While living in Italy, I discovered “caffè d’orzo”, a barley-based coffee substitute that is by default caffeine-free.  It’s a very common drink there, but virtually unheard of in the U.S.  After doing some research, I found that it does exist here under the name “grain coffee”.  While it’s more difficult to find here than in Europe, there are a handful of brands available in health food stores and on the Internet.

Grain coffee is almost always barley based and sometimes has rye and chicory added for flavor as well.  I get the kind that dissolves when stirred into water, but some are meant to be brewed in a coffee pot, just like regular coffee grounds.  Not only does it have a similar taste and aroma as coffee, but grain coffee has a maltiness that reminds me of mocha- the combination of coffee and chocolate.  Try mixing it with warm almond milk on winter nights as a “grown-up” alternative to hot chocolate!

In the summer, I like to make this raw porridge as a cooling alternative to traditional oatmeal (perfect for an AC-free New York City apartment!).  If you don’t have grain coffee, the base of oat bran, flaxseed and nut milk can be the starting point for limitless other variations (mango-brazil nut, berry-almond, apple-walnut-cinnamon…)!

“Mocha” Oat Bran Pudding:

Serves 1

Ingredients:

1/4 cup oat bran

1 tablespoon freshly ground flaxseed

1 cup nut milk of choice, preferably homemade

1/3 banana, thinly sliced

a few raisins

pinch salt

2 teaspoons grain coffee powder (water soluble kind)

1 teaspoon honey

1/8 teaspoon vanilla extract

walnuts, for topping

What to do:

Mix all of the ingredients (except for walnuts) in a mug or small bowl, cover and let sit 4 hours or overnight in the refrigerator.

Remove from fridge a few minutes before eating so it’s not ice cold and top with crushed walnuts.

Budino di Crusca d’Avena al Caffè d’Orzo:

1 porzione

Ingredienti:

4 cucchiai di crusca d’avena

1 cucchiaio di semi di lino, macinati

ml latte di mandorle, preferibilmente fresco

1/3 di banana, tagliata a fette sottili

un pò d’uvetta

pizzico di sale

2 cucchiaini di caffe d’orzo in polvere (quello solubile nell’acqua)

1 cucchiaino di miele

piccolo goccio d’estratto di vaniglia

delle noci, per servire

Cosa fare:

Mischiate tutti gli ingredienti (tranne le noci) in una tazza o in un scodella piccola, coprite e lasciate in frigo per almeno quattro ore.

Tirate dal frigo qualche minuto prima di mangiare, così non è freddissimo, e sbriciolate le noci sopra.