Adva, the pastry chef at the Doolin Market, made beautiful little cracker cups for me to fill with my vegetarian salads. She made them with semolina flour, ground almonds and poppy, flax and sesame seeds. Not only are they delicious but they are perfect starter for a dinner party, filled with anything you like. I filled the sample with spelt berry salad, garnished with a slice of cucumber, cherry tomato and a sprig of mint. They created a lot of enthusiasm and I sold out! Spelt is a versatile grain that has gluten but that some of you with wheat sensitivities can tolerate. Here’s a variation on the recipe for the Rainbow spelt salad from Coming Home To Cook.
Soak 1 cup of spelt berries (grain) in enough water to cover it, for 1 hour. Add more water and sea salt and cook until tender but still chewy, about 45 minutes. Drain and cool. Add 1/2 cup chopped apricots, 1 diced, peeled apple, 1/2 cup raisins, 1 diced raw carrot, 1 diced celery stalk, 1 Tbl. chopped parsley, 1 Tbl. chopped mint, 1 Tbl. chopped scallions and salt and pepper to taste. Blend 1/4 cup olive oil with 1 Tbl. red wine vinegar and 1 Tbl. honey. Mix all together and enjoy! But, you’ll have to come to the Doolin Market for the cracker cups!