Why We Eat Spaceships with Tails - sprouting legumes and grains is worth it!

There is only so much time in a day, why on earth is sprouting legumes, grains or seeds a good idea?

Let me make myself perfectly clear. Sprouting takes less than 4 minutes of your time from start to finish. That 4 minutes will pay you back exponentially.

Exponential improvement in the health of you and your tribe allowing you to live and be your best!  A promise about soaking stuff in water first?  Yes indeed!

Sprouting is something I started doing to help our 15 year old daughter as she battles c diff colitis Remember the Big MAC diet post?

Microbiota Accessible Carbohydrates….these are the Big MAC’s we LOVE at our house. I add sprouted legumes to EVERYTHING and in so doing help our daughters gut heal while improving our own health.

They aren't just good for her, they are good for all of us! Our uber picky 8 year old almost died and refused to eat the "tail" the first time he saw sprouted lentils added to a burrito.  I laughed and told him, "dude, you need to eat the whole spaceship with the tail." Sold.

• Legumes are packed with the fiber the critters in our intestines (gut microbiome) LOVE to eat. The equation is simple. High fiber foods = food for intestinal bacteria = stronger microbiome.
• Fiber is what the critters in your gut eat. Well-fed gut critters = happy, healthy gut critters. Check.
• Fiber keeps you full longer. Check.
• Fiber saves you time sitting on the porcelain throne. Check.
• Sprouting legumes prior to eating helps make them easier to digest (shhh this means less gas). Check.
• Cheap plant based protein - 1/2 cup cooked lentils have 8 grams of protein. Double Check.
• Dry legumes are super cheap. Less than $1 a pound at any grocery store. Last time I was at Costco, organic chicken was about $6 a pound. You have math skills too. Check.

Plenty of reasons to want to add legumes, grains and seeds to your diet but sprouting them first? Yes!!!

Sprouting – DISCLAIMER… if they smell weird, are slimy or moldy….DO NOT EAT THEM!!!!

If you have a mason jar you can do this. Nothing technical, nothing wacky.

Benefits of Sprouting

Complex carbohydrates are broken down into easier to digest carbohydrates = less gas.

Sprouting also allows for our body to absorb more nutrients = more vitamins and minerals to help the cells in our body fight and be its strongest.

If you are sprouting legumes or grains, they will cook faster. Check

Ever head of alkaline (plant based foods) vs acidic (sugar and heavily processed foods) foods? The more alkaline the better. Guess what, sprouting makes legumes, grains and seeds more alkaline which is SUPER AMAZING for our body!!!

If you are still reading, there is a chance you might try sprouting. Seriously it takes nothing fancy.

Here are the steps to sprout your own goodness:

• Rinse 1 cup of lentils (legumes, grains or seeds)
• Place rinsed lentils in a 1 qt mason jar
• Fill jar to the shoulder with water and let it sit overnight or for about 12 hours
• Use your fingers and hand as a colander (or cheese cloth secured with a ring) and drain water.
• Prop jar on a towel at an angle to allow for drainage and air flow.
• Rinse 2-3 times a day by filling the jar with fresh water and pouring it out again using your fingers and hand or cheesecloth  as a strainer. Continue to prop jar on a towel at an angle. Your sprouts are ready when they have ¼ inch “tails.” (After the overnight soak, it takes until about the end of the second day to get them to sprout.)
• Place sprouted lentils in a medium saucepan and add water to cover plus an inch or so. Bring to a boil then cover with a lid and simmer for 15-20 min or until tender. Each legume or grain will have a different cooking time BUT it will be faster than a non-sprouted legume or grain.  Freeze extra in zip lock baggies, all ready portioned.

WHERE TO USE SPROUTED grains or legumes –

SALADS, SOUP, CASSEROLES, SCRAMBLED EGGS and add to meat dishes like tacos, shredded bbq. You name it and I will have been accused of adding lentils to it.

They are amazing in everything and with everything!!! There is also a really good chance you can get away with them added to brownies and cookies too. Shhhh!

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Brooke

Simple Crock Pot Green Chile Chicken with Masa Dumplings: FAST FOOD Part 2 of 3

Simple Crock Pot Green Chile Chicken with Masa Dumplings

Imagine your busiest day of the week filled with all things nutso where you are stretched as thin as silly putty about to snap. Then add something else to your to-do list. Like eat. Eating isn’t all bad, especially when it’s something fabulous and easy and delicious and good for your team.

