Desserts

Chia Seed Pudding

The other night I was desperately searching for a dessert item in my kitchen, and unless I've purchased some raw dark chocolate from Organic Avenue, I typically don't have anything to find. I guess fruit is usually what I go for when craving sweets, but I was out of stock there, too. Then, I had an epiphany (ha ha) and remembered my chia seeds could be manipulated into something dessert-like, rather than their usual place in the smoothie. I searched online for a quick recipe and came across one that I liked, and then I changed it around a bit. Nutritional fun fact (taken from Andrew Weil's site): When added to water and allowed to sit for 30 minutes, chia forms a gel. Researchers suggest that this reaction also takes place in the stomach, slowing the process by which digestive enzymes break down carbohydrates and convert them into sugar (less sugar cravings and longer satiation). Yay!

Benefits of Chia Seeds:

  • rich in omega-3 fatty acids, even more so than flax seeds (chia is one of the most concentrated sources of omega-3 in any food)
  • rich in antioxidants
  • rich in fiber and nutrients - (25 grams give you 6.9 grams of fiber), calcium (18% daily value), phosphorus, magnesium, manganese, copper, iron, molybdenum, niacin, and zinc
  • high in omega-6
  • And...protein! :)

Ingredients

1/3 cup chia seeds

2 cups liquid of your choice - I used homemade cashew milk

1/2 T sweetener

Fruit, chopped (1/2 peach, 1/banana, 1 kiwi, or whatever you like)

2 t cinnamon

Directions:

Place chia seeds, water, and sweetener in a bowl that has an air-tight lid. Stir and cover. Put in the refrigerator for 30 minutes, then stir again. The chia seeds will have become a gel. Put chopped fruit, a tad more sweetener and cinnamon and eat up! You can keep the pudding in the fridge for up to 2 weeks, but if you use a homemade nut milk, it will only last about 5 days (from when you made the milk).

Healthy Chocolate Pudding

veganchoc Not only is this pudding healthy and delicious, it takes less than 10 minutes to make! I know the main ingredient sounds a bit odd, but after reading reviews on different blogs of children who love this recipe, I knew I had to give it a go.

Ingredients 1 medium-sized, ripe avocado (pitted and peeled) 3 heaping T of raw cocoa powder (use normal cocoa powder if can't find raw) 1/3 cup agave nectar 1/2 t sea salt 2 t alcohol-free vanilla extract (I found this at Trader Joe's) 1/2 t cinnamon 1/2 cup water (I probably used about a cup, but blend it first before adding more) Berries (blueberries and strawberries are my favorites!)

Put all of the ingredients into a blender until the pudding is really creamy. Use a spatula to get the little avocado pieces mixed in and add water as needed. Once the pudding has reached the desired creaminess, put some berries on top, and it's ready to eat! I put my pudding in four serving dishes and froze it (about 4 hours) for a gelato-like consistency. Then I added blueberries, cocoa powder and coconut! It was a huge hit!

http://beautiful-vegan.blogspot.com/