Eco Women: Protectors of the Planet!

The Eco Women are celebrating their second blog anniversary this week! Check out our daily giveaways and leave comments to win prizes.

SPROUTING. . . ?

It may not be the same FLOWER POWER you think of when you hear those words but back in the 60’s the fun loving hippies turned alfalfa sprouts into a magical food source filled with antioxidents, phytochemicals and healing health properties.

Okay, maybe they weren’t the ones who turned sprouts into those things but they sure were the ones who got the word out. Suddenly seeds started transforming: Alfalfa sprouts were popping up in salads, sandwiches and grocery stores. But did you know, it’s EZ to sprout food and not only alfalfa sprouts?

Mung beans are one of the most commonly sprouted foods but Kala Chana and barley make regular appearances on the sprout shelves.

But there are so many other foods you can eat that sprout: cilantro, dill, fennel, basil – heck even brown rice and wheat can be sprouted.

But what is sprouting and why would anyone want to become one of those Sproutpeople?

According to Wikipedia “Sprouting is the practice of soaking, draining and then rinsing seeds at regular intervals until they germinate, or sprout. “

And you can eat these sprouts — but, like I said, why would you want to do it?

There are a lot of reasons to eat sprouts aside from taste and that fancy feeling of eating home-grown goodness that is really GOOD for you.

Sprouts are full of good things for your body: vitamins, minerals, proteins, phytochemicals, enzymes, and more. Plus growing them at home makes sense. It will save you money while being fun — especially if you have kids. This can be your own homemade “Bill Nye the Science Guy” kind of experiment. And for homeschoolers, even better. Plus you’ll end up with that a product that will be good for your body.

You can sprout dozens of seeds, beans, nuts and-like I said, even rice and wheat. All it takes is a little time. And I mean a little time. In just days you’ll have an edible food source growing in your new “inside garden”.

All you need to do is keep the seeds moist. You don’t want to over-water your seeds or they will mold and rot. Just purchase your seeds from any place you find a good price — only one exception — DON’T buy packaged seed that’s meant to be planted. Those seeds are often chemically treated to grow and are not meant to be eaten in that state. But you can buy seed directly from your local grocery store, healthfood store, and even on-line-just pick the place with the best price.

Then you take your seeds wet them (soaking them) and place them in a cool, dark place so they can grow. You’ll need to rinse the seeds daily so you’ll want to store your seeds in a mason jar with cheesecloth spread over the top of the jar-that way you can pull the cheesecloth away, rinse the seed, beans or nuts, and then drain them before you put them back in their dark hiding spot.

Some people even use old nylons to hang their seeds inside – down in the basement — just remember to wash those used nylons first before you start preparing food in them.

The beans and/or seeds will expand so you should only start with a couple tablespoons. I got carried away and used about a cup of lentil beans. My beans outgrew the Mason jar and had to be moved into a colander. They almost outgrew the colander but we started eating them so they wouldn’t. They were so yummy.

After you get your sprouts to the size you want, you can eat them or put them in a container and store them in the refrigerator until it’s time to munch on those crunchy little tidbits of goodness. They will stay fresh for a couple days — up to a week.

If you are still interested, check out sprout kitchen for a few handy, healthy and hardy recipes you can use to utilize your freshly grown sprouts.

Here’s a little more handy information:

Alfalfa should be soaked for 8 hours for 2 to 5 days in a Jar or tray. The main nutritional benefits you’ll get will be Vitamin A, B, C, E, K and minerals.

Barley should be soaked for 12-15 hours for 3-4 days using the jar or tray method. You’ll get B and C vitamins, plus minerals.

Lentils should be soaked 12 hours for 2-4 days to get vitamin C and iron.

Mung beans should be soaked for 24 hours for 2-5 days for Vitamin C, iron, and potassium.

Pumpkin seeds should be soaked for 8 hours for 1 day for Vitamin E and minerals – especialy iron.

But you can also sprout Almonds, Buckwheat, cabbage, chick peas, rice, rye, sesame seeds, sunflower seeds and more. Just look on-line to see what needs to be done – or leave a comment and I’ll look it up for you. You don’t have to buy store bought goodness – you can grow your own – right in your own kitchen.

HAPPY SPROUTING! And, add your own ideas in the “comments” section for a chance to win a prize: a book. And FREE is a very good price for all us thrifty protectors of the planet.

Hope you tuned in every day this week because the Eco Women are giving away prizes to celebrate their two year blogiversary. All giveaways are open until 8 p.m. EST on Friday, March 12. Winners will be randomly chosen and contacted over the weekend.

The Eco Women are not employed by the companies mentioned, nor were they compensated in any way.