By Amy Schwemm of Mano y Metate (www.manoymetate.com)
Desert Harvesters, Nov 2007

1 c stone-ground local Durham wheat-berries (or whole wheat pastry flour)
¾ c Velvet mesquite meal
3 ½ tsp baking powder (* see note below)
¼ tsp salt

Mix dry ingredients. This recipe can be multiplied and stored in an airtight container in a cool, dry place.

For roughly 2 cups of dry mix use:
1 egg
2 Tbsp oil
1c milk
1c water (or more milk)

Whisk together the egg, oil, and milk. Mix in dry ingredients. Add water to desired consistency. Ladle ¼ c onto a lightly oiled griddle on medium-low heat. Watch the bottom of the pancake for the desired brown color. Flip and cook through. Serve with prickly pear syrup, agave nectar, or mesquite honey.

* Baking Powder: This recipe calls for fresh, non-aluminum baking powder (single-acting??) from the Food Conspiracy Co-op bulk jar. When replaced with conventional, double-acting (even non-aluminum) baking powder from the grocery store, use less. We will investigate further and report the results.

By Chris Schmidt of the Tucsonavores
(http://tucsonivores.wordpress.com)

1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1/4 cup mesquite flour
1/4 cup carob flour
1/4 cup popped amaranth
8 dried and crushed chiltepines
1 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon olive oil
1 cup water

I first mix the dry ingredients (wheat flour, mesquite flour, carob flour, amaranth, salt, and chiltepines) in a bowl, then add the olive oil and mix well with a fork. I gradually mix in the water, then knead the dough for about three minutes. I let the dough sit for an hour, covered, in the bowl. I next divide the dough into eight separate balls, and let these sit for another half hour, covered, in the bowl. I then heat a metal comal over our gas stove on medium heat, and roll a dough ball out onto a floured cutting board until the dough is about an eighth of an inch thick. Finally, I place the tortilla on the hot comal, let it cook for about 20 seconds, flip it and cook it for 20 more seconds, flip it again and cook it on the original side for 15 more seconds, and then flip it one more time and cook it for 15 more seconds. I repeat this for the other seven balls. It’s a bit tedious to have to flip it so many times, but it’s the only way I’ve found to prevent the mesquite/carob flour from burning. I’d like to find a more efficient (energy- and time-wise) technique, but for now this is what I do.

A couple of variations on the recipe are to omit the amaranth (leaving the rest of the recipe the same; the amaranth improves the nutritional value and taste of the tortillas, and gives the dough a smoother texture, but it seems to make the tortillas more friable if they’re not eaten right away), and to use milk instead of water (which gives them a slightly richer flavor).

Enjoy! If you come up with any improvements to the recipe I’d love to hear them.

By Garth and Suzanne

Set out butter to soften. Blend dry mix. Mix sugar and vanilla in with butter in another container. Combine the two mixes. Then add water. Add remaining 1/2+ cup of oats to reach desired consistency to roll out cookies. If you like, add chocolate chips and/or walnuts. Bake them in a hot solar oven till done. Depending on the size of the cookies and temperature of oven, takes approximately 20 minutes to an hour or more.

1/3 cup butter
1/4 cup Sucanat
1 teaspoon of vanilla

Dry mix
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 cup mesquite flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
pinch of salt
1 cup of oats

1/2 cup of water

More oats–1/2+ cup

By Garth Mackzum

Dry mix, ~ 2 1/4 cups ground (If you don’t have a grain grinder, you can use a multigrain flour):
1/4 cup lentils or other legume
1/3 cup oat groats
1/3 cup brown rice
2 Tbsp millet
2 Tbsp amaranth
1/3 cup soft wheat berry

In a bowl, mix above with:
1/2 cup mesquite flour
1/4 cup cornmeal
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/8 tsp salt

Mix all dry ingredients together well before adding wet mixture

Wet mix:
blend together the following:
3 small-medium sized apples (2 if large). The apples you use really affect the flavor of the pancakes, so have fun experimenting
1 1/2 cups milk

Then, beat 3 eggs.
Then combine eggs with the milk and apple.

Saturday, November 15, 2008
Breakfast: 9:00 to 10:00 AM
Milling: 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM (If we can finish by then.)
Milling is free for non-commercial home use, though donations are gratefully accepted. The day will start with a free mesquite pancake/waffle breakfast.
This event is hosted by the Cascabel Hermitage Association Education Program. For more information contact David and Pearl at david@omick.com or 520-212-4628.

Directions to Cascabel Community Center:
Take I-10 Exit 306 just east of Benson and go north on Pomerene Road. Turn right at stop sign in Pomerene and proceed north on Cascabel Road to mile marker 23. About halfway between mile markers 23 and 24, look on right side for the green and white county address sign #5871 and a “Mesquite Milling” sign. Proceed up the lane to the community center.

