Mother's Mix Sprouts
Red Clover, Alfalfa, Broccoli, Fenugreek, Natural and Black Sesame, and Garlic Chives.
A Leafy Sprout Blend that we put together for a loyal customer. It's full of nutrients that are essential for pregnant and nursing moms. It tastes fantastic. Everyone can enjoy Mother's Mix.
Vitamins A, B, C, E and K
Calcium, Iron, Magnesium, Phosphorus, Potassium, Zinc
Carotene, Chlorophyll, Amino Acids, Antioxidants, Trace Elements, Folic Acid
Protein: 35%
Excellent for Women
A complex burst of flavors and textures perfectly balanced; hot, nutty, savory, cool and mild.
The amount of Mother's Mix Sprouts produced by 1 unit of Seed. For Example 2:1 means that 1 pound of Seed will produce 2 pounds of Sprouts or whatever crop you are growing. You do not have to grow them all at once of course, unless you wish to =:-D
The time it takes to grow a finished 5 - 6 days, or other crop (Micro-Greens, Grass, Greens) from a dry Seed. Note: This "finished" Sprout is our preference. you may grow them for as long as you want! In fact, we suggest that you taste them at every rinse to discover when you like them best.
How to Grow Mother's Mix Sprouts
- Soak 2 Tbs. of seed in cool water for 8-12 hours.
- Drain off soak water. Do not ever soak again.
- Rinse thoroughly.
- Drain Thoroughly.
- Rinse and Drain with cool water every 8-12 hours.
- On day 3, move your Sprouter to a well lit location. Use direct sun only if you're growing in a tray.
- Continue to Rinse and Drain every 8-12 hours.
- Harvest on Day 6, when the leaves are open and most of them are green.
- De-Hull your crop if you like before Refrigerating.
Dry Mother's Mix awaits Soaking.
12 hours later... Soaked, Rinsed and Drained thoroughly.
12 hours later... another Rinse/Drain cycle.Remember to be Thorough - especially in your Draining.
12 hours later... another Rinse/Drain cycle.
12 hours later... another Rinse/Drain cycle.
12 hours later... another Rinse/Drain cycle.
12 hours later... another Rinse/Drain cycle.
12 hours later... another Rinse/Drain cycle.
12 hours later... another Rinse/Drain cycle.
12 hours later... another Rinse/Drain cycle. Remember to Drain especially thoroughly, unless you are using a De-Huller - in which case thorough will do.
12 hours later.... Harvest Time!
Dry Mother's Mix awaits Soaking.
12 hours later... Soaked, Rinsed and Drained thoroughly.
12 hours later... another Rinse/Drain cycle.Remember to be Thorough - especially in your Draining.
12 hours later... another Rinse/Drain cycle.
12 hours later... another Rinse/Drain cycle.
12 hours later... another Rinse/Drain cycle.
12 hours later... another Rinse/Drain cycle.
12 hours later... another Rinse/Drain cycle.
12 hours later... another Rinse/Drain cycle.
12 hours later... another Rinse/Drain cycle. Remember to Drain especially thoroughly, unless you are using a De-Huller - in which case thorough will do.
12 hours later.... Harvest Time!
Yields approximately 4 Cups (1/2 lb.) of Sprouts
Seed Prep
Measure out 2 Tablespoons of seed* (slightly heaping) into your Sprouter or a strainer.
Rinse your seeds to remove dust and debris.
Soak
Transfer your seeds into your Sprouter (if necessary), or to a bowl.Mix seeds up as you slowly add water to assure even water contact for all.
Add 2-3 times as much cool (70-80°F) water. Allow seeds to Soak for 4-12 hours.
Do Not Ever Soak Again.
Sprouting
Empty the seeds into your Sprouter (if necessary).Drain off the soak water.
You can use it - it has nutrients in it. We use it on house plants.
Rinse thoroughly with cool (70-80°F) water.
Drain thoroughly.
Draining Thoroughly (Maniacally even) is the key to great crops. The smaller the seed (all Leafy Sprouts are small seeds)
the more thorough you must be. Do Not skimp on Rinsing - but focus seriously on Draining.
If you need to see what we mean by Thorough Draining - check out our videos.
