Sprouting ~ An Introduction

“The health of the physical body should be the concern of every aspirant to the higher life. Spiritual evolution requires refinement of man’s vehicles. In order to attain purification of the physical organism, the body must be provided with proper nutrition.”

While reading through various books, magazines and articles on the internet I have come across the healing properties, importance of, and complete joy of growing sprouts.

Sprouts * Sprouts * Sprouts

All different kinds!!!

Why is the importance of SPROUTS?

Sprouts are very nutritious because they contain all elements a plant needs for life and growth. The endosperm of the seed is the storehouse of carbohydrates, protein, and oil. When the seed germinates, these become predigested amino acids and natural sugars upon which the plant embryo feeds as it grows to maturity. When used as food, the life force is released and supplies the energy which is capable of generating healthy cells in the body and supplying us with new vigor and life.

What are their healing properties?

Sprouts can retard the aging process, since they contain ample amounts of male and female hormones, available in their most assimilable form. Research shows that sprouts are highest in vitamin and mineral content. Sprouts should occupy a prominent place in the diet. A seed sprouted increases their nutritional value many times over.

Not only are sprouts healthy, they bring immediate beauty to your day!! Who doesn’t need beauty and love????

JOIN THE RAFFLE AND ADD HEALTH TO YOUR LIFE!!!

You can See the Original Posting here!

There are two types of sprouts…

SEEDS – contain a great deal of phosphorous, an important mineral for spiritual aspirants, who want to increase their alertness and mental abilities. Phosphorous is also necessary for healthy bones and teeth, a fact which makes sprouted seeds desirable for babies and children.  Sunflower seeds are rich in vitamin B and D and all the essential amino acids. Sesame seeds are a rich source of calcium, iron, phosphorous, niacin, and protein.

GRAINS – These sprouts contain vitamins C, E, B complex, magnesium, calcium, phosphorous, sodium, potassium, protein, enzymes, chlorophyll, and possibly B-17. (In its cooked form, wheat is unacceptable to some individuals, causing mucus congestion, allergic reaction, and constipation. In its sprouted form, a large portion of starch is converted to simple sugars, making it a wholesome food acceptable to many who would otherwise need to eliminate wheat as a food source). Buckwheat, a food rich in lecithin and rutin.

So there you have it!  A little bit of info on sprouting.  I will continue to post information about sprouting as time goes on.  I will be sprouting Sunflower Seeds and Peas first.  (If possible I will do a time lapse viewing of the sunflower sprouts.)  Wouldn’t that be cool?!  I just have to figure out this entire camera thing.  Technology! Technology!

Thanks for reading!!!

Namaste!

100% Life in a Bowl!!!

In this posting I mentioned that I began sprouting Quinoa.  I was amazed to see how long the tails were when I got home!!!  I put them in a container to make something the next night.  I have about 4 cups and used (2) cups for (2) different recipes. (I have an update picture of the Quinoa with tails about 1″ but I forgot my camera card. )

While scanning through Raw Food Uncook books and surfing the internet I have come across several Tabouli/Tabouleh salad recipes.  I have made Tabouli in the past on this blog.  You can see one I made most recently here.

Anyway, I figured that’s what I would use the sprouted Quinoa for.  I sprouted red quinoa since it was a bit more festive looking.  I will try the other quinoa next week.  I will also be updating my sprout adventures as well.  As you know a SPROUT KIT is up for raffle for the next few weeks.  I hope you will join the RAFFLE! You can see the prize here.

Sprouted Quinoa Tabouli Salad

1 cup Sprouted Red Quinoa

1 Avocado

1 Cucumber

3/4 C Parsley, chopped

3/4 C Cilantro, chopped

2 red tomatoes, chopped

Juice of one Lemon

1 capful Apple Cider Vinegar

1/4 cup RAW golden flax seeds

1/4 cup RAW pumpkin seeds

Preparation: Place Avocado, Tomatoes, Cilantro, Parsley, and lemon juice in a large bowl and mix together.  Add Sprouted Quinoa, flax seed, and pumpkin seeds and mix.

Next I decided to try a sweet sprouted quinoa recipe I came across.  I made some changes to the original recipe.

Sprouted Quinoa Raisin Cookies

1 cup Sprouted Quinoa

1 cup Raisins

1 cup pecans

1/4 cup Agave

2 T RAW Cocoa Powder

Preparation:  Place Pecans in Food Processor and process until the consistency of a fine meal.  Then add Quinoa and process.  After the quinoa and pecans have processed together, add raw agave slowly to the mixture while the food processor is on.  You may have to slow down the processor if possible.  I went from high to low while adding the agave. Place this mixture in a bowl and add cocoa powder and raisins to the mix.  Place a spoonful of “dough” onto teflex sheet.  Dehydrate for 3 hrs @ 105 degrees.  Remove Teflex sheet and dehydrate another 7 hrs or until pliable and dry.

