Revisiting Childhood...

For anyone who knows me personally, or if you've been reading my blog for a while, then you should have an idea of the wide range of recipes that I post (sometimes being on the odd side). With the exception of cakes, I am always trying to find ways to incorporate whole grains and use less fat, while maintaining a focus on taste and quality foods.* So the following recipe may shock some. Please let me explain...!

First of all, I am an American and I was raised with All-American foods (or "foods"?), and those items are part of our culture whether we like it or not! I want to expose my children to every type of cuisine, and I don't want to exclude them from everything their peers have. I believe in moderation and finding substitutes for the less healthy processed foods, even if it means spending more time making them from scratch.

We rarely have hot dogs. I get absolutely disgusted whenever I pass by a hot dog stand, just thinking about what is lurking underneath that "skin." I buy "hot dogs" every six months or so, just as a treat for my family, if we're going camping or if I want to make wiener wraps in the winter. The difference is how rarely I purchase them, and when I do, I buy very expensive franks, found in the natural foods section at our grocery store. We prefer the buffalo hot dogs, which have very few ingredients, just meat, spices, and salt, and a fraction of the sodium, fat, and calories that Ball Park or the other brand names contain (and no nitrates!). If they're paired with something whole grain and lots of vegetables they actually make a very healthy dinner. Tonight I enclosed my family's wiener wraps with a cheesy biscuit dough made from barley flour, served with organic ketchup, homemade mustard, a mixed green salad, oven fries, and home-canned pears for dessert.

Not-So-Classic Wiener Wraps

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Grease a cookie sheet.

Combine in a large mixing bowl:
1 1/2 cups barley flour (or whole wheat)
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp mustard powder
2 tbsp powdered buttermilk**

Using a box grater, grate 3 tbsp cold butter over the flour. Toss to combine. Grate about 3/4 cup sharp cheddar cheese over the mixture; toss.

Pour 3/4 cup water into the center; stir to combine (it doesn't need to come together entirely yet).

Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead lightly until a smooth dough has formed. Pat into a large circle. Cut the circle in half, then in half again. Continue cutting into 8 triangles.

Open a package of 8 high quality hot dogs, preferably nitrate-free. Place one on the wide end of a triangle of dough; roll up. Place on the cookie sheet and repeat until all eight have been rolled.

Bake 12-16 minutes, or until lightly browned. Cool slightly before serving.

*I have tried recipes for cakes made with whole grains and they have turned out very tasty. They just leave me with a heavy feeling, and I prefer not feeling so...full after a small piece! I ultimately came to the conclusion that we don't eat cake very often (although I do make a lot for other people), and we consume a lot of whole grains all day, every day. So if we're going to have cake then we'll have cake!!

**In place of the buttermilk powder and water, you may use 3/4 cup fresh buttermilk if you have it on hand.