April 4th fourth day.

Going a little slow this morning.  We had storms pass through last night and though I'm not usually one to be bothered by thunder, for some reason, I was restless.  Could have been the new moon as well.  Emily, from Raw Food Rehab, posted last  night that the new moon is a good time to write down your intentions and then when the full moon comes you can burn the little card that you wrote on and send those intentions out into the universe.  I had planned on journaling my plans for the new Go Fresh Initiative last night so this made me doubly excited.  May be why I had too many thoughts rambling in my head. 


Woke up this morning with new resolve and a slight headache.  Not sleeping will do that for you.  Walked my mother's dog, Noszek, Polish for nosey, which she is.  She's a beagle and does she ever enjoy nose to earth interaction.  The birds were singing and the air felt renewed by the rain and hopeful will do the earth good to start sprouting green-ness.

For the morning starter I had a quart of lemon water, sprouted buckwheat cereal with home made rice mylk and a banana followed by 1/2 green juice and tea.

To make the cereal: I used 3/4 cup sprouted buckwheats that were dehydrated,
                                          1/2 mix of super fruits (dry) goji, mulberries and golden berries
                                          1 small banana sliced up
                                           3/4 home made rice mylk
                                            sprinkle of cinnamon

Place first three ingredients in a bowl, sprinkle on the cinnamon and pour on the mylk.

                               
That's a lttle bit of carrot juice that I had left over from yesterday so drank that first before I did the green juice. 

Sprouting buckwheats is easy.

I take about 1.5 of buckwheat groats from Sproutpeople, they are the best, most reliable and viable sprouts.  Soak them 6-8 hours, drain and rinse twice a day for about two days until little tails have formed.  Then I place them on the dehydrator trays, I have an Excaliber, and dry then for about half a day at 110 degrees.

You can use them for most anything: cereal substitute, snacks, salad topping, add them to the recipe when making granola...you imagination is your limit.

Instructions for sprouting buckwheat:

Sprouting Instructions
Yields approximately 1 Cup (1/2 lb.) of Sprouts
Put 2/3 Cup of seed* into a bowl or into your Sprouter.
Add 2-3 times as much cool (60-70 degree) water.
Mix seeds up to assure even water contact for all.
Allow seeds to Soak for 20 - 60 minutes.
Note: Groats take up all the water they need quickly, that is why their Soak time is so short. They get waterlogged if soaked too long, and will never sprout - so -
Don't over-soak!
Empty the seeds into your sprouter if necessary.
Drain off the soak water.

Rinse thoroughly with cool (60-70°) water
Note: Groats create the starchiest water on Earth - it is amazingly thick! They won't sprout too well unless you get rid of it - so Rinse and Rinse and Rinse until the water runs clear. It can take a little while - but don't skimp.
Every Rinse is the same with Groats: Rinse and Rinse and Rinse until the water runs clear.
Drain thoroughly.

Set anywhere out of direct sunlight and at room temperature (70° is optimal) between Rinses.
Rinse and Drain again in 4-8 hours.
And, perhaps one more...
Rinse and Drain in 4-8 hours.
And, possibly one more...
Rinse and Drain in 4-8 hours.
We like our sprouts small so we stop whenever they have the tiny tails we seek.

Your sprouts

You can visit the sprout people at the following to get more information:
.new site is at sproutpeople.org
Benefits of Cinnamon:

Studies have shown that just 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon per day can lower LDL cholesterol.
Several studies suggest that cinnamon may have a regulatory effect on blood sugar, making it especially beneficial for people with Type 2 diabetes.
In some studies, cinnamon has shown an amazing ability to stop medication-resistant yeast infections.
In a study published by researchers at the U.S. Department of Agriculture in Maryland, cinnamon reduced the proliferation of leukemia and lymphoma cancer cells.
It has an anti-clotting effect on the blood.
In a study at Copenhagen University, patients given half a teaspoon of cinnamon powder combined with one tablespoon of honey every morning before breakfast had significant relief in arthritis pain after one week and could walk without pain within one month.
When added to food, it inhibits bacterial growth and food spoilage, making it a natural food preservative.
One study found that smelling cinnamon boosts cognitive function and memory.
Researchers at Kansas State University found that cinnamon fights the E. coli bacteria in unpasteurized juices.
It is a great source of manganese, fiber, iron, and calcium.

Sprouting instructions for rice and rice mylk

Sprouting InstructionsYields approximately 1 Cup (1/2 lb.) of Sprouts

Put 2/3 Cup of seed* into a bowl or into your Sprouter.
Add 2-3 times as much cool (60-70 degree) water.
Mix seeds up to assure even water contact for all.
Allow seeds to Soak for 4-24 hours. (read Note directly below)
Note: ANYtime we soak ANY seed for longer than 12 hours, we change the water. when your first 12 hours is done: Drain off the soak water, Rinse the seeds and refill with fresh water. Continue soaking. It is extremely rare to soak longer than 12 hours, but Brown Rice is a seed that can take it. We suggest that you try your first batch with a 12 hour soak and see how you like the results. You can try the longer soak on future crops. That way you'll know the differences and which you prefer.
Wehani and Red Thai will sprout well after an 8-12 hour soak.
Wild Rice will split after a short soak and frankly, we've never seen a sprout on it, but it is SO GOOD we don't care. We soak it for about 4 hours. It is the one rice we actually eat un-cooked. It is still plenty chewy, but it's excellent!
Empty the seeds into your sprouter if necessary.
Drain off the soak water.
Rinse thoroughly with cool (60-70°) water.
Drain thoroughly.

Set anywhere out of direct sunlight and at room temperature (70° is optimal) between Rinses.
Rinse and Drain again in 8-12 hours.
And, perhaps one more...
Rinse and Drain in 8-12 hours.
And, if you like one more...
Rinse and Drain in 8-12 hours.
We usually stop here. We like our sprouts small (actually we don't even care if rice sprouts. A bulging germ is good enough for us. Once a seed takes in its fill of water it is alive and therefore nutritionally superior.

Harvest
Your sprouts are done 8-12 hours after your final rinse. Be sure to Drain them as thoroughly as possible after that final rinse.
The goal during the final 8-12 hours is to minimize the surface moisture of your sprouts - they will store best in your refrigerator if they are dry to the touch.

RefrigerateTransfer your sprout crop to a plastic bag or the sealed container of your choice - glass is good too - and put them in your refrigerator.

I sprouted my rice for several days.  Took the sprouted rice, about 1.25 cups and placed in my Blentec with 1.75 cups of water.  Blended is first for about 30 seconds.  Then I added three dates and 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract and blended again.  You want to make sure everything gets combined but not overheated.  Other flavorings can be added but this is a base recipe.

That's how the morning started.

For lunch I will have a kale salad and some marinaded mushrooms with green juice.

Dinner will probably be some fruit and juice.  Don't usually do a huge dinner.  I like to get the major of the heavier food intake in my mid day.  

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