Set your Sprouter anywhere out of direct sunlight and at room temperature (70° is optimal) between Rinses.
This is where your sprouts do their growing. We use a counter top - in the corner of our kitchen, where the sprouter won't get knocked over by cats, dogs, kids or us.
Indirect sunlight is fine, as is your regular room light - because light just does not matter much in the first couple days.
A plant can only perform photosynthesis when it has leaves. Until a plant has leaves, light has little if any effect.
Sprouts also happen to like air-circulation, so don't hide your sprouts.
When leaves do appear, this will be plenty of light for them to green up. You can also use Grow Lights if you like.
Rinse and Drain again every 8-12 hours for 3 days. As long as you grow you have to keep your sprouts happy!
Always be sure to Drain very thoroughly. The most common cause of inferior sprouts is inadequate drainage. Even the best designed Sprouting Device holds water, so pay special attention to this step.
Greening On the 4th day relocate your sprouts if necessary. If you've been keeping them away from light - move them. Avoid direct sun as it can cook your sprouts, unless you are growing in a Tray Sprouter - in which case direct sunlight is great. Indirect sunlight is best but virtually any light will do. Experiment - you will be amazed at how little light sprouts require to green up. Photosynthesis is a marvel!
Continue to Rinse and Drain thoroughly every 8-12 hours. Your last Rinse and Drain will be either at the end of day 5 or the start of day 6 Always Drain Thoroughly.
Finishing
Your sprouts will be done about the end of day 6.
The majority of sprouts will have open leaves which will be green. You'll recognize them.
De-Hulling
Hulls are the thin coat on a seed. In most cases they seperate themselves from the sprout. They are only a problem when it comes to the shelf life of your finished crop.
We've eaten them for years and consider them extra roughage, but the crop looks better and lasts longer without them - so removing them is good.
You may De-Hull your sprouts at any time during day 5 or 6.
If you have a Salad Spinner - De-Hulling can be your last step. You can harvest and refrigerate them immediately after you finish.
You can also remove hulls prior to harvest...
If you are growing in a Jar -
using the Coarse Mesh Screen will allow some hulls to float out through the screen while Rinsing.
Repeating and agitating your sprouts will allow more hulls to escape.
If you're growing in an Easy Sprout Sprouter - transfer your sprouts to the Solid Base, fill with water, and agitate with a fork.
This will help hulls get to the surface - where you can skim them off. When you've gotten all you can - move your sprouts back to the Growing Vessel, Rinse again, and Drain Thoroughly.
If you're growing in our Stainless Steel Sprouter you can get rid of most of the hulls by Rinsing Upside Down.
Instead of writing words - let us direct you to our short video on the subject: Rinsing Leafy Sprouts Upside Down
Here is our video on De-Hulling.
Harvest
If you Dehulled with a salad spinner - you can go right to refrigeration. If not... Your sprouts are done 8-12 hours after your final Rinse and Very Thorough Draining. If we minimize the surface moisture of our sprouts they store much better in refrigeration, so we let them sit for 8-12 hours after that final Maniacal Draining.Storing Your Crop
Transfer your sprout crop to a plastic bag or the sealed container of your choice. We have Produce Storage Bags that can extend shelf life substantially.
Great work sprout farmer!
*Seed to Use
* If using Sproutpeople's Single Harvest Pack - use the whole bag (for a one-quart Sprouter). It will produce a crop of approximately 8 ounces.
These seeds yield approximately 7:1 - which means the sprouts will weigh 7 times as much as the seed you start with, but, they will increase even more in volume - so don't start with more than 2 (heaping) Tablespoons per quart/litre of sprouter capacity.
This Mix (new in 2009) really should be named Crystal's Mothers Mix as it was suggested to us by a very thoughtful customer. Mother's Mix is basically a Leafy Sprout Blend, but it is full of nutrients and other things that are essential for pregnant and nursing moms. It tastes fantastic, and anyone and everyone can enjoy that! Thanks Crystal!!!!
