Sprouts are a good winter substitute for lettuce. Here’s some chicken pate, sprouts and dehydrator sesame seed crackers.

“When eating bamboo sprouts remember the man who planted them.”
Chinese Proverb

Sprouts are full of chlorophyll, vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and enzymes. Broccoli sprouts in particular are a rich source of sulfurophane — a powerful detoxifier — which has been found to lower the risk of developing some types of cancer.

Sprouts are a wonderful winter food when greens at the grocery store are starting to look less than appealing while costing a small fortune. Sprouts can be cooked or eaten raw. This sprouting mix is designed to be eaten raw. The mix can be used as a substitute for lettuce or any other salad green. The fenugreek and radish seeds give the mix a spicy favor.

Winter Sprouting Mix
1 part organic broccoli seeds
1 part organic fenugreek seeds
1 part organic radish seeds
3 parts organic French green lentil seeds or other small lentil

Sprouting is very easy. Add 4T of the sprouting mix to a 2L mason jar. The seeds should be rinsed 2-3 times a day with filtered water. Cover the mouth of the mason jar with a cheese cloth kept in place with a elastic band. An alternative is to use a metal or plastic sprouting lid. Place the jar on its side in a warm place. The sprouts should be ready after 4-6 days depending on the temperature. A good trick is to start a second jar in 2-3 days for a continual supply of sprouts.

When the sprouts are ready to eat it is better to remove the sprouts from the sprouting jar and transfer the them to a glass container covered with a plastic bag and kept in the fridge. In the fridge, sprouts should be good for about one week but the sprouts will be much better eaten within a few days.

Cover the top of the sprouting jar with cheese cloth held in place by a rubber band. Here’s a stainless steel sprouting screen that uses part of a mason jar lid.