Healthy Sunflower Recipes For Good Eats

Have you ever grown sunflowers? Sunflowers are so easy to grow and carefree. They add bright color to any garden and attract wild birds and wildlife by the dozens.The huge sunflower seed head offers a plentiful amount of seed which are good eating for human and wild birds. Sunflower seeds are high in nutritional value and meet the high energy caloric levels needed for wild birds and wildlife to survive. Besides those facts sunflower seeds are equally nutritious for people are full of vitamin E and selenium. Their Omega-3 fats are polyunsaturated and are known for their anti-inflamatory and blood thinning properties. These antioxidants greatly reduce the risk of cancer,cardiovascular diseases and help in weight reduction. I bet your wondering why are sunflower seed recipes being offered on a wild bird seed product site. My site indeed sells sunflower seeds for wild birds and wildlife but I know people enjoy sunflower seeds too as a snack. If you grow your own sunflowers and are lucky enough to get the seeds, they are easy to roast. It is my experience however, that you need to be vigilant to grab the seed heads before the wild birds get it. Good luck! The are ready when the back of the heads are brown. I cut them when the backs are 3/4s brown and hang them in a cool spot to ripen a bit more. If growing sunflowers is not an option, which it probably isn't for most people buy plain sunflower seeds in the grocery store or health food store. It's definitely easier and you will have enough seeds for eating. Here are two easy recipes I think you will enjoy with sunflower seeds in them. The first one is from the National Sunflower Association. Blend together or process thoroughly -4oz Muenster cheese and 4oz cream cheese. Blend in 1/2tsp. Worcestershire sauce, 1/4tsp.paprika and 1/8tsp. red pepper. Chill for at least 1/2 hour. Make cheese balls and roll them into crushed sunflower kernals. Chill for another 2 hours and serve. I substitute Colby Jack or Asadero cheese for the Muenster and sometimes put in 1 chopped jalapeno pepper instead of the red pepper. Instead of making balls I shape the cheese into logs, chill them and cut them into slices for crackers. I have also mixed ground sunflower seeds into the cheese mixture and spread it onto wraps. I then roll the wraps, making slight cuts into them and chill the wraps in plastic wrap. Just before I serve them I slice them and serve as an appetizer. Sunflower Seed Butter - Remove sunflower meat from the shells. Place the seed meat into a food processor. Run the processor on the high speed for 30-45 secs. until a paste forms. Check the consistency of the paste. If a chunky paste or butter is desired leave some sunflower seed pieces in it, for a smooth butter process it til smooth. If the paste is crumbly or dry add a small amount of vegetable oil to the paste and blend thoroughly for a few seconds. Store in an airtight container. This butter can be use in many recipes for cookies, breads, cakes or as a spread. This recipe is from the Huffington Post and is flourless : Sunflower Seed Cookies - Combine 1cup sunflower seed butter, 1/2cup packed brown sugar and 1/4cup sugar. Add 1 egg. Mix well. Add 3/4tsp. baking soda, 1/2tsp. salt and 1/2tsp. vanilla mixing well. Shape into walnut size balls placing them on a parchment lined cookie sheet 2inches apart. Flatten cookie with a fork. Bake in a preheated 350*F oven til set (10-12 mins) or til edges are lightly brown. Cool for 5mins before transferring to wire rack to cool completely. Store in an airtight container for 5 days. I hope you enjoy these recipes and throw out the crumbs to the wild birds. If you wish to attract a wild bird such as goldfinch, cardinal or grosbeak plant a few sunflowers or offer them sunflower seeds. Please visit my site www.WildBirdSeedMart.com to purchase wild bird products such as sunflower seeds, birdbaths and nesting boxes. The site offers many guide books to help you identify the wild birds attracted to the backyard and to the gardens.