My brother has become quite the little eater.
Recall, this is the boy who used to reject tacos if they had lettuce on them. He couldn’t just pick the lettuce off and continue on. No, the tacos were tainted and he needed fresh, unadulterated tacos. I’m sooooo not kidding.
Since I went away to college and have never really been back to Chicago permanently, I’m now out of touch with my brother’s eating habits. It seems like at every holiday, I’m pleasantly surprised to see…color and..variety on his plate. He is blossoming in his palate, even without my direct influence. Or constant poking fun at his picky eating….
But I can’t poke fun any longer.
If you open up my brother’s text thread in my cell phone, it’s mostly picture texts. Of food. Healthy food…that he has cooked. He or his girlfriend, I should say.
It all started with his perfected omelet-making skills.He’s very proud of the fact that he makes some pretty sweet omelets. I’ll admit, I’m impressed. Especially if there’s, say, vegetables inside of them. They’re very restaurant quality-looking. The perfect fold-over, the right size. They look great.
Hey Rob…you know where my kitchen is. How about breakfast in bed for your big sissy sometime? Hinthintnudgenudge.
Most recently, he texted me salmon. On a plate. With sides. Like, dinner. A balanced, healthy dinner.
He’s like…an adult. Who cooks. I’m so proud…but deep down, questioning where my baby brother and all his idiosyncrasies worthy of an eye roll faded away to?
It makes me feel so out of touch. It makes me wish he lived closer (even though it’s only a 90 minute ride to one another). It makes me hopeful that someday, maybe he’ll make wheat berries. Or welcome a meal of wheat berries. Because my husband, well, he would have a complete diatribe about how this soooo isn’t a meal. And then he’d probably eat a few bites before throwing a frozen pizza in the oven. For this precise reason, I enjoyed this dish while he was out of town last week…and I loved it.
…I wonder if my brother would love it, too.
- 1 cup uncooked wheat berries
- 2 medium apples, cored and thinly sliced
- ¼ red onion, thinly sliced
- ½ cup walnuts, toasted and roughly chopped
- 8 oz smoked salmon, cut into 1-inch pieces
- 2 medium celery stalks, thinly sliced
- 2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 tsp grated lemon rind
- 2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
- 1 Tbsp Dijon mustard
- ½ tsp kosher salt
- ½ tsp ground black pepper
- Place wheat berries in a medium bowl; cover with several inches of water and let sit 8 hours or overnight.
- Drain soaked wheat berries and place in a saucepan covered with 2-3 inches of water; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and cook, uncovered, 1 hour or until tender. Drain and rinse with cold running water to bring to room temperature; transfer to a large bowl.
- To the wheat berries, add the apple, and next 4 ingredients (through celery).
- In a small bowl, combine oil and remaining ingredients in a small bowl, whisking well to combine. Drizzle dressing over wheat berry mixture; toss to coat.
Weekly Menu: September 22nd – 26th
- Sunday: cookbook recipe
- Monday: Pumpkin Alfredo
- Tuesday: Enchilada Quinoa Bake
- Wednesday: Mr. Prevention’s Birthday – out for dinner
- Thursday: Crunchy Veggie Wraps (suggested by my sister-in-law, Michelle!)
Anxious for a semi-relaxing day…I need it! Two 6-day work weeks back-to-back…I’m pooped!
Be well,
Sometimes I wonder how my brother, sister and I all grew up in the same house. My brother could eat a peanut butter and jelly sandwich for dinner every night and never get sick of it. I am always trying new things! But, sadly, me no likely salmon – so that will just leave more for you! ๐
ooooo….wheat berry salad. I am IN LOVE with the new salad with wheat berries at Panera! It’s so flipping good…and this one looks equally as delicious.
You’ve clearly been a great influence on your brother! We had this last night for dinner and I thought it was tasty too. I had to bump up the dressing a bit and used fig balsamic in place of the lemon juice/zest. Yum!
This is so getting made this weekend!
But I went to our local rice/grain source and asked for wheat berries. “Hard or soft?” he asked. Any idea? I’m assuming hard since your recipe says to soak them.
This is now officially my FAVOURITE packed lunch meal!