Thursday’s Recipe ….. Sprouting
Often times my kitchen looks like a laboratory with various nuts and or seeds soaking or sprouting on the counter tops.
Where to start—
So why sprout? Sprouts are full of nutrition–They are alive, vitamin and mineral content doubles or triple!! Sprouting pre-digests the nut or seed and activates living enzymes which also assist in digestion.
What to sprout? Almost anything! Use untreated, unbroken nuts, grain or seed–not seeds treated for planting purposes. Anything out of the bulk bins will probably sprout.
What equipment do you need? Any container that provides drainage. You can buy nut and seed mesh bags for sprouting or use mason jars with old tights or nylons on the top secured with a rubber band for draining or you can buy a jar with a screen lid or for larger beans/grains I have used a bowl strainer/colander combination.
How do I sprout? Choose something simple to start off with- Easy beans–mung beans, garbanzo, lentil, kidney, aduki Easy seeds—alfalfa, clover, radish, mustard, feugreek Easy grains—-whole barley, wheat berries, kamut berries, rye, quinioa Best nuts—almonds, sunflowers, filberts
For 1 qt finished sprouts measure out: small seeds 2-3 rounded Tablespoons — Medium Seeds 1/4-1/2 cup —-Larrger beans and grains 1 cup —sunflower seeds 2 cups
Pour into jar or strainer, fill with good water, let soak over night Drain using a screen, nylon or strainer of some sort. Rinse and drain again. Continue rinsing 2 to 3 times per day for 4 to 7 days depending on the temperature-until desired sprout length. Keep in a darker spot for days 1 through 3 And for the last 2 to 3 days place in a sunny spot to activate their green chlorophyll. Drain and keep in the fridge for about 7 days.
Once you get started it’s super easy to sprout! You can eat them raw in salads or on sandwiches (PB&J w/ alfalfa sprouts is a favorite of mine!!) You can add them to soups or puree to make pate or hummus. You can go on to cook sprouted beans and sprouted grains can be dried and ground into flour. I have a recipe for the mung bean sprouts in the first photo that I will be making tonight! I love to use sprouted quinoa to make tabouli. Happy Sprouting!
******Fermented Foods update from last week*********
I just tasted them again today and the carrots definitely have a bit of a zing to them but still not enough-I will taste again in a couple of days. The cabbage is now a beautiful purple color but not too tangy yet. The temperature hasn’t been too warm so I think that might keep things from moving along and fermenting. If I had to eat them now they would be tasty but I am hoping for a little more “sour” zest to them! I promise to keep you posted.
