adventures in sprouting

sprouting edible seeds seems to be all the rage right now, and rightfully so, as sprouts are plants at their greatest point of vitality and are said to be the most nutrient-rich food on earth!

what's great is sprouting can be done most anywhere, any time of year - with just a jar, some seeds and water.

the bag of fenugreek seed above cost between one and two dollars and will yield a few jars of sprouts. some farmer's markets and health food stores sell seeds for edible sprouts. seeds may also be purchased online. 

the sproutpeople say, "fenugreek has gained popularity in recent years due to research that indicates that it increases the breast size." what?! fenugreek in general is great for breast health - it's been used to increase milk production in nursing mothers for hundreds of years! there are many other therapeutic uses, including those for men, found here.

convenient sprouting kits and lids exist, but this little set-up works fine. a piece of clean nylon pantyhose or cheesecloth would also work - anything that will allow for proper drainage.

after a good rinse in a mesh strainer,

two tablespoons of seed were soaked in filtered water overnight.

another good rinsing and they're placed upside down to drain and sprout out of direct sunlight.

they were rinsed and drained every 8-12 hours.  

day 1 - soaked seeds ready for sprouting

day 2 - little tails or roots have already formed!

day 3 - tails are longer. this is when the sproutpeople would eat them - before the leaves open. i like to let my sprouts "green-up" for more nutrients, so on we sprout...

day 4 - they're ready to go! wow, that was fast!

they received a very thorough rinse and were set out to dry before storage in the fridge.

alone, fenugreek spouts are a bit on the bitter side, but i find them to be really tasty atop salad, soup, raw pizza and wraps.

after venturing into some buckwheat sprouting, apple buckwheat granola and basil pizza crusts were made.

the buckwheat groats were soaked about an hour and sprouted for a day and a half on mesh excalibur dehydrator screens.

some were saved for smoothie toppings...

others were mixed with dried coconut, pecans, almonds, sunflower seeds, hemp seeds, apples, dates and maple syrup for a scrumptious cereal.

before

 after

the cereal/granola was dehydrated at 115° with cheesy kale chips (gone before i could ask "where's my camera?") and sprouted buckwheat pizza crusts.

this recipe plus basil, kale and a few tablespoons of hemp seed.

the green crusts look pretty and taste phenomenal with cashew cheeze and fenugreek sprouts.

sprout-tacular!

=)

happy tuesday!

today marks three wonderful years shared with my butternut.=)

 here we are looking our spiffiest at a friend's wedding in '07

this morning john pointed out that it is also national pancake day. i knew what he was getting at...

instead i brought him a bowl of apple buckwheat granola with almond milk. he said he loved it.=)

apple buckwheat granola

1 chopped apple

4 dates, pitted and soaked

1 T soak water (reserved from dates)

1 T maple syrup

1 T agave nectar

1/4 tsp vanilla

1 C raw buckwheat groats, soaked

1/2 C raw almonds, soaked, then roughly chopped

1/2 C raw sunflower seeds, soaked

1 C shredded coconut

1/2 tsp salt

1/2-1 tsp cinnamon, to taste

handful of raisins

process first 6 ingredients in a high speed blender until a paste is formed. place remaining ingredients in a large mixing bowl. add date paste and mix thoroughly. spread onto 2 teflex trays and dehydrate at 115° until dry.

~*~

for dinner we had quinoa veggie sushi with raw nori and salad with sweet lime cilantro dressing.

at home we've been pretty high raw, occasionally eating cooked quinoa.

eating out with family is another story. (working on it... =)

below are asian-style veggies we had again with jicama rice and ginger marinade.  this veggie medley is delicious! mushrooms are a must, as they add the "meatiness" i sometimes miss in my meals.=)

 

it's a pleasure to prepare dinner when it's this bright and colorful!

~*~

raw pizza has been devoured savored a lot here lately. it never fails to satisfy, and the preparation is super quick and easy. the hardest part for me is keeping herb pizza crusts stocked in the freezer!

 

pizza topping:

sliced fennel
button mushrooms
chopped tomato
cilantro or basil

marinate in equal parts olive oil and tamari. (add a splash of agave and chopped garlic for extra zing! =)

the cheeze is carmella's adaptation of kristen suzanne's cheezy nacho sauce (my new favorite nut cheeze!)

~*~

pink lady apples were on sale at my local whole foods for $1.29 a pound (a great deal around here for organic apples). we've been enjoying the pink ladies in granola, smoothies, and chopped up with walnuts, dried cranberries, maple syrup and cinnamon.

to me, pink ladies are the prettiest of the apples. (with too much sun or when i'm embarassed, i become a pink lady! =)

~*~

since the amazing evergreen posted her raw rendition of cherry garcia soft serve, i have been dreaming of a raw chocolate chip cookie dough.

