corn tortilla - really an amazing flavor. And I love how it keeps a bit of chew; when cooked just so it has the perfect texture - not mushy, but not crunchy. Millet combines superbly with zucchini for an exceptionally fresh taste - better than the classic zucchini & corn.

This makes the most delicious meal - hearty but by no means heavy.  It's a perfect use for the last of the season's zucchini.

You can taste the life in this dish! I just feel bright after eating it.

This takes around half an hour to make, start to finish, so it's an easy option for a quick lunch.

The spices can be mixed & matched, or left out altogether, but cumin is hard to beat. The point is to have the combination of buttery, salty-sweet caramelized zucchini & onions along with the millet. It's incredible.  

Millet w/ Zucchini & Onions

1 cup millet

2 cups water

3/4 TBSP olive oil

pinch salt

  Toast millet over low heat in dry pot several minutes, stirring or shaking the pan often.  Add the water, oil, and salt, stir, raise the heat to high, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, covered, stirring often, for 15 minutes or until all water is absorbed.  Remove from heat; close lid fully and set aside while making zucchini:

  In another pot, heat over medium-low:

3 TBSP olive oil. Add
1 onion, sliced. Saute while chopping
3 small zucchinis - add them to the pot. Stir and add
black pepper,
red pepper flakes,

dill seeds,

ground coriander,
garlic powder, 

paprika, and

ground cumin,
  to taste.
  Raise heat to medium. Cook, stirring often, a few minutes until onion and zucchini are nicely browned.

Cover partway with lid and cook a few more minutes to steam.  Remove from heat once done - onions should be translucent and the zucchini tendercrisp - mixture will continue to cook a bit even after removing from heat.  Serve a generous scoop over a pile of the millet.

 An original Any Fig recipe.    

Figs + Whiskey

Figs in Whiskey

1 2/3 cups honey whiskey
1 1/3 cup and 2 Tablespoons sugar
3/4 cup and 1 Tablespoon water
8 cups black mission fig quarters

Eight cups of fig pieces should fit into four pint jars, with about 3/4-inch headspace. More or less figs may be needed to fill the jars. Set fig pieces aside.  Place jars in canning pot to sterilize.
Over high heat, bring the whiskey, sugar, and water just to a boil. Reduce heat to medium and simmer just until the sugar is completely dissolved, stirring once or twice.
Place fig pieces back into jars once sterilized. Pour the hot whiskey syrup over the figs, leaving 1/2-inch headspace. Remove any air bubbles, wipe rims & seal.
Process 15 minutes in a boiling water bath. Turn heat off and let jars sit in water a few minutes, then remove and let cool 24 hours. Check seals; store up to one year.

Variation: Figs in Brandy.
Replace the whiskey called for with brandy and use the same method as above.
Recipe originally from The Preservation Kitchen.