As mentioned above, Mother's Mix was originally suggested by a loyal customer.... In her original email, Crystal sent all these reasons why Mother's Mix is a good idea:
Most of these are the ones recommended by Dr. James A. Duke in his book The Green Pharmacy. Fenugreek not only enlarges the breasts (as you mentioned) but has been shown to increase milk flow. Garlic has been used to treat mastitis - much better than having antibiotics come through the breast milk (of course that could result in the child's tolerance to antibiotics when they need it). Also "In addition, garlic helps babies nurse better. If breastfeeding mothers eat a few cloves of garlic within an hour before nursing begins, babies attach to the breast more readily, stay there longer, suck more and drink more milk, according to studies done at the Monell Chemical Senses Center in Philadelphia. Alfalfa - like fenugreek is also oestogenic. I.e. produce more milk. Sesame - also good for increasing milk flow. (and ounce for ounce best source of calcium on the planet.) And finally Broccoli. (bet you thought I forgot!) I don't have a source to quote but did read that eating broccoli sprouts every other day locks in heart health for baby. But wait, there's more! From The World's Healthiest Foods: A Birth Defect Fighter Especially if you are pregnant, be sure to eat broccoli. A cup of broccoli supplies 94 mcg of folic acid, a B-vitamin essential for proper cellular division because it is necessary in DNA synthesis. Without folic acid, the fetus' nervous system cells do not divide properly. Deficiency of folic acid during pregnancy has been linked to several birth defects, including neural tube defects like spina bifida.
Notes from Sproutpeople All of the seeds in this mix are from sources which are certified organic. The other Broccoli related thing here is that the text above (from The World's Healthiest Foods) refers to mature (fully grown) Broccoli - not Broccoli sprouts. We know from RESEARCH that Broccoli sprouts contain up to 50 times the antioxidant content as mature Broccoli, and we know other sprouts to contain higher concentrations of nutrients than their mature vegetables, so the way we see it; you'll be WAY better off with the sprouts. We're talking Living Food here! Lastly - the Garlic mentioned above is mature Garlic. The seed we use and sell does not grow Garlic - it grows Garlic Chives. Though these crops are related (same Family and Genus), they are not the same, so do keep eating your garlic too =;-D
The shelf life of sprouting seeds (how long the seeds remains viable - able to germinate) varies quite a bit. Though most seeds will remain viable for years in reasonable storage (dark, cool and low humidity), some will not. We suggest that you freeze your seed. Freezing extends the shelf life of a seed by several years. The only concern in freezing is condensation. All you need to do to avoid condensation is to return the seed to the freezer within a few minutes - after you've removed what you need, to grow your current crop. Also, Keep them in any sealed container. A plastic bag is fine. Glass is better. You do not need to thaw the seeds - just go ahead and Soak.
Sprouting NotesWhen conditions are warmer your sprouts will likely grow faster. Likewise they may grow slower if conditions are very cool. As always 70° is optimal.
All sprouts generate heat while growing, which is a good thing, but it can get out of hand on occasion. When the weather is especially hot and humid you will do well to Rinse more frequently (every 8 hours if possible) using colder water than usual, to compensate.
We grow our sprouts almost exclusively in Easy Sprout Sprouters. By day 4 we have hulls coming off our sprouts, so we allow the hulls to escape. We do this by leaving the Growing Vessel inside the Solid Base of the Easy Sprout and then filling it with water. We use a fork to loosen the mass of sprouts, which allows more hulls to float to the surface. We skim the hulls off and compost them. It isn't necessary to do this because we De-Hull them when we harvest the crop, but it's a way to spend more time with your sprouts. We like to do that. It's possible that we're a bit odd that way - - but you see - sprouts are sorta part of our family - - hmmmm - I don't imagine that makes us seem less odd. Let's just leave it there. We are who we are @:-)
Depending on your Sprouting Device, not all of your sprouts will have access to light and so some will not green. This is not only OK - it is good. The yellow sprouts will be equally nutritious (they have everything but chlorophyll) and many think them more delicious (in Europe vegetables are often grown "blanched" by being denied light). We think they are prettier when there is a mix of green and yellow leaves to go with the white roots. So don't sweat it - just eat more sprouts!
