12 Steps to Whole Foods
Sprouting and Dehydrating The idea of soaking and sprouting grain and drying it into bread comes from an apocryphal book of scripture known as The Essene Gospel of Peace that some say contains the teachings of Jesus to a congregation of Essenes. To make Essene bread, you sprout wheat, spelt, kamut, rye, or oats according to the directions below. When the tail (or “hairs”) are about as long as the wheat berries, you then grind the grains (with a meat grinder or food processor, or you can use a Champion juicer with the homogenizing plate on). You can also add in chopped nuts or dried fruits such as almonds, pumpkin or sunflower seeds, dates, raisins or apricots. Then form the dough into patties about 1" thick and dehydrate them at 100-115° for several hours until the desired texture is achieved. (In an emergency situation, you could allow the bread to dry in the sun as described in The Essene Gospel.) Even a small amount of this bread is very filling, because it is so nutrient dense. If your family doesn’t like sprouted- or fermented-grain food, you can sprout wheat berries and then dry them in your dehydrator below 115°. Then grind them in your grain mill and use the flour in any recipe that calls for it, preferably recipes not cooked at high heats. How Do I Sprout Grains, Nuts, and Seeds? More complicated ways of sprouting exist: a Yahoo online group is dedicated just to sprouting, and they talk about complicated methods using blankets, mesh bags, soil, and all kinds of gadgets, and they support each other in successes and failures. The following simple and quick method has worked for me the past 15 years and takes just a minute or two of my time. (I also show this in a short GreenSmoothieGirl YouTube video: http://tiny.cc/4VM1J.) For anything you choose to germinate, fill of a pint or quart jar with the seed or nut. Leave it on a counter with the remaining of the jar filled with filtered water. Let small seeds like alfalfa/clover/radish sit for about 4-6 hours, and then put the sprouting lid on and drain the water completely. The sprouting lid can be cheesecloth inside a canning lid, or wire or plastic mesh (I buy plastic mesh from craft stores) cut to fit the inside of a canning lid. You can also purchase canning lids with screens in them at health food stores. With larger beans like mung or garbanzo, or seeds like sunflower or pumpkin, soak 8 them hours or overnight before draining. (If you accidentally forget and let them go too long, it’s no big deal—just drain them as soon as you remember.) I find soybeans and wheat berries difficult to sprout, because they go sour or moldy easily. Wheat berries sprout in soil more easily. Put the jar of soaked and drained seeds on its side, turning it two or three times during the day. The second morning, rinse and drain the sprouts again. You do this until you see the seeds/nuts just barely begin to grow a sprout, usually after a day or two. With almonds or other nuts, don’t worry about them growing a sprout: they are germinated and “live” after soaking for eight hours. Then remove the sprouting lid and put a regular, air-tight canning lid on the jar. Put the sprouts in the fridge, where growth will slow, and they will last a week or two. Sprouting will happen more quickly in warm weather. If you live where it is hot and humid, or if you are sprouting in late summer, rinse and turn your sprouts more often. 202 12 Steps to Whole Foods © Copyright Robyn Openshaw
Sprouting and Dehydrating What Foods Should I Sprout? Cashews are somewhat heat treated and will not germinate. Also, in September 2007, the almond growers in California were required by law to begin pasteurizing almonds, which heat treats them above 115° and makes them unsproutable. This means that, since California produces 80% of the world’s almonds, those who care about enzymes now have to go to more trouble to find raw almonds for sprouting. (They can still be sold under certain conditions and in certain limited amounts to consumers.) I recommend you always have soaked, dried almonds on hand for snacks (see Sprouted Almond Recipes on page 210). This is a good on-the-fly lunch with a green smoothie. Almonds taste wonderful, are lower in fat than other nuts, high in fiber, and