Sprouting Goodness, Beauty of Sprouts Takes Vegan Food to New Heights

Chef Rano Halikova has a passion for experimenting with plant-based flavors—even when the process of creating raw, organic, vegan, sugar-free, GMO-free, gluten-free fare is lengthy and arduous. The culinary end result is undoubtedly worth the wait at Beauty of sprouts in Sarasota.

“My food packs nutrition and minerals,” says Halikova, who is orginally from Uzbekistan and moved to Sarasota from New York in 2009. “No matter who eats my food, they will like and respect them-selves, feel good, and live longer.”

It’s an optimistic promise, but one Halikova has been delivering on since she launched her restaurant in 2014 (she reopened at different location on Orange Avenue last year after a pandemic-related hiatus).

Her regulars have come to adore Halikova’s weekly rotating specials; her ginger-turmeric tea and horchata shakes; and her entrees and desserts—from raw lavender crème brûlée to raw lasagna and quinoa burgers. Halikova’s spring roll (with a coconut wrap, avocado, cilantro, sweet mini peppers and sprouts) and borsch (with red beets, carrots, dill, green cabbage, potatoes and nut cream) are among her most coveted items.

And Halikova stays loyal to her community by sourcing local ingredients—a talent she cultivated at a young age. Halikova was one of six children, and she would often pick fruits and vegetables with her father in the garden.

“My father was the best professional farmer, so I learned how to choose correct products, and I’m always looking for quality organic produce,” Halikova says. “For fruits, I’m driving to Miami the most. I’m happy that, with each year, the organic farming around here is increasing. The better quality produce I get, the more I’m challenged.”

But Halikova has a personal rule: She never cooks with recipes, and she doesn’t teach cooking using recipes. She has her own preparation style in the kitchen.

“Each person has to connect with their own body and add ingredients that their connection tells them to—and it’s exactly those items they pick, and those vitamins or minerals, that are missing in the body,” Halikova says.

She encourages her students to learn more about “base” recipes that provide the foundation for healthful dishes (it starts with choosing certified, raw, gluten-free, unprocessed, organic grains or seeds).

Sprouting and soaking are key to preserving nutrients, and once those fresh bases are developed, a plethora of dishes can be made. Halikova teaches this by example—infusing her food with compassion and connection.

“When I’m by myself with good produce in kitchen, my mind and body are just dancing and flying and all of the food is getting along,” Halikova says. “There is an energy of love.”

>Beauty of Sprouts: 433 N Orange Ave, Sarasota. 941-350-8449; beauty-of-sprouts-restaurant.business.site.