Adapted from the book Plant-Powered for Life: Eat Your way to Lasting Health by Sharon Palmer, RDN.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup uncooked buckwheat
• 2 cups water
• 4 medium garlic cloves
• 4 cups chopped fresh parsley, loosely packed
• ½ cup mint leaves
• 1 bunch green onions, white and green parts, thinly sliced
• ½ English cucumber, with peel, thinly sliced
• 2 stalks of celery, thinly sliced
• 1 diced apple, skin on
• 1 ½ Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
• Juice of 2 lemons
• 1 ½ – 2 tsp. Immunity Spice Mixture, recipe follows
• Salt and Pepper to taste
• ¼ cup raw sunflower seeds (optional)
• ½ cup pomegranate seeds (optional)

Instructions:

Make Immunity Spice Mixture: (makes @ 10 tsp.) Stir the following spices together in a small bowl. Place in a spice jar.

• 3 tsp. Turmeric, 1 ½ tsp. each cumin and coriander,
• 3 tsp. ground fennel (grind seeds in spice grinder)
• ½ tsp. dry ginger
• 1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
• ¼ tsp. powdered cinnamon
• In a pot, combine buckwheat and the water. Cover and bring to a boil over medium high heat. Stir. Lower heat to simmer for 10 minutes, then turn off heat, for 5 minutes more. Drain liquid. Transfer to a large salad bowl to cool or refrigerate.
• Place garlic, parsley, and mint in a food processor. Pulse until only finely chopped.
• Pour onto cooled buckwheat.
• Add green onions, celery, cucumber and apple. Mix well.
• Place 1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil in small sauce pan, add 1 ½ -2 tsps Spice Mix. Stir over med-low heat until the spice become fragrant. You’ll be adding this spice mix to the next step.
• Whisk together in a small bowl the olive oil, lemon juice, Immunity Spice Mix, Salt and Pepper to taste. Add to the buckwheat mixture to taste. Serve at room temperature.

* Steps 1 and 2 may be done the day before.

Note: If you are eating a low glycemic alkaline diet to reverse disease or cancer, you’ll want to omit the apple.