are alkaline-forming, nutritional standouts. Try to always have some of this snack on hand for emergencies where you’d be tempted to turn to other crunchy foods that aren’t nutritious. Since I seem to always be running behind, I often just grab a little bag of dehydrated sprouted almonds with me to work, and my kids often eat them as an after-school snack. Nuts are good for you, great sources of fiber, B vitamins, and good fats. But they can be enzyme inhibitors until germination unlocks their impressive enzyme potential. Use sprouted/dried almonds in any recipe calling for almonds. Soak 8+ C of raw almonds overnight, and then drain. They do not need to grow sprouted “tails.” In fact, they will likely grow mold before that—but germination occurs in an 8-hour soak, so dehydrate the nuts after that until they are crunchy, to avoid mold. You need truly “raw” almonds to germinate them, since all almonds coming from California now are pasteurized and, therefore, unsproutable. (You can get up to 100 lbs. per day direct from a California rancher. We facilitate an annual group buy in Oct./Nov. so you can do that. You will know about it if you are signed up for the GreenSmoothieGirl.com free newsletter or “Like” the GSG Facebook page.) Place the almonds on dehydrator racks and dry at 105° until completely dry (6-12 hrs.). Store in the fridge. (I learned the hard way that if not completely dry, sprouted almonds will mold if you leave them out on the counter for more than a few days in the summer.) Besides the nutritional advantage, the middle of the soaked almonds pop open, and when dehydrated, they make a crunchy snack that’s lighter and more fun to eat than regular almonds. © Copyright Robyn Openshaw 12 Steps to Whole Foods 203
- Page 173 and 174: Reaping a Gardener’s Rewards SPIN
- Page 175 and 176: Reaping a Gardener’s Rewards Zucc
- Page 177 and 178: Reaping a Gardener’s Rewards Vani
- Page 179 and 180: CHAPTER 6 Making Plant-Based Main D
- Page 181 and 182: Making Plant-Based Main Dishes Amer
- Page 183 and 184: Making Plant-Based Main Dishes What
- Page 185 and 186: Making Plant-Based Main Dishes Mill
- Page 187 and 188: Making Plant-Based Main Dishes 4. D
- Page 189 and 190: Making Plant-Based Main Dishes © C
- Page 191 and 192: Making Plant-Based Main Dishes Garl
- Page 193 and 194: Making Plant-Based Main Dishes Bake
- Page 195 and 196: Making Plant-Based Main Dishes Curr
- Page 197 and 198: Making Plant-Based Main Dishes © C
- Page 199 and 200: Making Plant-Based Main Dishes GRAI
- Page 201 and 202: Making Plant-Based Main Dishes Pink
- Page 203 and 204: Making Plant-Based Main Dishes Tabb
- Page 205 and 206: Making Plant-Based Main Dishes * Ga
- Page 207 and 208: Making Plant-Based Main Dishes * Pa
- Page 209 and 210: Making Plant-Based Main Dishes * Gr
- Page 211 and 212: Making Plant-Based Main Dishes * Ch
- Page 213 and 214: Making Plant-Based Main Dishes * Wi
- Page 215 and 216: Making Plant-Based Main Dishes Avoc
- Page 217 and 218: Making Plant-Based Main Dishes * Po
- Page 219 and 220: Making Plant-Based Main Dishes © C
- Page 221 and 222: CHAPTER 7 Sprouting and Dehydrating
- Page 223: Sprouting and Dehydrating Note the
- Page 227 and 228: Sprouting and Dehydrating The Virtu
- Page 229 and 230: Sprouting and Dehydrating Your Jour
- Page 231 and 232: Sprouting and Dehydrating © Copyri
- Page 233 and 234: Sprouting and Dehydrating Cocoa Alm
- Page 235 and 236: Sprouting and Dehydrating Green Pes
- Page 237 and 238: Sprouting and Dehydrating © Copyri
- Page 239 and 240: Sprouting and Dehydrating KALE CHIP
- Page 241 and 242: Sprouting and Dehydrating OTHER REC
- Page 243 and 244: Sprouting and Dehydrating Roasted E
- Page 245 and 246: CHAPTER 8 Preserving Raw Foods with
- Page 247 and 248: Preserving Raw Foods with Natural P
- Page 249 and 250: Preserving Raw Foods with Natural P
- Page 251 and 252: Preserving Raw Foods with Natural P
- Page 253 and 254: Preserving Raw Foods with Natural P
- Page 255 and 256: Preserving Raw Foods with Natural P
- Page 257 and 258: Preserving Raw Foods with Natural P
- Page 259 and 260: Preserving Raw Foods with Natural P
- Page 261 and 262: Preserving Raw Foods with Natural P
- Page 263 and 264: Preserving Raw Foods with Natural P