Dunbar/Spring Organic Community Garden, Tucson, AZ
Saturday, November 8, 2008
9am – 2pm
The mesquite pancake breakfast is from 9am to noon.
The mesquite milling is from 8am to 2pm.

At the Dunbar/Spring breakfast we proudly serve mesquite/whole-wheat pancakes made with all organic, local ingredients. The mesquite flour is made from native Velvet mesquite pods hand picked by Desert Harvesters around Tucson – with most of the pods picked from trees planted within the Dunbar/Spring neighborhood. The organic wheat is from Crooked Sky Farm in Glendale, AZ, and is ground just a week before the event. The pancakes are served with prickly-pear syrup, mesquite syrup, organic back yard honey, agave nectar, and sometimes (if we are really lucky) saguaro syrup. There are also a variety of locally-made teas and organic coffee for people to try. The price of the pancake breakfast is $1 per pancake, and you get a raffle ticket with each pancake purchased. Local foods, crafts, teas, and gift certificates are raffled off throughout the event.

There’s also great live music, and a playground for all to play in. If it rains, we move the event just north of the garden to the Dunbar Auditorium.

In addition, local organic and wild foods are for sale. These can include local mesquite flour; prickly pear syrup, jam, and juice; mesquite pancake mix; baked goods; chiltepines; cholla buds; olive oil; cured olives; fresh mole mixes, and more. You’ll also find native herbal medicines and teas, organic Desert Harvesters T-shirts, and rainwater harvesting books for sale. And we try to feature educational sampling booths on other local/native foods such as acorn flour and baked goods.

People can bring the pods that they have harvested (up to 15 gallons) and grind them into flour for an additional donation. This year we will have two hammermills in operation to speed up the milling. The minimum milling fee is $3 for any amount under 3 gallons of whole pods. If you have more than 3 gallons of pods to grind, you pay $1 per gallon of whole pods. The idea is to encourage folks to bring at least 3 to 5 gallons of whole pods (5 gallons of whole pods will provide you with about 1 gallon of fine, edible flour in about 5 minutes of milling). Click here for more on how we run our millings.

The event is hosted by, and is a fundraiser for, Desert Harvesters.

Directions to Dunbar-Spring Community Garden:
The garden is located at the corner of 11th Avenue and University Blvd. The nearest major intersection is Speedway & Stone. From Speedway & Stone: Go south on Speedway 3 blocks, and turn right on University Blvd. Go 3 more blocks to 11th Ave. The garden is at the northwest corner of University and 11th.

Saturday, October 18, 2008
8am to 1pm
Bisbee Farmers’ Market at Vista Park in Warren Section of Bisbee (From the traffic circle take Bisbee Road to end where it curves around to the southern end of Vista Park opposite the ball park)
Bisbee, Arizona
Contact: Valerie McCaffrey – (520) 378-2973 or vallimac@cox.ne

Try some delicious mesquite pancakes with prickly pear syrup at the 3^rd Annual Mesquite Milling & Pancake Breakfast. Mesquite is an ancient nutritious “slow food” that not only slows down digestion so is beneficial for preventing diabetes and obesity but also is high in protein, fiber and minerals.  This powerhouse of a food that is now being rediscovered and adapted to modern cuisine can be raised without extra water or fertilizer as it is a nitrogen-fixing legume.  Breakfast is free (although donations will be gratefully accepted) and will include un-pasteurized apple cider from Stout’s Cider Mill in Willcox, Arizona Cactus Ranch’s prickly pear syrup sweetened with agave nectar and/or mesquite honey from Simmons Honey Ranchito.

Bring clean, dry mesquite pods for milling by Desert Harvesters’ hammer mill (www.desertharvesters.org) into a year’s supply of mesquite flour for your family.  $3 donation requested to help pay for rented hammer mill.  Take home some mesquite baked goodies such as Mesquite Brownies, Mesquite Almond Cookies and Mesquite Banana or Pumpkin breads. This event is put on by Baja Arizona Sustainable Agriculture, www.bajaaz.org. The farmers market will offer Mexican food for breakfast and lunch, red chile ristras and pumpkins as well as lots of other seasonal produce, heart-healthy meats and eggs, native plants and a wide selection of handmade arts and crafts.  Popular husband and wife twosome, Derek & Amy Ross (Whiskey Girl & Nowhere Man) will entertain with her lovely voice and keyboarding. For more information contact Valerie McCaffrey at 520.378.2973 or valerie.mccaffrey@bajaaz.org.