Enchilada sauce, chicken, black beans and masa.  BAM! That is it my friends.

Masa? Que Paso? Masa is corn flour used to make corn tortillas and tamales. We LOVE homemade corn tortillas and tamales but again….labor of muy loco love cuz they are a crazy amount of work to make. To be fair to tortillas though, we make them several times a month and those bad boys are so worth the effort! Just not on those days when life is super nuts.

Back to masa and why it is so spectacular. Masa harina is a whole grain and because it comes from corn, it’s gluten free if that matters to you. If you need it gluten free certified make sure it’s on the label (like Bob’s Redmill). Otherwise masa is a cinch to work with and it’s super delicious, its good for you without tasting like liquid alfalfa. Sold right?

You will find it on the bottom shelf at the grocery store in the Hispanic section.

We invented these masa dumplings when we had no time to make honest to goodness real homemade corn tortillas, fill them with the chicken and bake…I needed to simplify crazy delicious enchiladas. This recipe does that.

Back to dinner on the craziest day of the week.

FOUR ingredients, whole grain, whole foods….AWESOME!

This recipe also has 3 different levels of difficulty based on how much time you have.

Simple Crock Pot Green Chili Chicken with Masa Dumplings

• 1 28 oz can green chili enchilada sauce
• ¼ can water added to the green chili enchilada can, swirled around
• 1 15 oz can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 pound chicken (pork would work too)- I only thaw it in the fridge overnight (when I remember) so it’s still pretty frozen in the morning

Use a crock-pot liner, spray with oil or do nothing at all (that’s how I do it) to the inside of the crock pot. Place enchilada sauce, water, black beans and chicken. Dial crock pot to low and let it go to work while you attack your day. I usually start this meal at 7 am, when I get home at 3 I shred the chicken and add the masa.

***EASY LEVEL ALERT*** need things simpler? Don’t add the extra water, once the chicken has cooked all day, shred it and scoop the shredded chicken into flour tortillas or corn shells. BAM…Dinner ready

***MEDIUM LEVEL ALERT *** If you have an extra hour before dinner add this step:

• 1 2/3 cups masa (whole grain corn flour used to make tamales – you find it in the Hispanic section)
• 1 1/4 cup warm water
• Pinch of salt

Measure masa, add salt and blend. Add water to form dough, similar to biscuit consistency. If it’s a little sticky and wet it’s ok. If it’s so sticky you can’t get it off your fingers add a little more masa. Corn flour has no gluten so you can’t really over mix it with negative consequences.

Scoop golf ball sized globs and pat flat - about ¼ inch thick in the palm of your hand or your fingertips and drop into fully cooked shredded chicken goop in the crock pot. Spread the masa around (we push the layers of masa down with a fork) until all the masa dumplings are submerged. Crank the crockpot to high for one hour and your masterpiece will be inhaled shortly.

Serve atop fresh spinach with a side of tomatoes or summer squash. My kids love to dollop with sour cream.

Muy delicioso!

Brooke

 ***HARDEST LEVEL BASED ON TIME AND ENERGY*** Should you feel super energetic and prefer homemade green Chile tomatillo sauce, this is what I use. We grow tomatillos in the garden and literally have 2 – 5 gallon buckets of tomatillos. I love homegrown, homemade sauce so I freeze it in 4-5 cup portions and use that instead of the cans of enchilada sauce from the store.

Quick Green Chile Tomatillo Sauce

Boil

• 5 pounds of husked tomatillos
• 10-12 jalapenos, remove seeds and ribs if you prefer less heat
• 2 big pinches of salt

Add enough water to cover tomatillos and jalapenos, bring to a boil and boil 10 minutes. Drain in a colander.

In your blender add:

• 1 bunch cilantro
• 2 medium onion, course chopped
• 6 cloves garlic
• 4 cups chicken broth
• Salt to taste

Scoop enough cooked tomatillos and jalapenos into the blender to fill about 2/3 the way. Add a cup or two of the broth so things swirl and grind to your smoothness liking.

 Add olive oil to bottom of stock pot, enough to coat.

Pour blender filled with pureed goodness back into the stock pot you used to boil the tomatillos. Blend in batches remaining broth, tomatillos and jalapenos until smooth. Bring to a boil then simmer for 30 min to 1 hour.  Yields 14 cups.