Alright Mermaid Weekend is over – that ‘diet starts Monday’ attitude has got to go. Besides, that was like 4 Mondays ago! It’s time to get healthy. Can I crave chocolate and still get healthy? It seems I’m not the only person with this question. I got an email from my favorite online health food site which sports a blog called ‘Health Bites’. In this post, Anita talked about her own chocolate fixations, and a vegan pudding treat made with chia seeds. http://blog.vitacost.com/ cooking-recipe/the-cocoa- pudding-cure.html
Hey, I like those little gems too. I soak them in milk and keep them in a jar for a cool after-workout treat. (That is when I workout!) I don’t make them very thick, so they make a great smoothie addition. I like pudding too, but it’s fattening. REAL pudding, I mean. That includes tapioca pudding, which probably is why I don’t find chia’s caviar-like texture offensive. Now, when I say tapioca pudding, I’m not talking about that nasty stuff in a can – yuck!
I have drifted away from the real center of this conversation – chocolate! This blogess came across a great way to get a cool, chocolate fix in and the health benefits of chia seeds too. I tried it – and worked great! Come on I’ll show you.
Chocolate Chia Pudding Treat
Step 1: Gather the goods.
1-1/3 cup Almond Milk, unsweetened *
3 Tbl Chia Seeds (black or white)
3-1/2 Tbl. Cocoa Powder
1/4 tsp Chocolate Extract-optional (I keep this around for extra punch without the junk in chocolate syrup)
1/4 tsp Vanilla Extract (even though there’s vanilla in the milk – is there ever too much?)
2 –1/2 Tbl Agave Nectar *(adjust if using sweetened almond milk)
Note: You can go all organic on this one, without the chocolate extract and of course my Watkins vanilla (a mix of real and artificial). Also, you could switch it up for different flavors, and then there’s always c h o c o l a t e almond milk – OMG – overload!
Step 2:
Get a 12oz Ball jar, or reuse your favorite pasta sauce jar – I know you keep them too – and get everything loaded. Stir those seeds as you add them so they don’t stick together too much.
Step 3:
Get a lid on it and give it a good shake. It’s like an additional exercise – see, so healthy already! (no, I did not say chocolate shake-weight – don’t go there)
Step 4:
Pop it in the fridge, and give it a shake whenever you think of it. I had to laugh at this photo with the kefir and chardonnay right next to each other. Guess who uses this door shelf the most? ME!
Step 5:
And the next day – TA DA! Pudding! And it’s super chocolatey and yummy and cool and good! Don’t eat too much…those chia seeds are a powerful protein!
There’s another recipe that says to put this all in a blender to make it smoooooth. So, feel free to try it.
Finale:
It’s nice and thick it even stands up on a plate by itself. Well, It did for a bit…then I ate it. I have to test these things you know – you’re welcome.
I think I need to portion control these – my little Weck jars and tiny Ball jars do just the trick (but the Weck one takes better photos)
Now I have yet another chocolate treat. This one the guys won’t mess with. (they’re always eating my diet cookies!) Now – back to that treadmill !
Michelle Beal
http://badzoot.com