Easy-Peasey Sprouting!

The aged women likewise, that they be in behavior as becometh holiness, not false accusers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things; That they may teach the young women to be sober, to love their husbands, to love their children, To be discreet, chaste, keepers at home, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God be not blasphemed. Titus 2. 3-5

I'm always on the hunt for new things to learn, new activities to try, new ways to enhance my mission of being a Titus 2 woman- a 'keeper of my home'. A few months ago, I decided to give sprouting a try.

With the demise of the family farm, and the advent of huge agri-business that grows most of the food in this country, our soil is depleted. Way back in the 80's scientists tested the soil in the San Joachim Valley, CA-they founded it depleted in minerals, and yes, filled with pesticides. The mindset of "better farming through chemicals" continues today, so even if we buy fresh veggies for our family, we're not getting the health benefits that our ancestors did.

So what's a solution?
1. Organics. For several years now my family has bought into a CSA-an organic farm that sells "shares" of it's yearly crop, plus organic meats and eggs. Local, fresh, organic veggies from June through November. A great solution ...but the price is high-very high. In grocery stores organics can be as much as 50% more than non-organic. In this economy, for most of us, organic is not an option. We prayed about it, and chose not to sign up this year for our share of the farm's produce.
2. Gardens. If you don't have a garden, I encourage you to start digging! But-most of us do not have the land required to grow all our veggies and fruits, or the right weather conditions, ect. And who can forget the tomato blight 2 years ago? Gardens are great, but not a solution.
3.Vitamins. Yes, we should all pop a multivitamin/mineral supplement, but that will not provide our bodies with all it needs, despite our culture's belief that supplements cover a multitude of poor eating sins.
4. Sprouts. Sprouting will go a long way in providing nutrition in an easy, affordable way- and it's available to anyone!

The Chinese actually use sprouts as medicine. Just soaking your grains (like oatmeal), seeds and nuts can increase their nutrition up to 120%. Sprouting can increase nutritive value 500-600% in some cases. You see, grains and such contain pytic acid that prevent key minerals (calcium, magnesium, copper, iron, zinc) from being absorbed in our intestinal tract. Soaking and sprouting neutralizes the acid, releasing the nutrients. For more info on soaking, hop on over to passionatehomemaking.com.

I am sooo hooked on sprouting! Although wheat, oat groats, seeds, and dried beans are alive, they can be stored for years in a cool, dry environment. You can sprout in small buckets, or a mason jar, but I chose to buy a sprouting kit from Amazon. It takes up little room and makes rinsing the sprouts very easy. I use just 2 TB. of organic non GMO grain, bean, seed or nuts/tray. I rinse them a couple of times a day, and in 3-5 days>SPROUTS!! We eat them on sandwiches, salads, I even top our soups and casseroles with raw sprouts. So do our own research, and see if sprouting might be a fun (and healthy!) project for your family.