EASY-SPROUT Sprouter

Welcome to "The easiest sprouter ever!" and

A World of Easy-Sprouting!

A Message from the Inventor - Gene Monson The old ways of sprouting are too slow, inconvenient and bothersome.

EASY-SPROUT™ changes that. Now you can grow fresh sprouts (at home or away) and keep them conveniently at your fingertips. Those who want extra containers for an abundance of ready-to-eat sprouts in the refrigerator will welcome the basic three-part Sprout Keeper™ model (Inner & Outer Container + Vented Lid). For 20+ years I've been using, loving and supplying these practical, effective, earth-friendly fingertip gardens. Why?

Because this unique quart-size, dual-container sprouting system (made of durable, easy-to-clean, quality food grade material) is able to

• use the heat from sprouting seeds to circulate fresh, humidified air by natural convection.

• prevent suffocation & dehydration so sprouts need less (or NO) rinsing.

• conveniently produce pound batches of healthier, tastier sprouts faster with minimal effort.

•simplify and enhance "Travel Sprouting" and the storage of fresh sprouts in the refrigerator.

Fresh food lovers everywhere (& their hungry Parrots!) are sure to welcome the "plant today, harvest tomorrow" speed and convenience of these unique sprouters. EASY-SPROUT™ is such a fast, easy way to add vitality to our daily food supply, we should all be Easy-Sprouting!

GETTING STARTED

Use untreated, whole dry seeds, beans, grains or nuts. Viability is the main criteria. A good variety can be found at health and natural food stores, food co-ops, grocery stores and from direct mail sources. Remember - viable seeds will be sprouted in 8-48 hours in EASY-SPROUT™.

• Seed Quantity -
Use 1/4 to 2 cups of grains, hulled sunflower, whole sesame & nuts. Use 1/4 to 1 1/2 cups of hulled buckwheat & beans. Use 2 T. to 1/2 cup of salad types including alfalfa, broccoli, cabbage, clover, radish. Don't use chia, cress & flax.

• Soaking/Rinsing -
Warm soak water (90 - 120 degrees F., initial temperature) is best, especially for beans & alfalfa. For soaking time, 8-12 hours is fine for most types. Hulled sunflower, buckwheat & whole sesame need only an hour. Use tepid rinse water.

• Special handling needs - Alfalfa & Salad Types -
Most seeds need 1-12 hours of soaking & no rinsing. Salad types like alfalfa, broccoli, clover, radish, etc., are usually grown to leaf stage. Water keeps sprouts from growing into a tight, compacted mass, simplifies dehulling & rearranges sprouts for uniform greening. (At each rinse, fill sprouter with tepid water, loosen sprouts with a fork, stir, skim hulls, drain well & loosen.) See Sprouting Notes.

Sample sprouts as they grow. When sprouts are the way you like them, eat or refrigerate. Remember - readiness is relative to variety, temperature, usage and preference.

KEY ELEMENTS OF NO RINSE SPROUTING
- A larger seed mass (to increase warmth)
- Warm soak water (90-120° F., initial temperature.)
- A well-drained, non-compacted seed mass.
(See Small Seeds - use of centrifugal force.)

HAVE YOU HAD YOUR SPROUTS TODAY?

"Find the shortest, simplest way between the earth, the hands and the mouth." - Lanza Del Vasto (The Unsettling of America: Culture & Agriculture by Wendell Berry)

We're talking about point-of-consumption food production. EASY-SPROUTERS simplify and enhance germination, enabling us to easily turn economical commodities (seeds, beans & grains) & nuts into value-added, fresh food.

We're not talking about a radical new diet or abrupt changes in eating habits, but simply adding sprouts to what we're already eating.

Why grow and eat sprouts everyday? Nutritionist Dr. Frances Grba said it best: "Sprouts become sources of complete protein, able to sustain human life without recourse to other foods. They contain the most assimilable vitamins available because they come wrapped with all the minerals, enzymes and still-unknown factors so necessary to the full utilization of our food. When they are added to other foods, they make the nutrients in these foods more useable to the body."

WHEN A SEED SPROUTS

- Stored food & enzymes needed for growth of the mature plant are mobilized.

Protein, carbohydrate & fat is broken down (pre-digested) to free amino acids, simple sugars & soluble compounds.

Vitamins, including A, B-complex (B-12), C, E & K, increase to meet the growth needs of a young plant. (For example, B-complex in wheat increases 600 percent, vitamin E triples & vitamin C increases six-fold. Vitamin C in a 100 gram serving of peas goes from 0 to 69 mg. in 48 hours!)

Essential minerals - calcium, magnesium, iron & zinc are supplied in organic form, "chelated" for better assimilation.

Nutrient-density is enhanced at the expense of calories!

