Whole Wheat Berries

A couple of nights ago, we had a 'food storage only' dinner. I made dinner from our food storage, which consisted (gas-x) of shepherd's pie (okay, I cheated and used grated cheese, which is not a food storage item:) and bottled peaches. For the shephed's pie, I used whole wheat berries instead of ground beef. For those of you (gas-x) who didn't know (like me prior to very recently), you can substitute meat with cracked wheat, commonly referred to as 'whole wheat berries'. ??? It turned out okay; not as tasty (gas-x) as meat, but it was actually decent. I woke up the next morning and was a bit upset to see the casserole still sitting out on the stove top. I had made a double batch to eat again the next night, but it was still so hot that I wanted (gas-x) it to cool before I put it in the fridge. When I asked JP why he didn't put it away, as he got drinks for the kids right before bed and would have seen it there. In frustration (gas-x), I complained that it had gone to waste. His reply: "What a tragedy." Hmmm. He was a good sport and ate it, but I put him in charge of dinner the following night. (gas-x). The kids ate it all up -- their little taste buds were none the wiser! I am betting it will be tastier with (gas-x) tacos or spaghetti, where there is more spices and sauce, so I will be continuing to experiment. So if you are looking for a fiber-rich, economical (gas-x)way to rotate your whole wheat, this is it! Anyway, here is the recipe:

Whole Wheat Berries
In a crock pot, pour 9 to 10 cups of water and add 4 cups of wheat and 1 Tbs. salt. Let soak about 8 hours on low. No need to rinse or drain, as the moisture holds a lot of nutritional value as well. Substitute for ground beef, or eat warm with syrup and milk for breakfast. It freezes well. Makes about 12 cups. (Check out http://www.idareyoutoeatit.com/ for more great practical food storage advice...thanks Leisa!)