#FlavorfulFriday – Freekeh Review & Giveaway!

Happy Friday! I love trying new things and I feel like I know about a lot of different types of healthy foods, but Freekeh is a brand new food item to me.

What is Freekeh? 

Freekeh is a green wheat, which was actually created about 2,000 years ago when a Middle Eastern village was attacked and their crop of young green wheat was set on fire. The villagers rubbed off the chaff, cooked it up and Freekeh was born! Now a days the wheat is harvested while the grains are yellow and the seeds are still soft; it is then piled and sun-dried. The piles are then carefully set on fire so only the straw and caff burn and not the seeds. It is the high moisture content of the seeds that prevents them from burning. The rubbing off of the chaff is what gives Freekeh it’s name, because Freekeh, or farik, means to rub in Arabic. The small seeds look similar to a green bulgur.

What’s so healthy about Freekeh? 

Freekeh has at least four times as much fiber as some other grains and consists mostly of insoluble fiber. It has fewer calories than Quinoa and White Rice. It’s also a low-glycemic food which is great for anyone with metabolic syndrome or diabetes. Freekeh Foods brand Freekeh is Organic and Non-GMO, which is a huge plus in my book! I don’t normally feel good eating wheat but my belly feels perfectly fine with Freekeh and my husband even likes it and doesn’t have trouble digesting it either! The reason for this is that when Freekeh is harvested and processed the gluten is denatured, so yes, it still contains gluten but it has fewer side effects than other wheat products.

Freekeh comes in three varieties: The Classic Original, and two seasoned flavors—a savory blend of organic Rosemary and Sage, and a bold and authentic Tamari, flavored with organic shoyu sauce.

I received two samples to try and review. The Classic Original and the Rosemary & Sage. I haven’t tried the Classic Original yet, but plan on making this yummy warm breakfast cereal with it this weekend.

I have tried the Rosemary Sage a few times already and even went and bought more at the store! So yummy! It has a slightly nutty and chewy texture. Similar to the texture of brown rice.

The first time we tried the Rosemary Sage Freekeh, I used it as a side dish with my balsamic glazed salmon and topped it with some chopped kale and a side of sauteed mushrooms and onions. It was so yummy!

The next time I used the Rosemary Sage Freekeh I used leftover Freekeh by putting it in a pot after I sauteed up some onions with garlic and coconut oil. I kept stirring it to heat it up then added in some frozen veggies and heated all that up with a little more coconut oil. Then I made some yummy almond flour crusted crispy chicken in the oven and added that to the top so we had our very own mock “Chicken Fried Rice” for dinner. This definitely was my favorite way of eating the Freekeh and my husband even said it’s his new favorite meal!

I’m super excited to try the Original as a warm breakfast cereal and will be sharing that next week!

Now, for the fun part! The Freekeh Foods Giveaway!

This giveaway is for one package of Freekeh and you get to choose the flavor you would like (Original, Rosemary & Sage or Tamari)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

What flavor would you choose if you win and which recipe would you try it with?

Good luck!!

XO,

Carrie A Groff
-Healthy, Fit & Barefoot!

“Happiness is Barefoot on the Beach!”