SEED & SPROUT TIPS

SPROUTING NOTES & SUGGESTIONS

"To live effectively is to live with adequate information."- Norbert Weiner

Most seed types require little more than 1-12 hours of soaking followed by varying periods of unattended sprouting time (and no rinsing.) Some seeds have special handling needs. For example:

ALFALFA & SALAD SPROUTS

Salad-type sprouts such as alfalfa, broccoli, clover, radish, etc. are usually grown to a more mature leaf stage. Water is useful for more than just growth - it's a way to keep sprouts from growing into a tight compacted mass, while simplifying dehulling and rearrangement of sprouts for uniform greening. (At each rinse, fill sprouter with lukewarm water, loosen sprout mass with a fork, stir, skim hulls & drain.)

Due to water's "surface tension" a critical time for all tiny seeds is after soaking. The seed mass should always be thoroughly drained, then loosened. This will provide the proper growing room and air flow.

• Quick & Easy One-Rinse Baby Alfalfa
OMIT Alfalfa Insert. Put 3 c. warm water in Sprouter, THEN add 1/2 c. seeds. Soak 8 hours, drain & rinse with fresh warm water. Thoroughly drain & loosen seeds. Sprout until 1/2" (about 24 hrs). Fill sprouter with lukewarm water and gently loosen sprout mass with a fork. (Skim any loose hulls from top.) Drain well. Start using. Alfalfa grown by this method will be sweeter and have a much longer refrigerated shelf life than that sprouted to a longer stage with multiple rinses.

• Growing Long Alfalfa & Salad Types
Use the above method, then remove half the sprouts & rinse at least once per day. Alternatively, use the alfalfa insert and 2-6 T. seed. After 8 hour soak, drain well and rinse at 12 hour intervals, to desired stage. If desired, at the final rinse, the sprouts can be put in a large pan of cool water to wash remaining hulls & unsprouted seeds from the sprout mass. Remove alfalfa insert, if used, and return sprouts to sprouter for further growth, greening or refrigerated storage.

BEANS, ETC.

Sprouted beans taste better, cook faster, are less gas forming, more nutritious & versatile than unsprouted beans. Most will find only garbanzo, lentil, mung & pea sprouts palatable fresh. (A few lentils & mung may remain hard - be aware.)

• Garbanzos love cool (50-60 F.) temp., no rinsing & even sprout in the refrigerator in 7-10 days.

• Mung beans like warmth. (8 oz. soaked 8 hrs. grew pound of sweet 1/2" sprouts in 8 hrs. at 107°F.) For long fat mung use 3/4 cup beans. After soaking, invert Dome & put in 8 oz. weight. (Don't block vents.) Rinse 2+ times/day. Grow in dark until full. (If desired use the above pan method for dehulling.)

Without raw foods, we fall into a kind of twilight zone of ill health. You don't feel sick, but neither do you feel well." (Henning Karstrom, Swedish Medical Researcher)

BUCKWHEAT & SUNFLOWER

The quickest & easiest way to use these two delicious varieties is in the hulled form. Buckwheat is the most reliable, quality-wise.

• Buckwheat makes thick soak water. If the seeds are "dusty" from hulling, get rid of the dust by swirling the seeds in the sprouter before adding soak water. Some extra seed washing before and after soaking helps. And thorough drainage & loosening is a must. Ready to use in 24 hours.

• Sunflower's biggest concern is freshness, and rancid seeds are often found in the marketplace. Look for light grey seeds. Use within 48 hours of soaking. (Unhulled sunflower is used for growing greens, as is unhulled buckwheat.)

SESAME

• Sesame acquires a bitter taste if overgrown. It's most palatable with no root showing to just budded out. As with all tiny seeds, drain thoroughly and loosen. Sprout 12 hrs., cool & freeze in plastic bag.

STORAGE TIPS

RECIPES



How do we turn mealtimes into a celebration of life?

"Piggy-Back Approach" - Add sprouts to salads, sandwiches, pasta recipes, soups, deli foods, etc. Boost vitality, nutrient density. Reduce cost per serving, add freshness, homemade touches.

"Salad Bar Approach" - Set out Easy-Sprouters with various sprouts (alfalfa, buckwheat, lentils, rye, mung bean, sunflower, etc.) along with lettuce, cherry tomatoes, onion, etc. and variety of dressings. Everyone can create their own salad and/or add sprouts to other foods at the table.

"Be Your Own Food Company Approach" - Make high-vitality fast foods: frozen sprout bars, shakes, spreads, dips, etc. Sprout sesame, sunflower, nuts, grains using No Rinse method, then freeze along with dried fruit, raisins etc. Grind frozen sprouts + add-ins in Osterizer¨ Mini-blend Container (3/4 c) or VITA-MIXER™ (3+ c). Serve or re-freeze in lined sandwich containers. Cut into bars, wrap & label for quick breakfast, after-school snack.

HIGH-VITALITY RECIPES