Remember these? I do. I hadn’t really thought about them until a friend of mine recently said she was on the chia seed diet.
Whaaat?
Then, I saw that there were all sorts of chia-based drinks coming out. Even GT’s Synergy Kombucha-my favorite- has a whole line of chia-filled kombuchas. Okay, what’s this chia stuff about? I decided to look into it.
According to this article, chia seeds are one of the newest trends in weight loss and nutrition. Because the seeds are like sponges, they expand in any sort of liquid, turning drinks into gel-like substances. And because they’re so high in fiber, they’re filling. I wasn’t so interested in the weight loss thing, so I read on. Supposedly, an ounce of chia seeds has a whopping 11 grams of fiber. That’s about 41% of your daily needed fiber. Dang! Furthermore, they’re high in omega fatty acids, calcium and protein.
Before I developed my seafood allergy, I often took fish oils to supplement my needs for omega-3s. And I was always a little calcium deficient, as, after all, I am the queen of lactards. So imagine my surprise and delight when I found out I could feed these deficiencies with a little bit of ch-ch-chia! Just, um…how am I supposed to eat these things?
Enter chia pudding. I’d heard about it, but never tried it. So, I did. I tried it and failed each time, coming up with hunks of seeds with a pool of blackberry coconut milk. Ew. Then, I had this ingenius thought at about 2 in the morning, grabbed a tupperware container, and started to shake, shake, sha-shake it:
I found the pudding easiest to make this way while getting ready for bed. Here’s my recipe for Blackberry Coconut Chia Pudding. It’s an awesome nutritional powerhouse, supplementing a lot of deficiencies we have naturally as food dorks. It’s raw, which might delight some. And it’s tasty, which should delight all.
BLACKBERRY COCONUT CHIA PUDDING
7/8 cup of coconut or other non-dairy milk
5 fresh or frozen blackberries
3 tablespoons chia seeds
Agave nectar and fresh blackberries for garnish
Small container with lid- Ziploc makes really cute “XS” containers for this.
1. In a blender, pour in coconut milk and drop in blackberries. Blend until smooth.
2. Scoop mixture into small container. Stir in chia seeds until well mixed. Top with lid.
3. Shake every five minutes or so, for about forty minutes. This is why I recommend doing your dishes, homework, etc while you are shaking. Multi-tasking FTW.
4. You can eat immediately, or store overnight to eat in the morning- that’s what I do. Garnish with a little agave nectar and some fresh blackberries.
Yum! Aaaand, you’re done. It’s a very filling, satisfying dessert-for-breakfast. You’re being trendy and healthy. Who’dathunkit.
This recipe is safe for:
- lactards and eggtards. hey! it’s vegan!
- no seafood, but plenty of those coveted omega-3s.
- no wheat, no gluten. rejoice, glutards.
- no peanuts or tree nuts. that’s what I’m talkin’ bout.
- and thankfully, no soy. hurray!