These cookies are really good!!!  I think I will add some nuts and some golden flax seeds the next time.  But I really liked them.  I don’t usually like cookies eiether.  I was a big danish person prior and I am coping fine.  Maybe I will fall in love with RAW COOKIES???

Thanks for reading!!!

Namaste!

JOIN THE RAFFLE!!!  ADD FRESH SPROUTS TO YOUR DIET!!!

60% – 70% Protein!!!!

(Protein also, in Green Algae!!)

EMERGENCY POSTING

I don’t know if any of you have heard about Louisiana’s oil spill which is releasing 42,000 gallons of crude oil into the Gulf of Mexico, sure to threaten wildlife and resources.

I did however want to mention it and I ask that you share with everyone you know. There is such limited coverage regarding this matter. I will be emailing many people that I know who run vegan vegetarian, etc websites and blogs.

Although there are efforts being made to stop the damage the point is no one is really covering this matter in the media much, if at all.

Please tell those you know!

Namaste!

RAW FOOD REVIEW #2

FREE GIVEWAY! ENTER THE RAFFLE TO WIN A SPROUTING KIT – COMPLETE WITH JAR AND SEEDS!!!

FUN FOR THE KIDS TO SEE LIFE GROW! GREAT WAY TO ADD LIFE INTO YOUR DIET!!!

This weekend was very mild.  This weekend was about preparation.

I started sprouting some Quinoa.  I plan on making some crackers with the sprouted quinoa, I also would like to make a few different patties, salads, and a few other items.  I used red quinoa.  Thought it was a little more lively and festive!!!

Here is the Quinoa soaking…

All of the information I read varied from soaking 2 – 3 hrs to 6 – 8 hours.  I decided I would take the sum and cut it in half.  I soaked the Quinoa 4 hours.  After the 4 hours, I rinsed it and let it sit in a colander for 1 day.  Actually, this morning I began seeing sprouts already!!! Since It has been quite warm here in Los Angeles for the past few days so I think the sprouts are pretty resonsive to that.

Here they are this morning!! Can you see the sprouts?? They are little.  All the literature I read says the tails should be 1/4″ to be ready. It only took 14 hrs!!!

If you look closely you can see the little tails that were there this morning.

I also had the opportunity to try some RAW package foods.  First I tried a Hemp Cereal with spirulina in it…

I started with the nut milk…

This is 1 heaping Tablespoon of Raw Almond Butter and 1 cup purified water.

Then it was time for the cereal!!! Here it is!

Then I served it with some bananas…

This was a very good breakfeast treat.  I also made some apple, date cinnamon milk later on in the day to sustain energy.  Sometimes I just want something to sustain me, rather than have an entire meal. Know what I mean??

After the laundry was done we took a short drive around town.  I finally was able to make it to a quaint little store called “Naturewell“.  It is filled with RAW and Non-Raw items sold in bulk.  It gave me the opportunity to try these wonderful Chocolate Macaroons!!!

Here is the link to the company that made the Macaroons.  They are called “Food on Purpose” out of Espanola, New Mexico.

More recipes to come!

Thanks for visiting!

Namaste!!

New Raffle Giveaway, Brazil Nut Pancakes and Raw Sunflower Rye Bread Sandwiches ~ Take 2

New Raffle Giveawy!

A Sprouting Kit

You will get (3) different mesh screen tops with a Wide Mouthed Ball Jar

Options for Seeds: Sunflower, Radish, Mustard, Pea

Raffle Ends – April 30th 2010 @ Midnight

Rules: Make a Comment or Send me a recipe by Midnight on April 30th and you will be entered into the RAFFLE!!!

The Winner of the Last Raffle is Amanda!

Congratulations Amanda!!!

Amanda Picked the “Eating for Beauty” book by David Wolfe

(Great Pick!!!)

Raw Sunflower Rye Bread – Take 2

I still had some Rye Sunflower Bread I made a few days ago (that posting is here.) and I made a few more sandwiches with olive tapenade this time! MMMMMmmmm!

Here are the stages to a delicious sandwich!!

I had mentioned some avocado’s I received from a customer a few days ago.  Here is one of them cut in half ready for my sandwich.

Then I made an olive tapenade with red bell peppers, garlic, kalmata olives, capers, and onions.  I used this as a spread for the sandwich.  I also use the last of the Spinach Pesto from the other day as well!

