I need to buy some chia pets.

A couple weeks ago I was at work, reveling in a veggie sandwich from Apple Spice Junction, and I realized that for me, what makes a good veggie sandwich is the mushroom/sprouts combo. I spent every spare second of the day reading about the different kinds of sprouts, the health benefits* of sprouts, the best ways to grow sprouts at home, etc.etc. etc. On the way home I stopped at Whole Foods, where you can buy different sprouts in bulk. I bought just a little bit of three kinds- a sandwich blend (alfalfa, radish, broccoli, and mung), radish, and mung bean- in case this was just a phase and I lost interest after the first time.

For the radish, I spritzed a paper towel with water and stuck it in the bottom of a mason jar, with the the seeds over it. The sprouts molded before they were very big.

For the mung and the sandwich blend, I put about three tablespoons of seeds in the bottom of a mason jar, and used one of those paint strainers as a screen over the mouth of the jar, secured by the ring. I soaked the seeds for 12 hours, then shook out all the water, and left the jars to drain on my dish draining rack. I rinsed and shook up the seeds every twelve hours, always finishing by shaking out all the water and letting the sprouts dry out as much as possible. Within four days I had a really delicious blend for sandwiches/salads.

I also had a jar of really stinky mung beans.Turns out the paint strainer weave is too tight for the bigger beans; not enough water got out, and the beans went bad.

I'm debating buying or making a sprout grower because they look so nice, but trying to talk myself out of it because the jars work just as well (or will, once I get a looser screen for the big beans). What's nice, though, is that I can always have them on hand to add flavor and healthiness* to various foods. This week I'm going to experiment with sprouts in smoothies.

*Sprouts are a good source of protein, vitamin C, and a lot of other good stuff that prevents disease and cancer, and lower bad cholesterol.