During our trip to San Luis Obispo over Spring Break, I ordered a veggie sandwich from the Old Custom House Restaurant in Avila Beach. You're probably thinking...veggie sandwich? Why not just order a salad? In a way, I guess I could argue that this is a salad between to rather large croutons. :) But, not just my love of veggies was at work when it came to ordering this sandwich. The decision was made when I saw that it had sunflower sprouts on it. I was so excited because I love sunflower sprouts! They are my favorite sprout. They taste like green sunflower seeds. They are so delicious but hard to find in groceries stores, let alone something you find in restaurants. I ordered it and I was glad I did, not only was the sandwich utterly delicious but it inspired me to try a version of it here at home.
Sunflower sprouts are hard to find, so I just grow my own. (Sprouts Market used to sell them but the last time I went there they didn't have any,,,bummer) The good news is that sprouts are super easy to grow. Plant sunflower seeds in a shallow pot, keep the soil moist and in two weeks you'll have beautiful sunflower sprouts. You don't even need a garden, they will grow nicely on your kitchen counter all year round. Once they sprout, cut, wash and use them in salads and sandwiches or eat them all by themselves. They taste like sunflower seeds but only in vegetable form. Unused sprouts can be stored in the refrigerator for about a week or so. I used them here along with some clover sprouts in my version of the Old Custom House Veggie Sandwich.
The restaurant's version had red bell pepper hummus and huge slices of red onion, where I opted for my spicy black bean hummus and pickled onions. I love the sweet tang of the pickled onions, they really make the sandwich stand out along with the Latin spiced hummus. And of course the fresh green nutty flavor of the sprouts...just delicious! Enjoy!
Veggie Sandwiches with Black Bean Hummus & Sunflower Sprouts
Black Bean Hummus
Tomatoes
Cucumbers
Pickled Onions
Avocados
Sunflower and Clover Sprouts
Spinach
Whole grain wheat bread, toasted
Layer ingredients on toasted wheat bread and dig in!
Have you ever had sunflower sprouts? Me either. That is, until I stumbled upon them last Spring at a farmers market in La Quinta, CA. I love to buy fresh vegetables from farmers markets and I love even more to find fun new ingredients to build a salad around. And that's exactly what I did with this new and exciting ingredient. If you've never tasted sunflower sprouts, they basically taste like green sunflower seeds and they add a wonderful new taste to salads. I've had other sprouts like alfalfa sprouts and wheat grass and to me both taste like dirt and grass. Sunflower sprouts don't taste anything like dirt or grass and are simply so delicious and possibly the best tasting sprout around (in my opinion). Just like all sprouts, sunflower sprouts are very nutritious and unlike adding sunflower seeds, the sprout has all the flavor and nutrients without fat and calories. What's not to love, right?
Returning from La Quinta, I brought home the leftovers of my super secret yummy ingredient and wanted to be able to get some locally. Sprouts Market carries them for about $3 for just a few ounces. Instead of buying them, I decided to grow my own. I grew a small envelope of sunflower seeds (cost me ~$1.50) which is enough for one or two salads and since the seeds germinate in 7-10 days, you can easily start a new batch a week or so before you plan to make this salad. This is the perfect Spring and Summer salad but you can have it year round by sowing the seeds indoors.
I saved these two little sprouts to transplant and grow into full sunflowers so I can harvest the seeds for more sprouts and also to roast some seeds for my kiddos.
You will have to pull off some of the seed shells from the sprouts. Truth be told...I was a bit anxious to make this salad and I picked the sprouts a day too early. Most of these shells would have worked their way off as the sprout grew. Nonetheless the sprouts still tasted yummy, they just weren't as pretty as the ones I got from La Quinta. See below. Just beautiful aren't they?
Okay, now on to the salad...
Assemble your ingredients:
Sunflower Sprout Salad with Strawberry Vinaigrette
Serves 4
- Mixed baby greens
- Sunflower sprouts (about 1/2 cup)
- small bunch of green onions, finely chopped
- 1 small Persian cucumber, sliced
- 1 cup strawberries, quartered
- 1/2 cup blueberries
- crumbled Gorgonzola cheese (optional)
Strawberry Vinaigrette
- 5-6 strawberries, quartered
- 2 Tbsp agave sweetener (or honey)
- 1/4 cup canola oil
- 2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
- dash of cayenne pepper (to taste, I added ~1/8 tsp)
- Sea salt and pepper(to taste)
Place strawberries, agave sweetener, oil and vinegars and cayenne in a mini food processor and process until strawberries are pureed and oil is emulsified. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Toss together salad ingredients in a large bowl and add Strawberry Vinaigrette or serve on the side.
Add crumbled Gorgonzola or blue cheese if desired. (not pictured)