Added Tomatoes and Eggplant Bacon…

Now they were ready for assembly! Here we go!

I also made Raw Brazil Nut Pancakes with Blueberry Syrup!  The recipe was taken from the FREE Ebook link you can download from my Facebook page.

I powdered the Brazil Nuts & Golden Flax in my mini Food Processor, and then added sliced Bananas and a bit of water to the Blender…

To mix it a bit more, I put it in the Food Processor.  It wasn’t turning to well in the Blender. (note to self – GET a VITAMIX)

Here is the batter…

Batter on Dehydrator Tray…

Here they are several hours later out of the Dehydrator…

Next it was time for the syrup!

Blueberry Raspberry Syrup

1 1/2 cups Fresh Blueberries

1/2 cup Raspberries

6 Dates

1 Handful Pine Nuts

Preparation: Place all ingredients into the Food Processor with the “S” blade attachment.  Process until smooth.  Add water if needed.

Here are the berries ready to be blended…

Next I would add the dates, pine nuts and little bit of water.  Here is an action shot…

Here is the sauce I would use for the dish and the bananas I would use to finish the dish…

I was ready for assembly at this point.  In the background is my notebook I make all of my notes, recipe ideas, and information I want to share for my VEG888 Blog!!!

Plate #1 – This plate had Raw Chocolate Powder dusted on top!

Plate #2

This was a good dish.  I think I will continue to make this dish.  It would be neat to make different varieties of pancakes.  Blueberry, Macadamia Nut, Etc.  This can be explored!  Great Adventures to come! NO DOUBT!

Thanks for visting!  Asparagus Quiche coming next week!  Some FIREWATER, and a special dish in memory of “Tung Lai Shun”!

Namaste!

A.B.L.T. ~ Raw Stylie

If you go to my facebook page (which you can link to on the right) you will see a link for a FREE RAW E BOOK. (April 6 – 9:11 pm posting)

I downloaded this e-book and made a few of the recipes so far.

Here is my experience and what I did with the Sunflower Rye Bread Recipe!

First I put the flax, sunflower seeds, caraway, lemon juice, etc. in the Food Processor.  You can see that some of the Sunflower seeds have little sprout tails!

Here is the “dough” after being processed…

After it was all mixed up I placed it on a Dehydrator Tray…

Then I spread it into a 1/4″ sheet…

I put it in the Dehydrator for 1 hr at 105 degrees.  After 1 hr, I scored the bread and continued to Dehydrate for 5 more hours.

Here is the bread scored ready to put it back in the Dehydrator.

Here is the bread ready out of the Dehydrator.  I made two trays of this bread!!!

After I finished with the Sunflower Rye Bread, I began making the Eggplant Bacon.

Here is the Eggplant with my Cai Bao before I cut it into strips…

I washed the Eggplant and began cutting it into strips with the Cai Bao.  After I finished that I placed the strips in a bowl and began marinating them in olive oil, nama shoyu and garlic.

Here they are in the bowl ready to marinate…

I covered these strips with the core of the Eggplant…

After this I placed a bunch of bowls on top of the Eggplant.  This way it weighed the Eggplant down into the bowl and it marinated like this for 1 hr.  Here it is marinating with the dishes on top…

Here is the Eggplant after it marinated for 1 hr+

This would dehydrate with the Sunflower bread at 105 degrees for 5 hours.

Now I was ready for my A.B.L.T (Avocado, Bacon, Lettuce & Tomato)! Here are the ingredients for the sandwich!!! The only thing missing is the spinach pesto I used as a spread for the sandwhich.

Here were are.  Each half had a different ingredient, but in this picture you can see the pesto spread used.

Then it was time to cut it and enjoy!!!  I have to admit that I was going crazy with all of the smells from the Dehydrator!!!  I was excited to see what this was going to taste like!!!

Final Plating!!!

Here is a nice juicy view!!!

This was one dish I know I will make over and over!!! It also seemed like a really good introductory dish to RAW FOOD!

Thanks for visiting!!!

Namaste!

P.S. The Raffle winner was picked and the new Raffle will begin on Monday!!! I will post the winner and the new Raffle Prize tomorrow!!

Small & Sweet!

I have been having a lot of fun in the kitchen lately.  So much so, that I now have more pictures than postings! Whew!

Monday Night I made Sweet Mini Peppers with an Edamame Pate.  I served the peppers on a bed of Arugula with Lemon Vinaigrette.

I still had some pesto from last week and I needed to used the rest of it.  (I dislike wasting food.)   I had wanted to make this dish last weekend, but I never got the opportunity to…till now!!

