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Brunch/ Healthy Eating/ How-Tos/ RECIPES

13 Favorite Ways To Eat Chia – A Mega Energy Food

A little bit about the superfood Chia. The word “Chia” is actually a Mayan word for “strength.” The seeds were used by ancient cultures as mega-energy food. Especially for their running messengers. Chia has been called “Indian Running Food” and is knows in the world of super marathon runners as a staple for sustained energy.

{click here to buy on Amazon}

Chia seeds and I are like best friends. I try to enjoy them everyday.

Why?

~the are jammed packed with protein and minerals and healthy fats and fiber

~they provide more plant based Omega 3’s than any other food, even FLAX
~5 times the calcium of milk, plus boran which is a trace mineral that helps transfer calcium to bones
~8 times the omega 3’s found in salmon
~3 times more iron than spinach
~2 times the amount of potassium than bananas
~more antioxidants than found in blueberries

~they have 5 GRAMS of fiber PER TABLESPOON!
~the are a complete source of protein, providing all the essential amino acids
~can be stored for years without deterioration of flavor or color

~they are flavorless and dissolve in juice, soups, stews, shakes etc..

~they are low calorie way to get super FULL!

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Here are a few of my favorite ways to eat Chia:

Chia Oats

This is a no cook way to eat your oats. Many call them “overnight” oats, as you make them the night before and let them sit overnight. My daughter begs me to make these and often eats them as a super healthy afternoon snack!

Chewy, No Bake Granola Bars

These are super delicious and a great way to get fiber in!

Anytime Chia Oats

The same as above, but they do not need to sit out overnight. Just throw the ingredients into a blender. It makes a textured banana oat chia pudding.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Chia Pudding

A great and healthy way to satisfy those chocolate cravings!

My Everyday Green Smoothie

Sometimes I add chia, sometimes I don’t. This is a GREAT go-to green smoothie!

Peanut Butter Banana Chia Seed Roll Up

These make a good after school snack. It gets those Omega’s into your kids.

Chocolate Almond Chia Oats / Apple Dip

Another favorite after school snack. My 9 year old daughter likes to whip this up all by herself.

Blueberry Banana Chia Oat Smoothie

Super filling and full of antioxidants!

Strawberry Banana Breakfast Chia Oats

This is one of my favorite ways to eat Chia Oats.

Ziplock Smoothie Freezer Packs

I often put a spoonful of chia seeds into our smoothies made from these Ziplock Freezer Packs.

Rips Big Bowl For Breakfast

I love to sprinkle chia seeds on our cold breakfast cereal. This one is a fav around here.

Orange Almond Polenta Cake With Strawberries

This cake is super refreshing, and uses what is called a “Chia egg.” A chia egg is an egg substitute. Great for vegans or if you just happen to run out of eggs!

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GT’s Chia Kombucha

I LOVE these drinks. Kombucha is fermented and great for your gut. It has a bit of “fizz” which makes me feel like I am drinking a soda. These Kombucha’s with chia are filling & make a great snack. Buy them at your local health food store.

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How To Make A Chia Egg Substitute

1 Tbls Chia to 3 Tbls water–mix and let sit until a gel like consistency, about 10 minutes.

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One of the most common ways to eat chia is to first soak the seeds. They can very rapidly absorb a large amount of liquid- between 9-12 times their value, in under 10 minutes.

Basic Chia Gel

To make a basic chia gel, simply add 1/3 cup of seeds (2oz) to 2 cups of water. Stir the mixture well, to avoid clumping, then leave it in your fridge, in a sealed mason jar. This will yield around 17 oz of chia gel. You can begin to eat the gel almost immediately if you like. Just 10 minutes is enough time for the get to be formed. More of the nutrients will be easily accessible after a few hours however, so many people alike to make up a batch like this and leave it in the fridge. It will stay good for about three weeks. You will have ready-made gel whenever you need it. You can add to smoothies, mix it with salad dressings, puddings or granola, or simply take it by the spoonful.

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You can buy Chia seeds at Trader Joes, health food stores, and many grocery stores in the health food section. You can also click here to order them from Amazon. Amazon has a great deal, and I will get a small percentage of your purchase if you use this link!

