Bowl O' Beans

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I first had this delicious food at Lifespring, a unique place to eat on Highway 51 south of Minocqua, Wisconsin (in the geodesic dome across from Blue Lake Road). The owner, Steven Black, graciously shared his recipe with me. I'll be back so I can try everything he has on his menu of healthy foods.

I think you'll enjoy the reading the recipe as much as eating the final dish.

Start with a ceramic (sturdy) bowl

• Place a shplap of refried beans in the bowl (make sure they do not contain any lard) - my shplap was about 3/4 cup
• Make a healthy splash of red wine vinegar - my splash was about 2 Tbsp.
• Add a pinch of fresh rosemary - I cut off about 2 inches of one stalk and used those leaves from the plant that I bring inside for the winter
• Add a handful of sprouted lentils (see note below) - I used ~3/4 cup
• Add another handful of sprouted mung beans - I used ~3/4 cup
• Add olive or grape seed oil 2 turns - I added ~1 Tbsp.

Directions:

• Mix well
• Place bowl on plate and fill up sides with blue chips
• For added zip and phytochemicals, try sprinkling some cut up green onions or watercress over all before eating

The recipe does not need these additions for taste but just to kick it up a notch from ultra-healthy to ultra-ultra-healthy.

This makes one serving as a main dish. A couple of people could easily share it as a side dish or appetizer. I served this for myself with a very large green salad and a good beer for a delicious and easy Friday night supper.

Special Note:
It is easy to sprout lentils and mung beans but takes several days of attention. The lentils can be purchased at any grocery store but mung beans probably need to be found at a natural food store or an Asian grocery store.

I soaked both lentils and mung beans in separate bowls overnight. I just left these bowls on the counter. In the morning I drained them both very well.

Lentils:

• I put the drained lentils into a quart-size canning jar with a wide mouth. I had previously purchased a small round screen to go under the canning ring to permit air circulation in the jar when sprouting.
• I laid the jar on its side, rinsed the lentils 3 times each day, draining very very well (shaking off the water through the screen) and simply placing the jar on its side on my counter. It took 4 full days of rinsing and draining for the sprouts to be ~1 inch long.
• The last afternoon, I put the jar in the south window for some sun to help the leaves green up a bit.
• After rinsing and shaking off excess water a final time, I store them in an air-tight container in my refrig. They'll keep fine for a few days.

Mung Beans:

I only had one screen to use for sprouting with a canning jar (cheesecloth could also be used) so I tried a different technique for the mung beans, which worked just fine!

• After soaking that first night and draining, I spread them out on a colander, put the colander over a bowl, and also put a damp paper towel over the beans.
• I rinsed and drained them 3 times daily.
• The mung beans took 5 days to sprout to about 1/2 inch or so.

The recipe is also great just with sprouted lentils.

Steven has inspired me to go back to sprouting. Years ago sprouted sunflower seeds were my absolutely favorite food. It's time to try them again!

Here is a web site that has lots of fascinating information about growing and cooking with sprouts: http://www.sproutpeople.com

P.O. Box 130221, Ann Arbor, MI  48113