Hello all and happy Tuesday! I’m feeling slightly head-cold-y and miserable today, but rather than wallow in the ickiness I figured why not make others happy by hosting a little giveaway?

I was so stoked to score a few free packages of Freekeh Foods a few weeks ago – it’s a roasted grain that’s similar to quinoa, but lower in calories and higher in protein than brown rice, and it can be used in a variety of different dishes, too. Since I’m already fully on the quinoa bandwagon, I couldn’t wait to try it out in some different ways!

I started with the Rosemary Sage flavored freekeh and from the moment it started boiling, my mouth was watering. The scent was so delicious, it took over the whole kitchen. At one point I was a little worried – we had planned to serve it with marinated lemon pepper chicken, and I didn’t want the flavors to compete. But once it was ready (it took just about as long to cook as quinoa), I was relieved that the mild flavor was the perfect compliment. While it smelled heavenly, the spices and seasonings were really just a fragrant addition so the grain itself had just a hint of flavor. We added a pinch of sea salt and blew through two servings that night and two the next day during lunch (with the leftover chicken).

Confession time: we ate the first batch I cooked so quickly that I forgot to take any pictures. Occasionally my husband and I turn into hungry, hungry hippos, what can I say? This pic above is from our second batch – I added some freekeh to my spring mix salad yesterday, but what you can’t see are the black beans and other yummy goodies underneath that mountain of deliciousness! It was just the right addition to give my salad a little protein boost. I’ve got another batch on deck for lunch today and can’t wait to see what’s on the menu in our office cafeteria. The great thing about this stuff is the mild flavor – it goes with almost anything.

Tomorrow I’ve got some big plans to cook up the last of my regular flavored freekeh to try out the absolutely delicious-sounding Warm Breakfast Freekeh. I’ve turned quinoa into a breakfast dish before by adding vanilla almond milk and cinnamon and raisins, and I can’t wait to do the same with this stuff!

And as if that’s not enough, they want me to spread the Freekeh Love by giving away a package for free to one of you beautiful people! Enter the giveaway here – it runs through 12AM on 8/19 – and get ready to fall in love!