Brunch/ RECIPES/ Sides

Buttermilk Biscuits

I had some homemade chicken pot pie filling left over, (the recipe made 2 pies, I only had one pie crust), so I decided to serve it over these Homemade Buttermilk Biscuits. It was a family pleaser! I had never made homemade biscuits before, but now that I know how easy they are to make, I will not be buying them in a can or mix again!

Buttermilk Biscuits

2 cups flour

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

1/3 cup butter (for vegan, use Earth Balance)

3/4 cup buttermilk (for vegan, use alternative milk with 1 Tbsp vinegar)

In a bowl, stir together the dry ingredients; cut in butter with a pastry blender until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Add the buttermilk and mix until the dry ingredients are moistened. Turn onto a floured board and knead 6-10 times. Roll to 3/4 inch thickness and cut with a lightly floured biscuit cutter. Place on an ungreased baking sheet and bake in a 450 degree oven for about 15 minutes, or until golden. Makes 12 biscuits.

Brunch/ Featured/ GF, Vegan & Raw/ RECIPES/ Sweets

Chocolate Chia Pudding

I needed some chocolate asap, and I also knew I needed to figure out how to get a bit of protein, iron and fiber into my body. I had skipped my daily green smoothie so I knew I was missing some of these key nutrients. Enter, the chia seed, and hello Chocolate Peanut Butter Chia Pudding!

I got this craving at 7:30 in the evening just as the sun was going down. I hurried to gather my ingredients to take advantage of the fading natural light for photos. I’m not kidding when I say this takes just a minute to make. It was so easy! Milk of your choice, cocoa powder, chia seeds, peanut butter & maple syrup. Throw it all into a cup measure and stir!

The hardest part of this recipe is having the patience for the chia seed to do its thing. It takes a few minutes for the chia to swell and absorb the liquid to turn it into a pudding consistency. The top photo was take after 5 minutes of refrigeration. It still was on the runny side, but I was impatient and my light was fading. It thickened up enough to use as a dip for apples in just about 10 more minutes.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Chia Pudding

{makes 1 serving}

1/2 cup milk ( I used almond. Can use dairy or coconut or whatever you desire)

2 tbsp chia seeds

1/2 tbsp cocoa powder

1 tbsp peanut butter

1 tbsp maple syrup

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Frozen berries (optional)

Throw all into a cup and stir. Refrigerate, stirring every few minutes, until desired consistency…up to 20 minutes. (I ate mine after 10 minutes)

CHIA: The Complete Guide to the Ultimate Superfood

I’ve talked about chia before. It is a superstar superfood and I love it. I bought the above book and devoured it in 2 days. My family had fun teasing me, as I sat and read my book while drinking a bottle of chia kombucha.

More about chia from The Wellness Warrior:

1. Chia is gluten free

2. It is super high in dietary fibre, making it great for digestion and healing digestion issues.

3. It contains 20% Omega 3 ALA, making it a super food for the brain and heart. Chia has eight times more Omega 3 than salmon!

4. It boasts 20% protein

5. The protein is a complete protein with all 8 essential amino acids

6. It is high in antioxidants (It has a four times higher ORAC value than blueberries)

7. Chia contains five times more calcium than milk

8. Chia contains seven times more vitamin C than oranges

9. It contains three times more iron than spinach

10. It contains twice the potassium content of banana

11. It is food for healthy skin, hair and nails

12. It has a positive impact balancing blood glucose levels (making it awesome for diabetics)

13. Chia makes a great egg replacement. Just combine with water to form a gel, and add it to recipes that call for egg.

Brunch/ Healthy Eating/ RECIPES/ Sides

Rainbow Fruit Platter

Whenever I’m asked to bring a dish to a potluck type dinner, I have to make a choice between bringing owey- gooey -chocolaty- naughtiness, or something to show off that a plant based diet can be delicious, too.

Honestly, I often choose the naughty, because a girl can’t be good all the time and lets get real, naughty is fun! A potluck is a great excuse to make something yummy to share with others, all the while keeping it out of my own house as there is never leftovers!

But sometimes, I know there will be plenty of sugar at a gathering and I bring something that I know everyone will enjoy & that is good for the body, too. I love showing others that eating healthy can be a delicious and beautiful experience, and what better way to do that then with the beauty of a rainbow fruit platter?

