Chia seed pudding

Chia pudding with cherries and coconut flakes

This heat and humidity is feeling a bit stifling, but better with cold chia seed pudding and some of the summer fruit that is currently available, which for me at the moment are sour cherries and black raspberries. I made 2 variations on this recipe so far (cherry-vanilla and chocolate), though the options are endless. The basic recipe is below, and you can modify and add flavors or toppings as you like. It's so easy, and turns out to be nice for a breakfast-y cereal type of thing, or more like a dessert (the chocolate version in particular!). This recipe is mildly sweet to my tastes, so add more if you want something sweeter.

*I don't have a high speed blender, but if you do, you could blend the final product and it will be more like a pudding consistency and less like a chia seed consistency.

Chia Seed Pudding

1/3 c chia seeds

1 can coconut milk

1/3 c. water

1 T maple syrup or honey or sweetener of choice

pinch of salt

1 tsp vanilla

*If you want it chocolate: add 2 1/2 T cocoa powder

*If you want cherry flavor, add 1/4 c cherry juice

Chocolate chia pudding with black raspberries

Mix all ingredients in a bowl, and let sit for at least 30 minutes, at which time give it another stir. I put mine in the fridge overnight, though if I do that without leaving it out first, the coconut oil separates and creates a firm layer on the top that I mix in later.

Serve with your favorite toppings: berries, sour cherries, bananas, chocolate pieces, coconut flakes, cream, whipped cream, nuts, granola, etc.

Keeps in the fridge for 5-7 days, maybe more, but I have not tested that yet!

Lemon chia seed pudding

My Charming Companion has been doing lots of blood sugar experimentation of late - he is being vigilant about keeping his blood sugar in check to prevent any possible blood sugar-related health issues. I read one of the books he has about diabetes - it's by this guy who has type 1 diabetes who was an engineer, and later become a doctor just so he could share what he has learned about diabetes and be taken seriously. His information is counter to general diabetic practice - but basically he has found a way for diabetics to live healthy lives. He also purports that diabetes (or what western medicine calls "pre-diabetic") is actually the cause of death for many people, not heart disease or whatever comes after. He says blood sugar issues are the reason, and he has basically found a way to keep blood sugar spikes from happening in diabetics. And it is of course all diet, and self awareness about what particular foods spike a person's particular blood sugar. Which means lots and lots of checking on a glucometer.

Anyway - all this digression to say that My Charming Companion has discovered that he can't really eat many carbs in the afternoons and evenings. So there was some weekend experimentation about what to fry fish in for next month's boundary waters trip (it had been rice flour). Turns out ground up pork rinds mixed with Kraft parmesan cheese works great. (Neither product typically being in the cupboard - but both actually being free of weird added products?!) There was also some pudding experimentation to try to find something sweet to eat (and maybe sans chocolate for night-time caffeine sensitivities).

Which leads me to this post. This recipe does have some honey in it - so if you have blood sugar issues, increase the stevia and eliminate the honey, or if you don't want stevia, increase the honey. It turned out really nice and lemony and creamy. And as chia seeds are - it was super easy.

Lemon Chia Pudding
5 tablespoons chia seeds (I used white)
1 can coconut milk
1/4 c coconut water or water
2 teaspoons honey, plus 4-6 drops stevia
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Zest and juice of 1 lemon
pinch salt

Stir all ingredients together in a bowl. Leave out on counter for another 5-10 minutes, stirring two more times and making sure chia seeds are not clumped up. Put in the fridge overnight, or for a couple of hours. The final product will be a little bit soupy and not totally firm. I ate mine with some toasted coconut flakes and some toasted pepitas - yum!

Chocolate chia seed pudding

I went to a big "harvest dinner" this week and ate all kinds of things that I have not been eating lately. Like wine, potatoes, and sugar - in several forms, including flourless chocolate cake. My Charming Companion asked, "Did you get romantic with that cake?" (referring to a line from It Starts with Food where they recommend eating dessert type treats with some romance. They want you to take your cookie on a date and really get cozy with it - or some such similar sentiment.) Mine was a hurried love - I was overly excited and perhaps rushed things a bit. I was wired afterwards and the next several days keep feeling hungry, hungry, hungry. Is that the sugar? I don't know for sure, but seems likely.

Other discoveries post my Whole30 - I guess I do react to dairy. My nose seems to have a tendency to be a bit wet whether I eat dairy or not, but there is significant dripping when I do. So. I don't know what I'll do with that information. Maybe not have so much dairy. We'll see.

In the wake of my sugar crash, I did decide to make this minimally sweetened chocolate pudding. It has only 5 ingredients: dark chocolate (I used my fave 80% Equal Exchange), chocolate powder, chia seeds, coconut milk, and vanilla. At first bite, I thought it was not so sweet (it was the day after the flourless chocolate cake, afterall), but a couple of days later when I had ramekin number 2, I was totally sold. My Charming Companion found these pudding cups quite delicious and was totally prepared to eat them all if I was not into them.

With a drizzle of coconut milk!

Chocolate Chia Seed Pudding (4 servings)
1 14oz can coconut milk
2 oz dark chocolate, 70% or higher, chopped
1 T high quality cocoa powder
5 T chia seeds
2 tsp vanilla extract

1. Heat coconut milk in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir/whisk in chopped chocolate and cocoa powder.
2. When chocolate is all melted and the saucepan looks like delicious hot chocolate, turn off the heat and stir in the chia seeds and vanilla. *Do this while stirring continuously so that the seeds do not clump up at the bottom. Keep stirring as mixture starts to thicken.
3. Pour into individual serving cups or ramekins, and refrigerate for at least an hour until "pudding" is firm. Serve! (I ate mine plain, but it would probably be delicious with some whipped coconut cream and cinnamon sprinkled on top.)