So I started with some edamame (soybeans)…

I added the pesto from the other day.  Recipe here, and then some avocado into the processor…

I also added 1 garlic clove and the juice of one lemon to help it mix a bit better in the Food Processor.

Here we are!!! Ready to use!!!

Edamame Avocado Basil Pate

2 cups Fresh Edamame

2 T. Spinach Basil Pesto

1 Avocado

2 T. Lemon Juice

9 Mini Sweet Peppers

Preparation: Put Edamame in Food Processor with “S” blade.  Process Edamame for a moment.  Add basil pesto, avocado, and Lemon Juice.  Process.  Add a little bit of water if needed.

Next I deveined the mini peppers and cut the tops off of them.  I sliced the sides and filled them with the pate and garnished them with a few pine nuts and basil!

I served this on a bed of fresh Arugula with some lemon vinaigrette I have been working on as well. (Recipe will be posted when it is perfected a bit more!!

Thanks for visiting!

Namaste!

THANKS TO THE UNIVERSE & LAST CALL!!

LAST CALL FOR THE FREE DVD/BOOK GIVEAWAY!!!

ALL ENTRIES NEED TO BE BEFORE MIDNIGHT!!!!

I WILL POST THE WINNER!!

CHECK OUT THE ORIGINAL POSTING HERE!

Yesterday (Sunday), was a really beautiful day!! Since Sundays are usually my laundry day, I decided I would keep it low key as far as food was concerned.  I made a smoothie to keep me sustained throughout the day.

Strawberry-Coconut Smoothie ~ 2 servings

1 cup sliced frozon strawberries

2 frozen Bananas

1 tbs. RAW Almond Butter

1 Fuji Apple

1 Handful Arugula

1 tbs. RAW coconut

Preparation: Blend in high speed blender with Fresh Thai Coconut Water until smooth.

*This beautiful glass was made by my friend WILL.  He makes amazing glass blown goblets!!!  All of the Ceramic bowls on this blog are made by my wonderful Ceramic Artist – Joe Botello!! Thanks to both of them for the beautiful artwork they have blessed me with!!!

AND BEFORE I FORGET…

A BIG Thank YOU to the  universe!!!!

For the past 6 weeks I have been enjoying fruit and vegetable gifts from the area.  Customers have been bringing me all kinds of different produce.  I must have gotton about 24 Lemons, a bunch of grapefruits, and some really sweet oranges!!!  I have even experienced some wonderful STRAWBERRIES!!!

Today I was given the biggest avocados I have ever eaten!  I will post a picture of them tomorrow! They were so beautiful!

I took a walk to get some excercise and enjoy the sun for a few moments.

On my walk I was blessed to see this magnificent creature!

Just when I thought there wasn’t anything more stunning at that moment in time, I looked back as saw this…

Isn’t he magnificent?  He was so proud!  I usually hear the peacocks at night as I am pulling into the driveway, while I am laying in bed before I go to sleep and in the morning when they are just waking!

Here is a young male trailing behind..

I would also like to thank YOU!  Thank you for stopping by my blog!  I will continue to post recipes and information regarding vegan, vegetarian and RAW food!!!  Also, NEW stuff coming your way in May!!!  More RAFFLES! More Giveaways!  and Much more information!

LIVE IN LIGHT and LOVE!

Namaste!

READERS NOTE:

Here is a great article with some nice information about ASPARAGUS!!! Great info and in sync with my blog!!!

‘velocius quam asparagi conquantur’

The Emperor Augustus coined the phrase ‘velocius quam asparagi conquantur’, meaning to do something faster than you can cook asparagus.

Asparagus has been used from early times as a vegetable and medicine, owing to its delicate flavour and diruretic properties. There is a recipe for cooking asparagus in the oldest surviving book of recipes, Apicius’ third century AD De re coquinaria, Book III. It was cultivated by the ancient Egyptians, Greeks and Romans, who ate it fresh when in season and dried the vegetable for use in winter.

As I was walking around the dried chili section of the store I happened to look up and see a wall full of Asparagus.  I had remembered I had jotted a recipe down a few weeks back I had wanted to try.  I figured, why not?  I had no idea about dinner so it seemed like the universe was helping out.

I decided the menu would be: Basil Pest Marinated Asparagus with Nut patties and avocado.

First I made a Spinach~Pesto with Basil, Pine Nuts and Spinach.

Spinach~Basil Pesto

1/2 Bunch Spinach

2 Large Handfuls Basil

2 Garlic Cloves

1 cup Pine Nuts

1/3 cup olive oil

Preparation: Place everything in the Food Processor with the “S” blade and blend to desired consistency.  (I added a little water to the mix when I saw that it was having a little trouble moving around.)  I purposely made this amount to stuff some mushrooms or mix with something else this weekend.  Please note this recipe makes almost 2 cups.

