The Veggie Queen Sprouts Again

I have been following a partly-raw diet for most of my life. I have always eaten raw fruit and vegetables, and for at least 30 years, on and off, I have been sprouting. I love the simplicity of the jar method:

• you put the seeds in a jar with a screened lid or piece of cheesecloth secured with a rubber band,
  
• soak,
  
• rinse,
  
• put in a bowl on an angle in a cabinet and then rinse twice a day
  
• When ready, place the jar in a spot with indirect sunlight and let the sprouts green up by absorbing light and turning it into chlorophyll.

Here is the first step in seed soaking overnight. This has to happen no matter which method you use. This jar has a screen on the top.









But for the past 16 months, I have been using the Sprout Master Mini Triple Sprouter which is like a little stacked sprout house which is available from a place called The Sprout House where I buy most of my exotic sprout seeds. I purchase the usual beans and grains in bulk at my local natural foods store and send away for mixes (check out the Veggie Queen mix) and exotic seeds such as broccoli, clover, radish and many more.

I have discovered why my compact sprout system works better for me than the jar method. I recently made mung bean sprouts and put them in the cabinet to sprout in the dark. Twenty four hours later I realized that I had not remembered to rinse them. They were still OK but had a forgotten longer they may have stopped sprouting or rotted which is a big waste. I see my Sproutmaster on the counter top and remember to rinse the seeds which is vitally important.

I also discovered that the seeds seem to sprout better in the Sproutmaster than in the jar so I ended up putting my "jar seeds" into the Sproutmaster to finish sprouting. I made this salad with all those sprouts (no apologies for no photo since I made it for the McDougall program participants and didn't stop to take a photo. Believe me, it was beautiful. If you were there and want to comment, please do. I have to wait a few days for new sprouts before I can shoot the photo so... in the interest of time and getting this post up -- NO photo of the actual recipe).

Contact Rita at The Sprout House if you want to become a great sprouter like me. For the month of March you'll get a free pound of St. Patrick's mix with your sprouter. (Note: I am an affiliate of the Sprout House but only recommend people and products that I personally love.)

Rainbow Sprout Salad
Serves 4
I recently ate something like this at a mushroom hunting potluck. I had already likely eaten too much but it was too beautiful and tasty to pass up. Vary the ingredients based on what you have available.

1 1/2 cups mung bean sprouts
1 1/2 cups lentil sprouts
1 cup shredded red cabbage
½ cup shredded carrots
3 tablespoons toasted sunflower seeds
3 tablespoons dried cranberries or raisins (optional)
1 teaspoon grated orange zest
1/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
2 tablespoons water
1-2 teaspoons mellow white miso
1-2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1-2 teaspoons agave syrup (optional)

Combine all the vegetables in a bowl and toss, adding sunflower seeds and dried fruit, if using.
In a small bowl, combine orange juice, zest, water, miso, mustard and agave syrup, if using. Combine dressing with sprouts and vegetables right before serving.

© 2010 The Veggie Queen™, Jill Nussinow, MS, RD http://www.theveggiequeen.com