Last month, I shared with you a simple way of increasing your antioxidant intake just by enhancing the water that you drink.  This month, I'd like to encourage you to explore the wonderful world of sprouts.  Sprouts are very nutritious and can be easily incorporated into your daily routine.  They can be tossed into salads and added to sandwiches, and depending upon the intensity of their flavor, could even be innocuously added to your favorite smoothie recipe.

I like to grow broccoli sprouts.  The article to the right explains one of the reasons why they are so beneficial.

I like to grow my sprouts in organic soil in a simple terra cotta pot.  I'm also experimenting with growing them in a large sprouting tray, staggering the plantings within the tray so that I always have a fresh supply.

If you'd like to grow them in a more traditional sprouting jar, click the following link for instructions.

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Tofu French Toast 

From The Cancer Survivor's Guide by Neal D. Barnard, MD and Jennifer K. Reilly, RD

Makes 6 1-slice servings.

8 ounces low-fat silken tofu

1 ripe banana

0.5 cup water (I like to use non-dairy milk.)

1 teaspoon light molasses or pure maple syrup (I like to use pure maple syrup.)

0.5 teaspoon ground cinnamon

0.5 teaspoon pure vanilla extract (not in the original recipe, but I like to add it)

6 slices whole wheat bread

Combine the tofu, banana, water (or non-dairy milk), molasses (or pure maple syrup), cinnamon, and vanilla in a blender and process until smooth.  Pour into a shallow dish.

Place a nonstick skillet over medium heat.  Dip each slice of bread (both sides) into the banana mixture and brown it on both sides in the skillet.  You will need to brown the bread in several batches depending on the size of your skillet.

Top with a little Earth Balance Organic Buttery Spread and/or a little pure maple syrup and enjoy!

Stored in a covered container in the refrigerator, leftover Tofu French Toast will keep for up to two days.

One year ago, Michael Greger, MD reported on this fascinating work.

Researchers found that they could shrink both estrogen receptor positive and estrogen receptor negative breast tumors in petri dishes by dripping broccoli juice on them.

They wondered though how to determine if broccoli's beneficial phytonutrient, sulforaphane, actually finds its way to our breast tissue when we eat broccoli and if in enough of a concentration to reproduce what they witnessed in the petri dishes.

Researchers at Johns Hopkins found women scheduled to have breast reduction surgery and one hour before their procedure they gave them broccoli sprout juice to drink.  They analyzed tissue removed from their breasts and found the substance they were hoping for.  After some calculations, they were able to determine that a daily consumption of 1.25 cups of broccoli sprouts per day would bathe a women's breast tissue with this very protective substance in a concentration similar to the petri dish experiment.

Dr. Greger's 1.5 minute video can be found in the following link:

Sulforaphane: From Broccoli to Breast

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