When using a non-tray sprouter, you can help your crop by "breaking apart" your sprouts when they clump up - around day 3 or 4 and daily thereafter. We use high water pressure when Rinsing to keep our sprouts loose, but this only works for so long - so - when water isn't enough, loosen the clump of sprouts up using a fork or your fingers (wash your hands first please, if they need it). If you are using a Sprouter that can hold water, like Easy Sprout - fill it mostly full then use a fork to loosen the clump. You could also dump your sprouts onto or into something and just shake them apart. This clump loosening is by no means mandatory - but it will help more of their leaves to turn green. You should never be afraid*** of touching your sprouts. They are much stronger then they appear - just be reasonably gentle.
*** The only thing to fear is fear itself.
Alternate Growing Methods
Vertical Growing
This method produces very pretty sprouts that green most evenly and whose hulls are removed most easily. They do not however, taste any better =:-}
If you grow in a Tray sprouter - like SproutMaster, your sprouts can grow vertically - leaves (cotyledons) up, roots down. The trick to doing this is to keep your sprouts in place (don't "break them up" as you do in a non-tray sprouter) from day 3 onward. It is easy to do if, when Rinsing, you use a sprayer (that attachment most sinks have - the one that pulls out and is gun-like or a faucet attachment that offers spraying when pulled down) instead of your faucet. We have grown many tons of leafy sprouts this way. Here is a breakdown of the specifics (rinse numbers are based on 12 hour intervals - adjust as needed):
Rinse 1 (right after Soak): Use faucet or sprayer and Rinse thoroughly (use water at high pressure and use plenty of it). Rinse 2 and 3: Use faucet or sprayer and Rinse thoroughly. Rinse 4: Use sprayer and while Rinsing thoroughly, spray your sprouts evenly across the bottom of the tray. You can use your hands to spread them too. The goal is to spread them evenly. Rinse 5 and 6: Use sprayer with less water pressure. Rinse well - (which since you are using less water pressure means - for a longer time) but don't disturb the sprouts. Rinse 7 - 10: Use sprayer. You can turn the water pressure back to high - your sprouts will not be easily moved (broken up) at this point and the higher water pressure feeds oxygen to your sprouts as well as "cleaning" them, which is a wonderful way to produce healthy long lasting sprouts. Rinse and Drain thoroughly. Rinse 11 (if you need this many) or your last Rinse: Use Sprayer. Hold your tray at an angle (90° will work but less is OK too) and spray across the top of the sprouts to remove hulls. We call this SHAVING. It can be done at any Rinse or every Rinse - starting when hulls begin to be shed by the opening leaves. Rinse down into the sprouts too.
Vertical growing CAN be done without a sprayer too but it is more difficult. If you want to try all you have to do is regulate your water pressure - trying to keep your sprouts undisturbed during rinses 4 - 6.
Growing Leafy Sprouts as Micro-Greens
We have posted instructions to do this Here: Leafy Sprout Micro-Greens.
Recommended Sprouters for Mother's Mix Sprouts
I’m with Jean—I think it’s terrific that this sprout is made with women and moms in mind. Thank you for thinking of us (while our health care system and medical research lags behind). It also tastes really great and fresh. Love it on avocado toast and in my smoothies. Among my fave sprouts. Also love Hot2 and French Garden.
I’m with Jean—I think it’s terrific that this sprout is made with women and moms in mind. Thank you for thinking of us (while our health care system and medical research lags behind). It also tastes really great and fresh. Love it on avocado toast and in my smoothies. Among my fave sprouts. Also love Hot2 and French Garden.
So i orginally bought this mix for my breast feeding sister. Made her a batch and gave her a jar. But when I tried it I loved it. I was buying another broccoli mix from sprout people for myself. Then I went to a sprout talk by Dr. Clement and he named the most powerful sprouts to eat for our health. Guess which ones were named... The ones in this mix plus sunflower and wheatgrass. So Now this is the mix I buy for me!
So i orginally bought this mix for my breast feeding sister. Made her a batch and gave her a jar. But when I tried it I loved it. I was buying another broccoli mix from sprout people for myself. Then I went to a sprout talk by Dr. Clement and he named the most powerful sprouts to eat for our health. Guess which ones were named... The ones in this mix plus sunflower and wheatgrass. So Now this is the mix I buy for me!
This Sprouting Mix is one of the best I have ever sprouted. Quick to sprout, and so mild, and delicious. I add them to smoothies and garnish soups with it all year long. 2 cups of sprouts a day will keep the doctor away.
