The lighter side of whole grains - includes recipes and a guide to different types of grains and flour - Cover Story

Vegetarian Times, March, 1996 by Nancy Ross Ryan

Drop dough by heaping tablespoons at least 1 inch apart onto lightly oiled baking sheet. Bake until biscuits are golden brown on top, 10 to 12 minutes. Remove to napkin-lined basket. Serve hot. Makes 12 to 15 large biscuits.

HELPFUL HINT: TO measure flour accurately, sift more flour than you need onto a large sheet of waxed paper. Spoon lightly into a 1-cup measure that can be leveled with a flat-edged knife or spatula. Gather up opposite edges of waxed paper and pour excess flour back into bag. PER SERVING: 130 CAL.; 3G PROT.; 6G FAT; 15G CARB.; 1MG CHOL.; 222MG SOD.; 1G FIBER. LACTO/VEGAN

Half Wheat Biscuits

Whole wheat flour is more dense than white flour, so this recipe uses not only baking powder for leavening, but a little quick-rising yeast to give the biscuits a boost. se sure your biscuit cutter is sharp, and cut straight down for a sharp edge; don't twist. If the biscuit edges are compressed by twisting the cutter, the biscuits won't rise as high.

1 cup sifted whole wheat flour or white wheat flour (see glossary) 1 cup sifted unbleached white flour 1 Tbs. baking powder 1 tsp. salt 3/4 cup warm (120 degrees) reconstituted powdered nonfat milk or reconstituted powdered soymilk (see glossary) 1 tsp. rapid-rising active dry yeast (see glossary) 1/3 cup canola oil 1 Tbs. honey

PREHEAT OVEN to 400 degrees. Combine flours, baking powder and salt in sifter or wire-meshed sieve. Sift together into large bowl.

In smaller bowl, add milk or soymilk. Sprinkle yeast over surface. Whisk to mix and dissolve. Dip tablespoon into oil. Measure honey into tablespoon. Add to yeast milk mixture along with oil. Whisk to mix and dissolve honey.

Add to flour mixture. Stir with fork or fold with rubber spatula until just mixed and dough holds together (do not mix). Turn out onto lightly floured board. Roll out 1/2-inch thick. Cut biscuits straight down with 2-inch cutter. Gather up dough scraps, reroll and cut, handling dough as little and lightly as possible. Bake 1 inch apart on ungreased baking sheet until biscuits have risen and are golden brown on top, 10 to 12 minutes. Serve hot with orange marmalade if desired. Makes about 15 biscuits. PER SERVING: 110 CAL.; 2G PROT.: 5G FAT; 14G CARB.; 1MG CHOL.; 247MG SOD.; 1G FIBER. LACTO/VEGAN (HONEY)

Buckwheat Griddlecakes

Ground buckwheat seeds produce a silky, fine-textured meal that results in a dark pancake with a distinctive nutty flavor.

1/2 cup buckwheat flour, leveled but not sifted 1/2 cup unbleached all-purpose flour, leveled but not sifted 2 tsp. baking powder 1/2 tsp. salt 2 Tbs. lightly packed brown sugar 1 egg or 2 egg whites, lightly beaten 2 Tbs. canola oil 1 1/4 cups reconstituted powdered nonfat milk or reconstituted powdered soymilk (see glossary)

IN SIFTER or wire-meshed sieve, combine buckwheat and white flours, baking powder, salt and brown sugar. Sift into bowl, pressing any lumps of brown sugar through sifter at end. In separate bowl, combine beaten egg or egg whites, oil and milk or soymilk. Add to flour mixture, stirring just to mix with fork or rubber spatula (do not overmix).