I HEART CHIA SEEDS...and these amaranth seeds, too!
No doubt you’ve heard that annoying jingle for the green and living Chia pets…what you may not know is that those little seeds are powerhouses of nutrition and flavor!
Renita, who is a frequent contributor and Club Member, turned us onto these beauties. She found a recipe for Chia Pudding and the stampede to get these seeds was on! We offer her recipe here and cannot overemphasize how delicious and nutritious it is. PLUS-and this is critical for Food Stamps Cooking Clubbers-it is economical. Furthermore, it could become your family’s new favorite comfort food!
RENITA’S CHIA TAPIOCA PUDDING
2 cups almond milk, rice milk, coconut milk or fruit juice
1/2 cup Chia seeds
1/3 cup honey *Or use 15-20 drops Stevia
1/2 – 1 teaspoon vanilla or almond extract
1/4 – 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
Stir. Use raw Cacao Powder for chocolate flavor if desired.
Keep in fridge and use for breakfast, lunch, dinner or snacks!
Here are some facts about Chia seeds you may find interesting:
- Chia seeds are rich in Omega 3 – it has 700% more than wild salmon!
- Soaked Chia seeds are gelatinous, so are ideal for adding to soups and puddings
- Considered to be a Superfood, Chia seeds soak up 9 times their weigh in liquid. Add 9 teaspoons of water for every teaspoon of Chia seeds you put into any dish.
- For baking, make a gelatin and replace 1/2 the oil in your recipe with the equivalent…if your recipe calls for 1 cup of butter or oil, you would use 1/2 cup of oil or butter and 1/2 cup of the Chia gelatin
- Chia seeds can be ground in a coffee grinder or food processor to be used to dredge meats before frying or baking.
- Chia seeds have 500% more calcium than milk; 200% more iron than spinach; 1400% more magnesium than broccoli; and they are rich in fiber, protein, selenium and phosphorous!
Wouldn’t it be fun to make up a batch of this yummy-ness and pour it into ice cube trays so you could give your kids “cubes” of pudding? Kids are going to love this stuff and you’ll be happy to have them eating such a healthy snack!
For users of SNAP or WIC or Angel Food Ministries, this could really be helpful. If you utilize a food pantry or have food commodities Chia seeds could help you stretch those food dollars. If you are frugal and health conscious you will be delighted to have Chia seeds on your pantry shelf.
Boy, do we ever owe Renita for this one! Thanks again, Renita!
We hope you will send your food ideas to foodstampscookingclub@gmail.com because we love getting mail and we love, love, love getting your comments here! Thank you for your participation!
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