Behold: Living Food

 Skip the canned and frozen veggies, and get the nutrients you need with a taste that can't be topped.  Eating fruits and vegetables in their season locally is the best way to maximize the nutritional value of your diet choices--this doesn't have to mean going to a strictly raw foods diet.  You can even have some fun with "forcing" or sprouting tender shoots from many vegetables, even in the winter (a veggie like this beet with both edible root and leaves would yield good payoff for your effort).  Or, try sprouting right in your own kitchen--sprouted almonds or chick peas are especially fine. 

  In fact, if you've never made hummus with soaked, sprouted chickpeas, you are in for a treat.

Click here for great tips on sprouting chickpeas (garbanzo beans) from The Daily Raw Cafe.

Then, use your sprouted beauties to make this yummy recipe...

Sprouted Chickpea Hummus
Use a food processor (borrow your neighbor's if you don't have one) to blend all ingredients.
Some people choose to cook and/or salt the chickpeas--this is not necessary, but hey, it's a free country.

• 3 cups sprouted chickpeas
• 1/3 cup tahini
• 1/2 cup lemon juice
• 1/2 tsp. cumin
• cayenne to taste