Buckwheat surprises me

I was reading up on buckwheat when getting ready to post the kielbasa recipe and found out some incredible information.

Buckwheat has NO relation to wheat, in spite of the name. That means people with wheat allergies can eat it. It grows in places where nothing else seems to grow and thrives on cooler temperatures. It isn't even a grain, in the botanical sense.

You can read more about this marvelous plant here

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Kielbasa and Apples in the Rice Cooker

This was a German inspired recipe that I made up today. The idea is to slightly sweeten the sauerkraut using the onion and apple. The red cabbage, the onion and buckwheat noodles melt into the sauerkraut so unless you really stare at it, it just looks like white and red sauerkraut.

2 cups sauerkraut, drained well (fresh, frozen, canned)
2 cups shredded red cabbage
1 Vidalia onion (or any sweet onion will do), thinly sliced
1 apple, seeded, skinned, cored and sliced
1 tablespoon hot mustard
1 tablespoon horseradish
1 inch diameter bunch of buckwheat noodles, broken into 1-2 inch pieces.
1 pound ring of kielbasa, cut in 1 inch pieces
1 cup apple flavored beer (I used a Belgian wheat beer with apple, but you could also use apple cider. Apple juice would also work, but be inferior.)
3 cups water

Place all ingredients in rice cooker or slow cooker. Stir to mix. Set at white rice setting and turn on and cook until rice cooker shuts off. If using a slow cooker, cook on high for 3 hours.

Serve with more mustard if desired.

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