I made SPROUTS!

Raw Garbanzo Beans - day 1
 

I’m discovering a whole new way of *not* cooking and I’m loving every morsel of it!  Last week I sprouted my first batch of garbanzo beans for a dish I made over the weekend.  More on that in tomorrow’s post.  For now, we’re talking bringing our food to life.

 

Above is a batch of raw garbanzo beans that I had just put in to soak.  Soaking is technically called germinating, a much friendlier term I think.  I gave them a good rinse and into the jar they went for the next 3 days - covered with a cheese cloth, but anything similar can be used from my understanding.  After the first 24 hours of soaking I rinsed and drained them real good then all I had to do was rinse and put them back into the jar - 3 times per day.

 

Soaked and awaiting sprouts - day 2
 

So what’s the deal with soaking and sprouting?  In nut shell - many health benefits.  To get sprouts you must first soak your raw grains, beans, nuts or seeds.  Each one has their own timeframe of soaking and sprouting and it’s not difficult at all.  Even if you don’t go as far as the sprouting process, soaking alone will give you great health benefits.  I love Carol Alt's description of it from her recipe book Easy Sexy Raw: 

“Seeds, grains, beans and nuts  are filled with nutrition, but their life-giving nutrients are dormant, held back by enzyme inhibitors.  They are like little Sleeping Beauties just waiting for you to wake them up.  And all it takes to awaken them and release their many enzymes – along with vitamins, minerals, amino acids, and proteins – is to soak them and, if you wish, take the next step and sprout them for even more benefits.”

 

Raw sprouted garbanzo beans - day 3

I made SPROUTS! (think Tom Hanks’ fire scene in Castaway).  I know, but I can’t help it because it was awesome to see the birth of my first batch of little sprouts! 

 

Tomorrow you’ll see what I made with these little beauties. 

 

Peace,

Rocki