Would you look at all those beautiful colors, shapes and textures? God sure is a great artist.

This platter was a cinch to put together. All fruit was from Trader Joes. I loved that they even had kumquats! I ran to the store the morning of our family potluck, grabbed the rainbow of different fruits, and had my girls help me wash and arrange them onto a large platter. The cantaloupe and pineapple were already precut. I rarely pay the extra money for this, but this day convenience was worth the extra pennies!

Everyone “oooed” and “awed” over this platter as I walked in with it. It was especially so fun to see the excitement of kids! They love anything bite sized and bright colored. When I went to grab the platter at the end of the potluck, there were only a few lonely grapes rolling around. Who knew that fruit would be as popular as chocolate?

Brunch/ GF, Vegan & Raw/ RECIPES

Strawberry Banana Raw Breakfast Oats

Chia oats is our go to snack and breakfast around here. Full of fiber and protein, (13 grams of fiber & 11 grams of protein!) they are super healthy and super filling! You can make them ahead of time and let them sit in the refrigerator for up to a day.

Start with mashing a banana. Don’t like bananas? Not sure about a substitute, as bananas are the base of the dish. Maybe mashed mango or peaches?

Our usual chia oats calls for banana, peanut butter and a bit of maple syrup. This time we skipped the peanut butter and added strawberries instead. Yum!

Chia is a superfood that we eat everyday around here.

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A little bit about:

Chia Seeds

~the are jammed packed with protein and minerals and healthy fats and fiber

~they provide more plant based Omega 3’s than any other food, even FLAX

~they have 5 GRAMS of fiber PER TABLESPOON!

~they are flavorless and dissolve in juice, soups, stews, shakes etc..

~they are FILLING!

Here is a great post on the benefits of chia seeds and different ways to use them.

Back to the recipe, I don’t really measure. I use 2 handfuls of oats. It is a very forgiving recipe, no need to be exact. We have made chia oats so often that even my 9 year old knows how to make them.

I use 2 palmfuls of chia.

One capful of vanilla. So easy!

We eyeball the almond milk…

…then stir it all up.

This is how it should look right after stirring. You want it a little runny. As it sits, the chia seeds soften and swell and the oats soak up some of the milk.

Let it sit in the refrigerator for 10-15 minutes to soften the oats and thicken. A little someone ate up the oats before I could take a final picture! She added a bit of agave and they were gone before I knew it!

Strawberry Banana Raw Breakfast Oats

1 banana, mashed

4-5 strawberries, cut up

1 cup oats (or two handfuls)

2 tbls chia seeds (or 2 palmfuls)

1 tsp vanilla (or 1 capful)

1-1/2 cups milk (almond, coconut, dairy)

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a drizzle of honey, agave nectar, or maple syrup

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Mash banana. Add strawberries, oats, seeds & vanilla. Add milk. Stir. If too thick, add more milk, you want them slightly runny like picture above. Let sit for 10-15 minutes in the refrigerator. Before eating, drizzle with sweetener of choice. Can be refrigerated up to a day.

Brunch/ Mothers Day/ RECIPES

A Mother’s Day Breakfast-Coconut Crusted French Toast

Mother’s Day is a pretty special day for me. Not only do I have the honer of being a mom, but I have some pretty special ladies in my life that I get to celebrate. I know this is a gift. I know there are many of you out there reading who don’t have Mothers around to celebrate, or babes who call you “Mom.” My thoughts have been with you this week as I prepare celebrating my own.

Today I did just that, and had my mother-in-law, Kathy, over for breakfast. I can’t tell you how wonderful it was to have her in my home and just enjoy some great talk time and good food! She is always having the family over to her house, and is really good at entertaining, so it was much fun to have her to mine and serve her for once!

She is a coconut lover, so when I found this recipe for Coconut Crusted French Toast on Pinterest, I knew immediately who I would be making it for.

Let me tell you, it is GOOD!

If you are a coconut fan, this recipe is a must make! It uses coconut milk, coconut extract and shredded coconut. I made it in a jiffy, and had everything ready to go when she arrived.

