SPROUTS: Superfood of the Future — Part 1

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Want some tips to reduce your grocery bills, heal your body, have more energy, and lose extra weight?

If so, you’ve come to the right place. Here’s a superfood you can grow in your kitchen and it takes only minutes spread out over the week and will cost you a few pennies.

It’s a hobby that promotes health and one that kids will enjoy participating in, too.

All About Sprouts

If you are into eating lots of living foods, then you probably are well acquainted with sprouts. These remarkable gifts of nature are pure, fresh, nutrient-rich, and alive with their vital force intact. Sprouts have been the cornerstone of my wellness program for over 40 years. Think about it this way: What food can you easily produce and enjoy whether you are three years old or 103, vegan or carnivore, or are living in an inner-city high-rise or on an isolated island? What food is grown indoors with no soil, is harvested in two to seven days, and is loved by children and adults alike? What can supply your family with fresh vegetables year-round, regardless of the season? What food is edible raw or cooked, and is delicious either eaten all by itself or included in an exciting array of recipes? The answer is SPROUTS. (I talk about my passion for growing sprouts and using them to heal the body in this recent radio interview.)

Nature’s Little Miracle: You start with a small, dry, hard seed. Add warm air and a little water, and watch as new life emerges as if by magic from the dormant seed. Vibrant with life and bursting with energy, its tiny size belies the extraordinary activity that takes place while growing. In mere hours and at a cost to you of just pennies, its delicate shoot proceeds to provide the most vital food imaginable. As a teenager, my grandmother taught me how to grow sprouts and incorporate them into my diet. To this day, I have sprouts growing in the corner of my kitchen. Some of my favorites include red clover, alfalfa, lentils, garbanzo beans, almonds, fenugreek, French blue lentils, green peas, bean salad sprouts mix, protein powerhouse mix, red lentil, sunflower seeds, wheatgrass, barley grass, mung beans, and brocolli sprouts.

Homegrown sprouts are the freshest, most assuredly organic food available to you. Nothing compares with “picking your own” just before you eat them and knowing they’re free from fungicides and insecticides. When you eat sprouts, you are receiving the plant’s peak nutrition, when nature has mobilized all of its nourishment to bring forth a mature plant.

In a simple glass jar that requires neither sunlight nor soil, and with only a few minute’s work spread over three to four days, you can cultivate over 30 varieties of sprouts. You need not toil long and hard, sweating under the summer and fall sun, defending your crop from insects and weeds. Yet you are fully assured that your harvest is organically grown, absolutely fresh, and resoundingly cheap. And if you do not have the desire or inclination to do your own sprouting in the comfort of your kitchen, you can find freshly grown sprouts in most natural food stores as well as many supermarkets. But nothing compares with freshly harvested sprouts that you grow in your own kitchen.

I get all of my sprouting seeds, kits, and other supplies at HandyPantry.com. For detailed information on the ABCs of Growing Sprouts, refer to my full-color recipe and nutrition book Recipes for Health Bliss: Using NatureFoods & Lifestyle Choices to Rejuvenate Your Body & Life, which has over 150 color photographs. It includes a Sprouting Chart so, at-a-glance, you will know the soaking times and when to harvest your delicious, nutritious sprouts.

On my website SusanSmithJones.com, you’ll find additional information on growing sprouts, losing weight, looking younger, healing your body, and living a balanced life. In the next few blogs in this series on sprouts and microgreens, I’ll provide more info to get started in the wonderful world of kitchen gardening. And then, following this series, I’ll continue to post uplifting and motivating blogs on how to create your best life — physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. You deserve the best. Celebrate life today!