Chia Seed Breakfast Pudding

This is probably my new favorite way to get all things healthy and wondrous into my kids.

And I even bought a great big tub of chia seeds, just so I could make this more often.

Chia Seed Breakfast Pudding
Recipe from Giada de Laurentiis
Prep time: 5 minutes   Standing time: 30 minutes   Chill time: Overnight

Pudding:
1 cup vanilla-flavored unsweetened almond milk
1 cup plain Greek yogurt
2 tbsp pure maple syrup
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
Salt
1/4 cup chia seeds

Topping:
2 cups fruit of your choice
4 tsp maple syrup
1/4 cup nuts of your choice, toasted

1. In a medium bowl, gently whisk together the almond milk, Greek yogurt, 2 tbsp maple syrup, vanilla extract, and 1/8 tsp salt until smooth.

It's kinda hard to take an action shot of yourself whisking.

2. Whisk in the chia seeds; let stand for 30 minutes. Stir the pudding to make sure the seeds are evenly distributed throughout. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

Chia seeds have similar health benefits to flax seed, but don't need to be ground up.

3. Just before serving, toss the fruit in a bowl with 4 tsp maple syrup. Stir in the toasted nuts.

I've been buying big bags of frozen blueberries lately.
It's nice to have back-up fruit in my freezer for my little Fruit Monsters.

4. Spoon the pudding into four bowls or glasses, top with the sweetened fruit and nut mixture.

Step 1: Spoon into serving vessels. I used tumblers

Step 2: Top with sweetened fruit. You can also easily layer this.

Step 3: I chose to leave my nuts separate for a final crunchy topping.

My boys get so excited over this pudding that sometimes I wonder if I should make this a dessert. It's that good! I prefer though to make this a great protein-packed side to a carb-filled meal such as pancakes, french toast, or waffles. In fact, as much as they love pancakes, when this pudding appears on the table it is always the first thing to disappear. Can't argue with that kind of cooking praise!

Blueberry Vanilla Chia Seed Jam

As someone who has no problem saying that she doesn't really care for peanut butter & jelly sandwiches (I know, shocking), I find my growing obsession with jams amusingly ironic.

Actually if you stop and think about it, jams are incredibly versatile!  I mean, sure, you can stick with the universally accepted sweet jam to use on sandwiches and toast.  Or you can shake things up and make something a little more savory.  And from there, the possibilities are truly endless....

I stumbled across this obsession with jams after my PB&J-obsessed son decided to take several months last school year to explore other sandwich combinations.  Last summer I spent weeks amassing pounds and pounds of fruit, cooking it, and canning or freezing it so I'd be ready when school started.  And then Gavin began to ask for peanut butter and honey sandwiches, or just plain peanut butter sandwiches.  And my dozens of jam jars just sat on the shelf.  It didn't take me long to realize that I'd need to start cooking with jam just so I could use it up!  So my search for recipes began...

Blueberry Vanilla Chia Seed Jam
Recipe from Oh She Glows
Prep time: 2 minutes   Cook time: about 30 minutes

3 cups blueberries, fresh or frozen
3-4 tbsp pure maple syrup
2 tbsp chia seeds
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract

1.  In a medium-sized non-stick pot, bring the blueberries and 3 tbsp maple syrup to a low boil.  Stir frequently, and reduce heat to medium-low to simmer for about 5 minutes.  Lightly mash the blueberries with a potato masher or fork, leaving some for texture.

I just missed the peak season so used frozen blueberries instead.

2.  Stir in the chia seeds until thoroughly combined and cook the mixture down until it thickens to your desired consistency, about 15 minutes.  Stir frequently so it doesn't burn.

Use the best quality vanilla you've got; in my case it's homemade.

3.  Once the jam is thick, remove from heat and stir in the vanilla extract.  Add more maple syrup to taste, if desired.

Mmmmmm..............

See how my search has paid off?!  I love the creativity of this jam!  I think it's easy to assume that jam is just simply fruit, cooked down with tons of sugar and some pectin to make it jam-y.  But that's simply not the case!  Don't use refined sugar in your diet?  Make jam with maple syrup or honey instead.  Not real keen on pectin?  Chia seeds totally help create that same gelatinous effect, while adding a ton of health benefits too!

So now I'm back to stockpiling jam again; but not just for sandwiches this time!  One of Gavin's favorite treats to take to school last year was the Fruit Oatmeal Bars.  I learned that a certain popular toaster pastry is really just pie crust and jam so we've had quite a bit of fun make various versions of those, with FAR less sugar and junk than the grocery store kind.  I've swirled jam into Greek yogurt and cottage cheese for a fast, easy, yummy protein-packed breakfast (or snack).  Some jams (like this blueberry one) I use as toppings for pancakes or waffles.  I've also recently discovered that jam makes for an AWESOME barbecue sauce ingredient.

Starting to see those endless possibilities yet?