 

the recipe is gena's banana soft serve with chunks of chocolate chip cookies, chocolate chips, and heathy's chocolate sauce. the cookies were warmed in the dehydrator for a few hours before serving. i'm excited to create more raw ice creams!

speaking of... hihorosie is hosting an automatic ice cream maker giveaway! be sure to enter!
=)

dehydrated yummies

clockwise from top:

Rainbow Flax Crackers, Herb Pizza Crusts, Raw Cheez-Its, Cumin Flatbread, and "The Best Granola in the Universe Plus One"

Rainbow Flax Crackers

by diana stoevelaar of www.awesomerawsome.com

here is the recipe halved to make 2 trays. i also needed to make a few minor changes to avoid running out to the store for ingredients. i'm sure the original recipe is great, but everyone (including myself) loved these!

makes 2 dehydrator trays

2 1/2 C. water

2 C. golden flax seed

1 1/2 medium tomatoes, coarsely chopped

1/3 C. purple cabbage

1 red pepper, coarsely chopped

1 orange pepper, coarsely chopped

1/3 C. parsley

1/3 C. spinach

1/3 C. cilantro

2 T. white onion

1 clove garlic

2 T. lemon juice

1 tsp. basil

1 tsp. oregano

1/2 tsp. poultry seasoning*

1 tsp. salt

* i did not have poultry seasoning so i used a 1/2 tsp. equal parts sage, margoram, rosemary, black pepper and celery seed. i would have added thyme if i had it.)

1. presoak flax seeds in 2 1/2 cups of water for at least 1 hour or overnight. place in a large mixing bowl.

2. puree fresh tomatoes, lemon juice, garlic and seasonings in the food processor. add to the flax mixture.

3. process all the vegetables individually in the food processor until finely chopped but not pureed. add to the flax mixture.

4. stir the flax mixture until well combined.

5. using an offset spatula, spread the mixture about ¼” thick onto Teflex sheets on the dehydrating trays. score into squares or triangles with a plastic utensil so as not to damage the Teflex sheet.

6. dehydrate for at least 12 hours. the crackers easily separate from the teflex sheets without stickiness, usually after 12 hours. remove the dehydrator tray. flip the crackers by placing a mesh and another tray on top of the crackers. hold both sides of the sandwiched trays and flip them towards you so the top tray is now at the bottom. remove the new top tray and the mesh. now peel off the teflex sheet from the crackers, which are now facing downward. return the crackers to the dehydrator for approximately an additional 4 hours until completely dry.

7. let cool before storing by leaving them on the dehydrator trays outside of the dehydrator or inside of the dehydrator with the door open.

8. store crackers in an airtight container in a cool dark cupboard, fridge or freezer.

~*~

Herb Pizza Crusts
this is my variation of the recipe to fit one dehydrator tray

(9 pizza crusts)

1 1/4 C. buckwheat, soaked overnight

2/3 C. sunflower seeds, soaked overnight

5 T. ground flax seed

1 C. zucchini, chopped

1/4 C. water

1 T. olive oil

1 tsp. herbs

1 tsp. garlic

1 tsp. sea salt

1. blend all ingredients in a food processor until smooth.

2. spread batter about 1/4 " thick on dehydrator tray covered with teflex sheet. score into 9 squares.

3. dehydrate at 125 for 2-3 hours, then flip onto mesh and turn the temperature down to 110.

4. dehydrate until dry.

~*~

 

Raw Cheez-Its

(batter covers 3 teflex sheets)

1 C. sunflower seeds (soaked overnight)

1 C. almonds (soaked overnight)

1 C. brazil nuts

1 big tomato, chopped

1 red pepper, chopped

1/4 C. sun-dried tomatoes, soaked overnight

1/4 C. ground flax

1 garlic clove

1 tsp. cumin

1 tsp. salt

2 tsp. taco seasoning

2 tsp. nutritional yeast

1 tsp. onion powder

blend all ingredients in food processor, then spread batter fairly thin onto teflex sheets. score into squares. dehydrate at 110° until dry, flipping cheez-its onto mesh screens after a few hours.

~*~

Cumin Flatbread
from Matthew Kenney's
Entertaining in the Raw

~*~

The Best Granola in the Universe Plus One

2/3 C. sprouted buckwheat
1/2 C. sprouted sunflower seeds
1/2 C. sprouted oats
1 C. chopped soaked almonds

1/4 C. melted coconut oil

1/4 C. maple syrup

1 T. vanilla
cinnamon to liking
sea salt to liking

 

mix everything together with hands. spread on teflex sheet and dehydrate at 115 for 8-12 hours.

(you can put this in the oven at a low temperature if you don’t have a dehydrator… it may not still be “raw” but it will still taste awesome and is still a pretty healthy alternative to Twinkies and Mountain Dew…=)

serve with a nut milk and dried or fresh fruit!! enjoy!

kelli's notes: i added  1/4 C. dried coconut flakes and only soaked the buckwheat overnight. the granola was pretty tasty, but i'm not sure it's the best in the universe. my granola did not stick together too well but it did make for a yummy, crunchy cereal (topped with dried cranberries or raisins and almond milk...yummity yum!=)