What We Ate Wednesday--Buckwheat Salad with Roasted Veg, Kale and Walnuts

Hello lovelies! This is a recipe I don't make very often.I don't know why. Every time we have it I am like, "This is amazing! Why don't we eat this more??"  It makes a huge amount--like 5 bowls worth of food. We ate it, had seconds and packed some away for lunches.

I am not sure where the original recipe came from. Definitely a cookbook I got from the library. Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, perhaps? I adapted it to make it vegan as well as cheaper. So, basically I own it now.

Buckwheat is an underrated grain. Despite its name, there is no wheat in buckwheat. It's actually related to rhubarb. Who knew?

This is made with UNROASTED buckwheat groats not Kasha (ROASTED)  buckwheat groats. It cooks quickly and is hearty and filling.

The original recipe called for squash, but i always use my trusty sweet potatoes. It also required fennel which can be more expensive. If I can I get fennel, but if not I just do two white  onions with 1 TB fennel seeds. It's all good. It also needs Parmesan cheese. Luckily I have a vegan Parmesan which is to die for (to live for?) as dairy Parmesan cheese is not even vegetarian because of the method used to make it. Ever wondered how they turn milk into cheese? They use rennet. Not always, but often.

According to the Vegetarian Society website:

Rennet contains the enzyme chymosin. Rennet can be sourced from the abomasum (fourth stomach) of newly-born calves where the chymosin aids digestion and absorption of milk. Adult cows do not have this enzyme. Chymosin is extracted from slaughtered calves by washing and drying the stomach lining, which is cut into small pieces and macerated in a solution of boric acid/brine for 4-5 days.

Parmesan is always made with dead baby calves. But don't worry, I've got you covered.

Buckwheat Salad with Roasted Veg, Kale and Walnuts
Preheat your oven to 200C/400F

In a big roasting pan add:
2 chopped sweet potatoes
1 chopped fennel or 2 chopped white onions and 1 TB fennel seeds
1 pepper, chopped
1 tin of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 TB oil
salt and pepper

Get ready but don't add it yet:
4 cloves garlic, crushed
50 grams/half a cup walnuts

Roast for 20 minutes, remove and stir. Add the garlic and walnuts and roast a further 10 minutes.

Make your Parmesan:

In a spice grinder or small food processor blend this until mixed and powdery.
3 TB nutritional yeast flakes (nooch!)
3 TB ground almonds
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp garlic powder

Meanwhile:
Cook your buckwheat according to package directions. Mine says:
1. Rinse in a sieve
2. Add 100 grams buckwheat to 200ml cold water and bring to the boil.
3. Reduce heat and simmer for 6 minutes then remove from heat and let stand until all water is absorbed.

Add to the buckwheat:
1/4 cup Parmesan
2 TB lemon juice

When the roasting is almost done:
In your largest pot:
Cook 100 grams of kale (4-5 handfuls) in a splash of water until bright green and reduced. Mix in your lemon-Parmesan buckwheat and your roasted vegetables.

We like to top with extra Parmesan. This dish is a great combination of sweet, salty, earthy and yum.