- Page 265 and 266: Preserving Raw Foods with Natural P
- Page 267 and 268: CHAPTER 9 Replacing White Flour wit
- Page 269 and 270: Replacing White Flour with Whole Gr
- Page 271 and 272: Replacing White Flour with Whole Gr
- Page 273 and 274: Replacing White Flour with Whole Gr
Sprouting and Dehydrating<br />
The idea of soaking and sprouting grain and drying it in<strong>to</strong> bread comes from an apocryphal book of scripture<br />
known as The Essene Gospel of Peace that some say contains the teachings of Jesus <strong>to</strong> a congregation of<br />
Essenes.<br />
To make Essene bread, you sprout wheat, spelt, kamut, rye, or oats according <strong>to</strong> the directions below. When the<br />
tail (or “hairs”) are about as long as the wheat berries, you then grind the grains (with a meat grinder or food<br />
processor, or you can use a Champion juicer with the homogenizing plate on). You can also add in chopped<br />
nuts or dried fruits such as almonds, pumpkin or sunflower seeds, dates, raisins or apricots. Then form the<br />
dough in<strong>to</strong> patties about 1" thick and dehydrate them at 100-115° for several hours until the desired texture is<br />
achieved. (In an emergency situation, you could allow the bread <strong>to</strong> dry in the sun as described in The Essene<br />
Gospel.) Even a small amount of this bread is very filling, because it is so nutrient dense.<br />
If your family doesn’t like sprouted- or fermented-grain food, you can sprout wheat berries and then dry them<br />
in your dehydra<strong>to</strong>r below 115°. Then grind them in your grain mill and use the flour in any recipe that calls for<br />
it, preferably recipes not cooked at high heats.<br />
How Do I Sprout Grains, Nuts, and Seeds?<br />
More complicated ways of sprouting exist: a Yahoo online group is dedicated just <strong>to</strong> sprouting, and they talk<br />
about complicated methods using blankets, mesh bags, soil, and all kinds of gadgets, and they support each<br />
other in successes and failures. The following simple and quick method has worked for me the past 15 years<br />
and takes just a minute or two of my time. (I also show this in a short GreenSmoothieGirl YouTube video:<br />
http://tiny.cc/4VM1J.)<br />
For anything you choose <strong>to</strong> germinate, fill of a pint or quart jar with the seed or nut. Leave it on a counter<br />
with the remaining of the jar filled with filtered water. Let small seeds like alfalfa/clover/radish sit for about<br />
4-6 hours, and then put the sprouting lid on and drain the water completely. The sprouting lid can be<br />
cheesecloth inside a canning lid, or wire or plastic mesh (I buy plastic mesh from craft s<strong>to</strong>res) cut <strong>to</strong> fit the<br />
inside of a canning lid. You can also purchase canning lids with screens in them at health food s<strong>to</strong>res.<br />
With larger beans like mung or garbanzo, or seeds like sunflower or pumpkin, soak 8 them hours or overnight<br />
before draining. (If you accidentally forget and let them go <strong>to</strong>o long, it’s no big deal—just drain them as soon<br />
as you remember.) I find soybeans and wheat berries difficult <strong>to</strong> sprout, because they go sour or moldy easily.<br />
Wheat berries sprout in soil more easily.<br />
Put the jar of soaked and drained seeds on its side, turning it two or three times during the day. The second<br />
morning, rinse and drain the sprouts again. You do this until you see the seeds/nuts just barely begin <strong>to</strong> grow a<br />
sprout, usually after a day or two. With almonds or other nuts, don’t worry about them growing a sprout: they<br />
are germinated and “live” after soaking for eight hours.<br />
Then remove the sprouting lid and put a regular, air-tight canning lid on the jar. Put the sprouts in the fridge,<br />
where growth will slow, and they will last a week or two. Sprouting will happen more quickly in warm<br />
weather. If you live where it is hot and humid, or if you are sprouting in late summer, rinse and turn your<br />
sprouts more often.<br />
202 <strong>12</strong> <strong>Steps</strong> <strong>to</strong> <strong>Whole</strong> <strong>Foods</strong><br />
© Copyright Robyn Openshaw