Legumes have been used through out the earth, for thousand of years. They come in hundreds of shapes, sizes and colors. They are versatile and amazingly convenient because they can be dried and stored for years. Soaking beans for a couple of hours brings them back to life, activating enzymes, proteins, minerals and vitamins.

Beans can be eaten raw, sprouted or cooked, ground into flour, curdled into tofu, fermented into soya sauce, tempi and miso. They are excellent in chilies, soups and salads. Beans are high in iron and packed with protein. They are also a rich source of thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, potassium, phosphorous and an excellent source of fiber and complex carbohydrates. They are low in sodium and saturated fats.

Beans have an unhappy reputation of creating an embarrassing byproduct of smelly gas. This gas which consists mainly of nitrogen and carbon dioxide, is the byproduct of bacteria in the intestine breaking down the complex carbohydrates in the beans. Here is a flatulence rating for beans from the highest gas producing to the least:

soybeans
pink beans
black beans
pinto beans
small white beans
great northern beans
baby lima beans
chick peas
large lima beans
black-eyed peas

Avoid eating fruits shortly or after a meal of starches, such as bread or beans, will cause excessive gas. Remember that when simple sugar and starch are digested within 2-4 hours of each other, the starch slows down the digestion of fruits to the intestines causing fermentation and excessive gas.

Unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds.

John 12:24

Deep inside a seed, is a hidden blueprint, a genetic package sleeping, waiting to awaken. As a water is introduced, enzyme inhibitors are disabled and the seed explodes to life. Germination unfolds, and enzymes trigger elaborate biochemical changes. Proteins break into amino acids. Water soluble vitamins such as B complex and Vitamin C are created. Fats and carbohydrates are converted into simple sugars. Then the seed expends all its energy to break through the soil. Weight increases as the seed absorbs water and minerals. Finally life bursts forth from the earth, thirsting for sunlight, taking its new place in God’s tapestry of Creation.

Through the miracle of germination, thiamin increases five-fold and niacin content doubles. Vitamin C, E and carotene increases. In fact, the Vitamin C accompanied by an intense enzymatic hydrolysis of protein. Stored proteins are broken down into component amino acids. Because the protein is predigested, sprouts are more easily assimilated and less gas-forming than dried beans. Digestibility is vastly improved.

In 1940, the United States Army sponsored a full investigation on sprouted seeds, studying their usability as food during the war. During World War I, the British Army sprouted beans to ward off scurvy in the trenches. When building the trenches, they calculated the sprouting area needed to feed a battalion.

There is nothing like fresh bean sprouts in a salad. Sprouts can be cooked quickly with a day of soya sauce and a dash of flax oil to make a delicious meal. Sprouts make a pleasant addition to soup as long as they are added a few minutes before turning off the heat. Just about any seed or bean can be sprouted for eating, and is great fun for the kids.

Make sure when you use seeds or beans for sprouting they are good-quality. Health food stores will have an abundance of beans and seeds for sprouting. If you find a problem in sprouting your beans and seeds, they are probably too old. Some beans are available in stores that have been treated with inhibitors to stop the sprouting process. Do not use seeds that are packaged for gardens because they may be treated.