{Isn’t she a beauty? Inside and out.}

This french bread is from Trader Joes. It was perfect for this recipe.

Eggs, coconut milk, coconut extract and vanilla extract with a bit of salt. Whisk.

Shredded coconut on a plate.

Dip bread in egg mixture. Press into coconut.

Then make cook it just like you would normal french toast.

Easy!

I added a nut mix, strawberries, & oranges to the table, rounding out the meal.

I picked some fresh roses from our bush outside.

We drank coffee and of course, lemon water!

Coconut Crusted French Toast

{via Two Peas & Their Pod}

3 large eggs

3/4 cup lite coconut milk (canned or fresh)

1/2 teaspoon coconut extract

1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 cup shredded coconut

6 slices french bread, 1/2 inch slices

Butter, maple syrup

In a shallow dish, whisk together the eggs, coconut milk, coconut extract, vanilla extract, and salt. Place the shredded coconut on a plate. Dip both sides of each slice of bread into the egg mixture. Dip both sides of the coated bread into the shredded coconut. Drizzle a little egg mixture on top of the coconut to make it stick to the bread.

Meanwhile, heat a large non-stick griddle to medium heat. Cook the slices of bread until golden brown on one side and then turn and cook the other side. Serve immediately of keep French toast warm in a 250 degree oven.

Serve with butter & pure maple syrup.

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I’ve learned creating meaningful memories takes little effort.

It just takes a bit of thought and follow through.

Thank you, Kathy, for always being the one who works to have us over and make the memories.

We’ve made so many good ones, haven’t we?

Thank you for coming to my house for breakfast and making some more.

I love you, and I’m so very blessed to have you as my Mom-in-Law!

Brunch/ RECIPES

Banana Pumpkin Muffins

Like I mentioned in this post, we are having an ‘eat from the pantry’ week to save some $. I like the challenge of only buying the basics-bread, milk, peanut butter–and using as much as possible from what we already have in our cupboards, pantry and freezer.

I think muffins are great to have sitting around. They make a great after school snack, or are a nice addition to a green smoothie for breakfast. They keep my girls from saying the most dreaded “Mom, I can’t find anything to eat.”

I made Brownie Bites which uses pumpkin as a secret ingredient that helps keep the muffins moist. The problem was it only used 1/2 a can of pumpkin, and since I am in a ‘use-what-we-have’ mindset this week, I went on a search for another muffin that uses pumpkin.

I didn’t have to search very long. One of my favorite sites, Happy Herbivore, had an awesome looking recipe for Banana-Pumpkin Muffins. I knew I had a freezer full of frozen bananas, a jar of unsweetened applesauce in the pantry, and of course, my 1/2 can of pumpkin. I was set!

I was surprised my girls preferred these Banana-Pumpkin Muffins over the Chocolate Bites. Well, surprised until I tasted one. They are YUMMY! They are moist, have just the right amount of cinnamon spice, and the chocolate chips I added made me very happy. I did have one daughter ask if I could leave the chocolate chips out next time. I had to agree with her, they would be just as good without them!

I made these the same time I whipped up Brownie Bites. Brownie Bites cook at 330 degrees, and when I put both types of muffins in the pan, I was a little nervous that they would not get done at the same time, but they did just fine.

I don’t have a finished muffin photo for you, but take my word for it, they are pretty and super yummy!

Banana-Pumpkin Muffins
11/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour (I just used plain whole wheat flour)
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
2 whole bananas
1 cup pumpkin ( I was not exact, I used whatever was left in the can after making Brownie Bites)
3/4 cup brown sugar (I used 1/2 cup pure cane sugar, it was all I had on hand)
1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/4 cup non-dairy milk (or dairy, whatever you prefer)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease muffin tins to prevent sticking. In a large bowl, whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and pumpkin pie spice together. Then whisk in sugar and set aside.

In a bowl, mash bananas, ripe ones are best. Add applesauce and pumpkin & milk. Stir.

Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients. Stir just until combined. If you want to add chocolate chips or nuts (1/2 cup) add after a few strokes.

Spoon into muffin tins, 3/4 full and bake until a toothpick comes out clean. I used mini muffin pans, so mine took about 8-10 minutes. Regular size muffins will take about 18-25 minutes.

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