Growing up in the midwest you learn to love sunflowers. Driving through the country, coming upon fields of these towering yellow flowers, is something some may only imagine happening in a movie or tv shoot. In Kansas, it’s just part of life! From seeing these beautiful flowers grow and bloom to eating sunflower seeds at a ball game all become part of life in the Midwest.
Even with the fondest memories of sunflowers I never realized how amazing these flowers and seeds truly were. Most may know the edible part of sunflowers is roasted sunflower seeds. But did you know that the sunflower shoots are as equally edible and tasty!! That’s right...sunflower shoots. The earliest part of a germinated sunflower is its baby stem and leaves. Sunflower shoots are much bigger then many other microgreens but considerably smaller than their full grown size and still a microgreen. As a microgreen sunflower shoots provide a nutty flavor profile and a crunchy texture making them great additions to eggs, salads, and wraps.
As much as I love pecans, walnuts, almonds, and other varieties of nuts they tend to be very high calorie. Using sunflower shoots in your dishes can provide you with a nutty flavor profile with a minimal calorie count. Another benefit of sunflower shoots is their high Vitamin E content. Pairing sunflower shoots with another green microgreen high in Viatmin C, such as broccoli or arugula, can provide fantastic health benefits such as: protecting against cell damage and increasing the elasticity in your arteries helping prevent artery disease.
Like most of the microgreens sunflower shoots also deliver in both flavor profile and health benefits. So add some to your soup, salad, sandwich or just eat some plain.
Check our some of these recipes for inspiration on using sunflower shoots in your next meal!!
