Flax Seed, Schmax Seed

Aaaahh. Flax seed. The word connotes everything that is the opposite of comfort food. Doesn't fill the mouth with sultry smoothness. Doesn't leave hints of sweetness on the back of the tongue. Doesn't soothe the palate with a round, pleasing, fullness like mac-and-cheese or vanilla pudding or chocolate cake or shepherd's pie. No. Flax seed is wooden, and tasteless, and boardy and hard to chew. And I am falling in love with it.

The most unlikely-to-succeed-combination, based on the qualities lacking in flaxseed would be one in which the result does leave hints of sweetness and soothes the palate in a smooth disguise of comfort food. This combination is Hot Pumpkin "Cereal".

Hot Pumpkin Cereal with Ricotta and Flax Seed

1/2 cup ricotta
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup pumpkin puree (from a can is fine)
pinch salt
2 Tbsp flax seed
Few dashes of cinnamon
sweetener to taste (I recommend 2 to 3 drops of orange flavored stevia extract or raw honey)

This hot cereal substitute takes about 5 minutes to make and would be worth taking longer, but it doesn't.
Whisk ricotta and water in a small saucepan til smooth. Whisk in pumpkin. Heat over medium heat til just steaming warm. Stir in pinch of salt, flax seed, cinnamon and whatever sweetener you choose--brown sugar, stevia, maple syrup, honey are all good.
Spoon it into a bowl. Sit down and watch the snow fall while you eat it.


This next recipe for flax seed crackers is all about the flax--woody, stiff, hard to chew, but if you want crackers and can't eat traditional grains or if you are on a low carb regime, the flavor is really good, if you can get past the texture.

Garlic and Parmesan Flax Seed Crackers

1 c. flax seed meal
1/3 c. grated parmesan
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 c. water

Preheat the oven to 400. Mix all the dry ingredients to distribute them evenly. Then add the water to make what looks like dry mud with vegetation in it. Yum. Cut a piece of parchment to fit a flat cookie sheet. Spoon the mixture onto the parchment and cover it with waxed paper. Then roll it out with a rolling pin REALLY thin. Thinner than pie crust, and as even as possible. Score it with a pizza cutter to make a grid, so that after it bakes you can break it into crackers.
Pop it in the oven for 18 to 20 minutes. Let it cool completely and break the crackers apart. If the middle isn't quite crisp, you can pop them back in the oven to warm and dry them at 300 degrees.