Buckwheat

Recently, MDS and I went to a local Ukrainian restaurant, Shokolad, located conveniently in Chicago's Ukrainian Village neighborhood. The food was awesome--we loved everything that we had, including a Drunken Cherry Cake that I may try to make some time. But one item that struck me was the option to have Buckwheat as a side dish. Because I don't recall every having tried buckwheat before, I knew I had to try it. And, I loved it. It was simply prepared with just a bit of butter and salt and pepper.

After a bit of research, I learned that buckwheat is fairly common in Eastern European cuisine. It is often used in Kasha, which I have had, so it turns out that I probably have had buckwheat before. But, the recipe below is just for plain buckwheat. It is a delicious and easy side dish. Or, it can be used in place of a grain, rice or pasta in many other dishes, which I did with part of this batch. Buckwheat also could be used as a breakfast cereal, instead of oatmeal or grits. In other words, it is very versatile. And because it is so easy to make, I plan to work it into many future meals. One note, I was able to find buckwheat at Mariano's near the rice and grains. It may not be commonly available, but it is worth seeking it out.

Buckwheat 

• 1 cup buckwheat
• 2 cups water
• 1-2 Tbsp. butter
• salt and pepper, to taste

Place the buckwheat and water in a pan. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover and cook for 10 minutes. Remove from heat, add butter, salt and pepper. Enjoy!