I know what you’re sayin’… Amie, what the heck is a teff salad?
Am I right?
Teff is just a simple little gluten-free grain.
Yep, that’s all. Nothin’ fancy to this dish – no crazy bells or whistle attached like a Coach bag, hehe.
But if you’re having a nervous breakdown because your local food store doesn’t have a clue what teff is…
No sweat.
Either find a Whole Foods Market or a health food store – they’ll surely have teff.
But if you’re in a pinch and don’t have time to hop in the car and explore the aisles of the food store for this wild grain – simply take a deep breath.
Ya wanna know why?
Because all you’ve gotta do is substitute it for rice or quinoa and you’re all set.
I’m sure you’ve got some white, brown, wild or black rice in that ol’ pantry of yours.
And I know you’ve got some pretty quinoa in there too, don’t ‘cha?
So, break it out – cook it up and simply toss it together with these other ingredients.
And if you do have teff lying around your pantry – well heck – you just made my day and you’re gunna love the taste of this salad.
Actually you’re gunna love it either way – whether you can find some teff or not.
Simple as that.
Ingredients
- 1 large yellow summer squash cut into 1/2 inch pieces
- 2 cups cooked teff gluten-free grain
- 1 cup steamed spinach
- 2 scallions thinly sliced
- 1/2 medium red onion thinly sliced
- 3 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
- 1 tsp. white balsamic vinegar
- 1 Tbsp. fresh lemon zest
- 2 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tsp. ground chia seeds
- 1 large head Bibb lettuce
- 1/2 tsp. sea salt
- 1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
- Fresh cilantro for garnish, if desired
Instructions
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In a large bowl, combine squash, teff, spinach, scallions and onion.
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In a separate small bowl, whisk lemon juice, balsamic vinegar, lemon zest, olive oil, chia seeds, sea salt and pepper.
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Pour chia seed dressing over squash mixture; gently toss to combine.
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Carefully break apart pieces of Bibb lettuce and place into serving dishes. Portion teff mixture on top. Garnish with fresh cilantro, if desired.
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Enjoy.
Hi there–the salad sure looks refreshing, but… where’s the teff? I see chia seeds and what looks to be farro or spelt. Am I missing something? Thanks! cc
Hi Carolynn, You can use any grain you wish. This is an old recipe but we have used this recipe for wild rice, red rice, black rice, millet, sorghum and teff. Enjoy! xox
Hi Amie, your recipe looks great. What kind (brand) of teff do you use?
Thanks!
Thank you; Shiloh Farms has a great teff product. Enjoy!
Is that a different kind of teff? We have been using teff for years but ours doesn’t look like that. The teff we have always used is barely bigger than a grain of sand…the one in the one in the photo looks much bigger?
Either way, looks delicious! Can’t wait to try it!
Thanks Hillary; so great to hear from you. I’ve heard this from a few people but yes it is teff – it’s nice n’ fluffy, hehe. Have a great weekend and thank you again for your comment!
I consider myself well-versed in the Grains category but I had never heard of Teff! How fun to get to try something new! Thanks for introducing me – this looks fab!
Anytime Amelia; so great to hear from you! I miss you so much and hope all is well. Sending you hugs to the West Coast. xox
I need to experiment more with teff! It would be a great GF grain to become more familiar with. Thanks for posting!
Thanks Alaine; hope you enjoy it. Let me know what you think! Have a great holiday weekend.
Amie, I have just nominated you for the Very Inspiring Blogger Award on my blog, because The Healthy Apple is one of my favorites. If you wish to pick up the award, please come visit my blog.
Thank you so much Frank; you are so thoughtful. Have a wonderful Labor Day and thank you again! Keep up the great blogging.
Hi Amie,
I have a question for you to gather your thoughts on this. My wife struggles with high anxiety and lack of sleep. Her doctor has encouraged her to take an antidepressant and an antianxiety medication for the last year. She has resisted because she is frightful and feels uneasy at the thought of taking those kinds of medications. I believe the ones he prescribed her were mirtazapine and lorazapam, which are potentially effective and less difficult than other medications. However, she still continues to resist and the doctor doesn’t push her, though I think he thinks it will be most calming and effective for her.
I hate to see her like this so I tried to research some natural supplements that might work for her and intimidate/scare her less. I’ve heard very conficitng things about GABA, it seems it may or may not be effective. But I’m not sure about 5-HTP? Any ideas? I think she needs something fairy dependable and certain to work. She’s quite anxious during the day and I notice she worries a lot, easily unfocused or distracted. And some nights she sleeps well, but other nights she is very alert (and subsequently groggy all day due to the loss of sleep).
Any ideas on how she can effectively help herself inexpensively? I understand why she wants to avoid the antidepressants and antianxiety medications, but I wonder if it perhaps she should embrace it? I asked her to ask the doctor about perhaps other non-scary antidepressants or antianxiety that might work but she is very unfamiliar with them and her doctor is admittedly a pill-pusher so she lacks trust.
Can natural supplements have a positive effect?
Warm wishes to you Amie. Glad to see that you are doing well.
Michael,
So nice to hear from you; thank you for your comment. I am not a doctor so I am not able to give you medical advice but I had success working with an Integrative M.D. which helped me heal. I will keep you and your wife in my thoughts and wish you all the best. Happy to help you and hope my recipes make your wife feel good!
Enjoy your holiday weekend.
Thank you Amie. Do you inherently believe that all depression and anxiety can be treated with natural supplementation?
And do you have recommendations for those suffering only with insomnia (unrelated to anything else)?
Michael, your doctor will be able to tell you more about this- for my own health journey, natural supplementation did help me- keep believing and follow your heart!
Amie – this looks amazing – your photography has really gotten great! I am working on mine! 😉 Any tips that helped you? Excited to go hunt for Teff! MY bf is GF 🙂
Awe thank you so much! I just taught myself and kept practicing! Hope you enjoy the Teff ….let me know how your boyfriend likes it! Xcoo
Sounds AMAZING! I’ve always wanted to try teff but am a little nervous about it. But this looks and sounds delish…without the cilantro for me, of course.
Thanks Lisa; hope you enjoy it! Have a wonderful week and enjoy your Labor Day!
I want to dive in the computer and eat that right now.
Your pics are gorgeous! Congrats on the new recipes too! You go girl!!
Thanks darling! I miss you so much and hope you are well. xoxo Love u!!!!!!!!!!!!