Next I made the marinade for the Asaparagus.

Pesto Marinade

Juice of 1/2 a Lemon

2 tbs. Spinach Pesto

2 drops Sweet Basil Essential Oil

1 capful Apple Cider Vinegar

Preparation:  In a small bowl – Mix Lemon Juice, Sweet Basil Essential Oil and Apple cider vinegar together.  Add the Pesto according to taste.  (You can add salt if you wish).

I then used a vegetable peeler to take off the exterior skin of the White & Green Asparagus I purchased.

Green Asparagus sliced and peeled.

The white Asparagus was much thicker.  I was able to cut it into thinner strips.  It was also much more tender than the green Asparagus.  It marinated very well!!!

I made sure to marinate these in (2) different bowls since I didn’t want them to change each others flavors.

Gree Asparagus in marinade.

White Asparagus in Marinade.

The Asparagus marinated for about 30-40 minutes.  I served the meal with the Dehydrated Falaffel and my Daily Avocado.:)

I topped the Asparagus with some chopped olives.  Kalmata Olive on the Green Asparagus and Green Olives on the White Asparagus.

Plate #2

I think I will be making more again soon! YUM!!!

Thanks for visiting!!!

I thought I would leave you with a picture of THE LOVE OF MY LIFE!!!

Namaste!

Middle East Wrap ~ Take 2

I used to really enjoy Middle Eastern restaurants.  I would order falaffel, tabouli, hummus and pita bread.

So, last night I decided to duplicate the meal as much as possible -BUT-IN THE RAW!  I decided instead of the pita I would use a collard green. Remember “Green is Queen”! I wanted to add greens to my meal last night and felt that this was a good way!

So, I started with a Sunflower Hummus/Tahini Sauce…

1 cup Sunflower Seeds, soaked

2 tbs. RAW Tahini

Juice of (1) Lemon

2 Cloves Garlic

Preparation:  Add sunflower seeds, tahini, lemon juice and garlic into the Food Processor.  Add purified water a little at a time until smooth.  I made it smooth like hummus, but not watery.

After the Hummus/Tahini Sauce was made it was time for the Falaffel!  I had soaked sunflower seeds and almonds while I was at the shop, this way I would have everything I needed for the evening!  Sometimes I forget how far in advance I have to plan!!!

Sunflower seeds and spices in the Food Processor..

In the food processor is:

2 cups of soaked sunflower seeds

1 cup almonds

1/2 cup fresh parsley

2 tbs. cumin, ground

2 tbs. paprika, ground

2 garlic cloves

2 tbs. hummus/tahini sauce

Preparation:  Process with “S” blade.  It should make a nice chunky paste.

I made enough to put in the Dehydrator for later and use some for dinner last night.

Ready for the Dehydrator! These would be in the Dehydrator for 7 hrs at 100 degrees.

Then I made some Falaffel for the wrap I made for dinner….

Next I made the wrap!  I used a large Collard Green and filled it with Fresh Avocado, Parsley, Falaffel, Cherry Tomatoes and the Hummus/Tahini Sauce!

Next I rolled it & cut it in half…

Here is an inside view!

Delicious!  I was pleased with the flavor of the falaffel this time.  It was much more “authentic”!

CHOCOLATE ADVENTURES CONTINUED

Then came dessert.

(I will post the recipes once I have perfected them, but for now…MORE CHOCOLATE EXPERIMENTS!)

The basic chocolate recipe I am working with is done in equal parts.  The ratio of 1:1 of Raw Cocoa Powder & Cocout Butter.  To this mixture I add agave syrup and vanilla extract.

Here is a RAW Caramel recipe I am tinkering with.  It’s Dates, Pine Nuts and some Vanilla Extract. (If you would like to do your own research and comment -or- share your research you enter raffle!!)

RAW Caramel~Chocolate bites I am attempting to perfect…

I would continue to dip the caramel bites 7 more times and stick them in the freezer between dips. Here is the 8th and final dip!

After my caramel experiment I wanted to work on a Almond Bark experiment as well.  So this is what I did…

Filled the glass of chocolate mix with some almonds I had soaked and dried in the Dehydrator

Poured the mixture on to some wax paper (out of parchment), placed in a bowl – I didn’t want it flowing everywhere…

And finally, out of the freezer!

Everything was really good last night! Thanks for visiting!!!

JOIN THE RAFFLE!!

Namaste!