SPROUTED NUTS AND SEEDS MAKE RAW CHOCOLATE MAKER HNINA SPECIAL

November 01, 2015

Sprouted nuts and seeds make us special

Sprouted nuts and seed is part of our mission. It means that all of them are soaked in warm water for eight or more hours.

Why add the expense and two extra days to our production process? Because this transforms your nutrition from just okay to incredible.

My mother used to soak her almonds and any dry fruit we would eat at home.

She did not know why she was doing it.

I learned this trick from her, except that now we understand why our ancestors passed this tradition from mother to daughter.

 

As I’ve written before, it is very difficult to find farms that are certified organic and do not steam, irradiate or pasteurize their nuts and seeds, i.e. kill them.  We need them captured alive – raw!  Although live, they are still in a dormant state which means that they are not yet ready to eat.   You heard it right!

 These beautiful raw nuts and seeds are not ready to eat.

Why?!?  Seeds and nuts (nuts are in fact seeds) have a purpose in nature, to be carried off by wind or animal and grow into another plant.  To protect itself, the seed contains phytic acid, a physiological protectant which is located in the outer layer, the bran.

In the intestinal tract however, this acid binds with the seed’s wonderful minerals such as calcium, magnesium, copper, iron and especially zinc, and inhibits their absorption into the body robbing us of these wonderful nutrients.

Let’s analyze the process in further detail.

Digestive enzymes help break down food.

Enzyme inhibitors will block these essential activities.

The nuts and seeds contain these aforementioned enzyme inhibitors in the form of phytic acid, which block or denature digestive enzymes.

Two such enzymes are Pepsin, which breaks down protein in the stomach, and trypsin, which breaks down protein in the small intestine.

Both can be inhibited by the phytic acid present in raw nuts and seeds.

When sprouted, a nut or seed becomes a young plant.

The bio molecules built by this fantastic anabolic germination process are broken or torn down by the catabolic digestion process for our bodies’ nourishment.

Sprouted nuts and seeds are a rich source of protein, omega-3 fatty acids, fiber, vitamins B and E, and the minerals magnesium, calcium, copper, selenium, zinc and iron.

Unless we can eliminate the phytic acid, it will bind with minerals, preventing their absorption.

Now the payoff you’ve been waiting for.  Why do we sprout?  Simple and perhaps obvious by now; sprouting removes phytic acid, activates helpful enzymes that increase nutrient absorption improving overall digestion and allowing the nutrients (minerals and vitamins) to reach your cells.

So yes, only when sprouted are these nuts and seeds ready to be eaten.

The enzyme inhibitors become deactivated and the nuts are now much easier to digest and the production of beneficial enzymes is in fact encouraged.

These enzymes increase production of many vitamins especially from the B family.

A bonus benefit of sprouting is that once alive from sprouting, the nuts and seeds’ water content increases and they become bigger, hydrated and their texture becomes completely different….crunchy!

May be counter intuitive, but true.

Interestingly, lightly roasting nuts and seeds is also helpful in reducing the presence of the phytic acid.

Ironically, raw unsprouted nuts and seeds are less nutritious than the roasted variety once they have been sprouted.

But great care needs to be exercised in order to not over roast the nuts and seeds, losing their raw life force and turning them rancid and oxidized.

To recap, why sprout nuts and seeds?

1. To remove or reduce phytic acid.
2. To neutralize the enzyme inhibitors.
3. To encourage the production of beneficial enzymes.
4. To increase the amounts of vitamins absorbed by your body, especially B vitamins and folic acid.

Using raw cacao and sprouted nuts and seeds makes us special because we care for you.

It is not easy and we do it.

That may be another reason why Hnina might be the most delicious yet the most nourishing truffles, spread and snack in the world?

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Bonne dégustation de chocolats Hnina !

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