Sprouted, Dehydrated Raw Almonds are one of the most nutritious snacks around. They have a satisfying "pop" when you crunch into them. Raw almonds that haven't been sprouted just don't have that "pop."
Start by finding some raw, unpasteurized almonds. You can get these from your own trees or from almonds growers directly. You are not getting unpasteurized almonds at your local health food store or at Costco. They can sell them as raw, but do to government regulations, they have been pasteurized. Since pasteurization kills the living "seed", you can not sprout pasteurized almonds. Look for almond growers at your local farmer's market.
Soak 1 part almonds to 4 parts of water overnight (12 hours). Drain water and rinse soaked almonds.
Put your soaked almonds into a sprouter or mason jar, rinsing 2-3 times during the day. Rinse again and leave to sprout overnight. The almonds will have a tiny bulge at the narrow end. That is the sprout. These are ready to dehydrate or use to make almond milk.
Dehydrate for 12-24 hours at 105*F. This will dry the almonds but they will still be a living plant. I store my sprouted, dehydrated almonds in ziplock bags or mason jars with lids until I am ready to use them.
For almonds milk, use 1 cup of freshly sprouted almonds and 4 cups of water. Blend thoroughly in your vitamix or other blender. Strain in a nut milk bag, squeezing all of the nut milk out. I use a jelly strainer bag. They are inexpensive, and you can buy them online or at your local kitchen center.
Sprouting nuts, seeds and grains is beneficial. The nutrition makeup changes once the stored energy source (seed, nut or grain) changes to that of a plant (sprout) in its initial stages of growth. The carbohydrate and fat decreases, and the vitamin and mineral content increases.
