Thursday, September 13, 2012

Amaranth

Amaranth
One of the best things about doing this blog for the last two years is that I've learned a lot while I've been doing it.

Cindy does all the work, I wander out into the garden occasionally, find something new and ask her what it is and then go look up more information on it.  Plus, I get to take pictures of all this interesting stuff and post it on the blog.

One of these interesting things is the Amaranth plant growing in our garden.

I thought the bright purple flowers were very pretty;  I should have known better.  Cindy tells me that Amaranth seeds are used as grain throughout the world even though they're not a true grain; they're a "pseudo cereal," but unlike some of the true cereals, they have no gluten and so can be used in gluten-free recipes.

It has the potential to reduce cholesterol and is also high in protein content, including the amino acid lysine, which is missing from most other grains.  Apparently a very healthy addition to the diet.

I have no idea what Amaranth tastes like, but I suspect I'll be finding that out one of these days.


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