A Word About the Name

So I'm not entirely sure why I named this site 'Bean Sprouts'. Perhaps it has to do with the fact that sprouts have been on my mind a lot lately. For one thing, my sister-n-law and two of my nieces arrive from Seattle on Tuesday, and Summer is in the habit of referring to her girls as "bean", which works out particularly well in the case of the youngest, a cherubic little thing we like to call 'Sabiney'. Then there's the fact that I have 4 boys that seem to be growing like sprouts. If you've ever sprouted anything, you'll know what I mean.

Especially with the entrance of Dapper Japper:Having such a full house makes the days go by so quickly. A little too quickly, if you ask me. Suddenly, Jasper is 3 months old tomorrow and has gone from miraculous little newborn to charming smiling cooing baby boy. Like I said, sprouts.
Then there's my friend Tracy. who brought up sprouting alfalfa in jars, something my mom used to do all the time, which inspired me to do it myself. If you've never done it, you should give it a whirl. Soak a tsp. of alfalfa seeds in a wide mouthed glass Ball jar overnight. Drain it next morning and then rinse it a few times a day, being sure to drain thoroughly between rinses. In a few days, voila! your sprouts will be ready for eating. They are great on salads, sandwiches, and eggs, specifically a dish that family lore calls the Anna Marie Omelette.

Back in the '60's, my parents were hippies. The real deal. Lived in a bus for a while and everything. And in between stints of grateful dead following and commune hopping, my dad worked at a breakfast joint of some sort in Eugene, Oregon (The Creperie, I believe). His co-worker, a girl named Anna Marie invented an omelette specifically as a show case for the humble sprout.

You start out with 2 eggs, a splash of milk or cream, salt and some cracks of black pepper.
Whisk together and pour into skillet, preferably cast iron, prepped with melted unsalted butter. Swirl the mixture until it coats the bottom of skillet. Cook over medium heat. When the eggs are just about cooked through, spread a few ounces of cream cheese over one half of pan. Top with alfalfa sprouts and crumbled bacon.
Try not to salivate over the skillet while you fold over the omelette, pressing gently to spread the cheese. It took me several attempts before I could get it from the pan to the plate without breaking it, but I think one of the tricks is to make sure your skillet is well buttered before hand.

I've been reading Molly Wizenberg's charming book My Homemade Life, and in it, she recounts being asked over for dinner by an admirer, only to find that dinner would only consist of 7 different kinds of sprouts. She wasn't impressed. Perhaps if that guy had made these omelettes, she would have had a different story to tell!