Some mornings, the world just doesn’t want to work with you.  Early last month, I had one of those mornings.  I set my alarm to go off a little earlier than normal because I wanted to catch the early train to work.  Somehow, I set my alarm for PM instead of AM, and not only did I wake up later than I wanted, I woke up right before my “normal” alarm would’ve gone off.  Rushing to get ready, I was in such a flutter that I broke the backing off a favorite pair of earrings and spilled a third of my coffee on the kitchen counter.  With the minutes to make the early train trickling away, I miraculously refrained from speeding down the highway, marveling at the surprising lack of rush hour traffic.  Maybe my morning is looking up, I thought while sitting at a red light just a few blocks away from the train station.  Maybe I’ll have a good day after all.

WHAM!  

In a split-second, I was thrown forward as the car behind me slammed into my car’s rear bumper.  I’d been sipping my precious coffee at that very moment, toasting to a good day in my head, so not only did I hit my chin on the edge of my travel mug, both mug and chin smashed into the steering wheel.  Ouchies.  Thankfully no one was seriously injured, but the impact left my neck and upper back feeling a little funny.  After speaking with the officers who arrived at the scene and formalities of exchanging insurance information, I decided that I would go to my doctor’s urgent care clinic (a suburbanite’s version of the emergency room) and get checked out.  As my mom would say, “just in case.”  To add aggravation to injury, the accident had somehow damaged both rear lights on my poor little car, which is both unsafe and unwise for a vehicle that makes daily jaunts on a fairly major highway.  My mental To Do list for the morning suddenly tripled in size as I added “visit mechanic” after “get X-rays” and crossed off “think happy thoughts”.

Nearly five hours later, I found myself the not-so-proud owner of a neck brace (as the doctor said, “just in case”), two new taillights, and a very empty stomach.  I usually drink my coffee on my morning commute, and we all know I hold off on breakfast until I’m actually in the office.  Both of those important activities keep me going through the morning, so being both under-caffeinated and hungry to the point of shaky was not fun for yours truly.

Thankfully, I knew the perfect whole grain recipe to whip up in a flash to satisfy my tummy’s demands.  From time to time at the WGC, our culinary or media friends send us delicious new whole grain recipes to check out.  Sometimes these recipes are used in articles online or in magazines, and sometimes we share them on the recipe section of our web site.  The recipe that came to my rescue just so happens to be appearing in the November issue of Oxygen magazine.  Although you’ll be able to find the issue on newsstands shortly (October 20 to be exact), I knew I had to share it with all of you the moment I made it.

And why is that?  Because it’s awesome!  You can see the results in the photo above – looks yummy, doesn’t it?  And oh, it was…  This recipe is highly versatile, it’s packed with healthy ingredients, and it delivers over one full serving (16g) of whole grains in a single serving.  I happened to be out of milk at the time, so I used a little less than ½ cup of water and added the honey, cinnamon, and nutmeg in the beginning to help the flavors develop.  Instead of fresh blueberries, which I also happened to be out of, I used frozen blueberries and just added them to the saucepan with about 5 minutes left on the timer. This is the kind of recipe that you can make at any point of the day, any time of year, and it will satisfy your cravings for hearty and healthy fare.  If I could whip this together without all the “right” ingredients, after the morning I had, so can you.  After all, you never know when whole grains might come to your rescue!  (Kara)

Be sure to join me next month for more Me & My Whole Grains, a series of monthly blogs that share the changes I’ve seen in my life directly related to whole grains. 

Apple-Cinnamon Bulgur, courtesy of Oxygen Magazine
Ready in 30 minutes — Makes 2 servings

Ingredients:
¼ cup bulgur
½ cup low-fat milk
½ cup unsweetened applesauce
1 tbsp honey
½ tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp nutmeg
½ cup fresh blueberries
2 tbsp sliced almonds

Directions: 

• In a small saucepan, combine bulgur and milk and bring to a boil over medium heat. Cover pan tightly and set aside for 25 minutes.
• Uncover pan and stir in applesauce, honey, cinnamon and nutmeg. Divide into two portions and top each with half the blueberries and almonds and serve immediately.

Nutrients per serving: Calories: 243, Total Fat: 8 g, Saturated Fat: 1 g, Trans Fat: 0 g, Cholesterol: 1 mg, Sodium: 37 mg, Total Carbs: 41 g, Fiber: 7 g, Sugar: 22 g, Protein: 8 g, Iron: 1.3 g.