Millet Pilaf with Tahini-Herb Sauce

This week’s recipe features a dish made with millet, a grain I’m very fond of, but rarely think to make. It’s a good winter grain, as it feels substantial and warming. Here’s a tasty recipe from 500 Vegan Dishes (see the review here). I enjoyed it and hope you will, too. And now, here’s what the author of this recipe has to say:

Nutritionally, millet resembles wheat, providing niacin, vitamin B6, and folic acid along with some calcium, iron, potassium, magnesium, and zinc. If you want fluffy, grainy millet, as for this dish, it is essential to leave it alone while cooking. If you want a soft textured millet, however, keep stirring until it is cooked. Contributed by Debroah Gray from 500 Vegan Dishes (Sellers Publishing, 2011).

Serves: 4

• 4 tablespoons olive oil
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 3/4 cup millet
• 2 medium onions, thinly sliced
• 4 small zucchinis (or 2 medium), thinly sliced
• 2 green bell peppers, seeded and thinly sliced
• 1/2 cup toasted pumpkin seeds
• 3 tablespoon chopped fresh mint
• Zest and juice of 1 lemon
• Sea salt and black pepper to taste

For the Tahini-Herb sauce:

• 1/2 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• Juice of 2 lemons
• 1/4 cup water
• 1/4 cup tahini
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• Agave nectar, to taste
• Sea salt and black pepper to taste

Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a pan, add the garlic and millet, and stir to coat all the grains in oil. Cover with plenty of boiling water and simmer for 20 minutes; drain.

Meanwhile, heat the remaining oil in a separate pan, and add the onions, zucchini, and bell peppers. Cover and cook over a low heat so the vegetables sweat in their own juices until just soft, stirring occasionally.

Make the tahini-herb sauce by combining the ingredients by hand or in a food processor. Adjust the seasoning and sweetness to taste. Set aside. When the millet is cooked, stir in the cooked vegetables, pumpkin seeds, mint, and lemon zest and juice. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Heat through, then serve with the tahini- herb sauce.

• Here are more healthy whole grain recipes.