Thus, I grow my own broccoli and can re-wire a light fixture, where you might be able to clean a carburetor or cable-knit a sweater (says she, deftly mixing her gender-based activities).

One of these ‘magical’ activities which I never thought magical until I met others who did, is to sprout seeds on my countertop for sandwiches, salads, and just about anything else I make around here. Sprouts are an incredibly rich source of vitamins and minerals and allow you to have a fresh source of greens growing in your kitchen 365 days a year. It simply doesn’t get more local than that.

I can thank my seventies-era mom for the know-how. She always had a Mason jar of sprouts growing on the windowsill, and to this day one of my favorite lunches is her freshly made tuna sandwich with carrots, celery, onions and a huge heap of sprouts adding tang and crunch to mayonnaise-y whole wheat.

• It is not magic.
• It is not dangerous.
• You can do it.

The sprouting process at its most simplistic –

• Soak two tablespoons of organic seeds in a bowl for eight hours.
• Dump them into a container that drains efficiently.
• Rinse them twice a day with fresh water and let them drain.
• When they are big enough after 4-5 days, rinse them of their hulls in a large bowl and store them in the fridge in a lidded mason jar with a paper towel inside.
• Enjoy them for the next week or until they run out.

Sprouting equipment

Up until recently, I always used a quart jar topped with plastic lids (Sprout-Ease Econo-Sprouter Toppers Set/Amazon). It is an inexpensive and easy way to get started and, judging from my track record, to keep sprouting for a couple decades.

I have also been pretty basic in my choice of seeds. Alfalfa and mung bean seeds provided for all of our needs (be they sandwich, salad or stir fry), and whilst the hipster world around me dabbled with spicy daikon or the purple legs of amaranth, I was content to remain retro in this respect.

Then recently, my head was turned by the sprouting section in the Botanical Interests seed catalog and the [practically frame-able] botanical prints that illustrate their seed packets. I began to think outside the jar.

Salad and sandwich mixes…those purple legs of amaranth…protein-packed lentils and nutty sunflower seed crunch. Why not branch out? After a trade show, I was fortunate enough to be sent one of their clever two-level sprouters and suddenly, things got even easier.

Now I find myself in a tough position. Yes, a Mason jar is cheaper, but the convenience of this sprouter is exceptional. The two trays sit above a draining tray, so you don’t have to remember to remove the sprouter from the sink after draining. The trays are covered with a diffuser, which not only lets the rinsing water evenly percolate through the two trays, but also retains humidity which the seeds require.

Each tray comes with a divider which means that you can technically grow four types of sprouts at one time, or like me, stagger my seed sprouting by a couple days and have two crops growing in the same space.

In short, I am in love.

For those that have never tried sprouting, it’s a great way to start, and the choice of seed and seed mixes is wonderful.

Once you see how easy it is to grow and store them, and how useful they are in helping you keep fresh greens in your kitchen, I’d also recommend sproutpeople.org for bulk seeds and seed mixes, sprouting information and particularly, for their well-written treatise on "the politics of sprouts."

But aren’t sprouts dangerous?

Which brings me to my last point – foodborne illness and sprouts. Sadly, people remember headlines, no matter how dimly, and the general public rarely digs deeper.

When it comes to sprouts, they should.

I have been sprouting organic seeds for over twenty years now and have never had a problem with unhealthy bacteria. I start with high quality organic seeds (which have never been linked to food-borne illness and which are stringently tested for pathogenic bacteria), use common sense hygienic practices when rinsing, and obviously would never store or eat sprouts that have gone bad or moldy.

Of course, there are methods for further disinfecting your seeds if you must, but they take the joy and ease right out of the whole process. Personally, I’d be running for the nearest grocery store by the end of that ordeal. That is, if I for one minute thought that doing so would ensure a foodborne illness-free existence…spinach or romaine salad anyone?

Cue the crunch

While growing your own food is not magic, the ability to transform a few grams of seeds into fresh nutritious greens in less than five days in your kitchen is the closest you’ll probably ever come to it. I urge you to try this delicious, painless way to inject a bit of health into your diet, and start modeling a new skill for other people – young and old – in your life.