Chia!

Spiced Chocolate Chia Pudding (⬅ Click for recipe!)

I found this recipe the other day, and have been waiting to make a new batch of coconut milk so that I could try it out. Since the girl has been having trouble eating most proteins lately, I've been looking for creative ways to get some extra into our meals. I didn't calculate the nutritional information for this recipe yet, but between the chia and cashews, it should be a good addition to a meal. I think it's got a great texture, and tastes great! I'm excited to see what the kids think about it tomorrow.
 
UPDATE:
The boy loves it, but it fills him up fast. The girl says she likes it, but will usually only try a small spoonful or two before deciding she's full. The mister and I like it a lot, and I'm thinking about trying another batch and sticking it into the freezer in ice cube trays, then tossing it into the Vitamix. I think it would be perfect for an ice cream-ish treat.

Our Tuesday Lunch

Sunbutter on gluten-free blueberry waffles and chia gel with maple syrup, coconut milk, lucuma powder, and frozen raspberries

The chia gel is in a mason jar with a Tattler BPA-free lid! I've been researching for a long while, looking for something to replace the BPA coated lids for our mason jars. My favorite option until recently was the Weck canning jars with glass lids. I never ended up ordering those though, they are pretty pricey, and I really didn't want to purchase jars when we already have so many. When I stumbled across the Tattler lids in the Lehman's catalog, I was thrilled. They are BPA-free, come in 2 sizes to fit both regular and wide mouth canning jars, and are reusable. The best part was that the mister was going to be driving within a few miles of Lehman's that very week, so we didn't have to pay shipping charges, or make a special trip. I haven't canned with them yet, but have used them for bulk storage, and making chia. They are just as easy to use for those purposes as the metal lids, without the extra bonus of leaching toxins into our food. Yay!
Another way that I've found to get BPA out of our home; We buy our sunbutter in a 5 lb bucket. It's less expensive since it's bulk, but it also has the benefit of a BPA-free container. We used to buy the smaller jars by the case, but didn't like that the lids had BPA. We fill a smaller sized container with sunbutter, so that it's easy to grab out of the fridge when needed, and leave the bucket tucked in the back of the fridge. It wouldn't work if you have a mini fridge, but for a bulk buying family, it's great.

Mmmm, this is good! And Yummy! Can I have some more please?

We've been incorporating more raw foods into our diet, and I've also been trying to change the cold cereal for breakfast every morning routine. So, when a friend talked about the Raw Chia Pudding that she's been making, I decided to make it for this morning's breakfast. I made the recipe exactly as written, except for adding a tiny bit more sweetener and about an inch long piece of an organic vanilla bean.
It is so good, and super quick to prepare. The kids were thrilled, they ate two bowls so quickly that I didn't have time to grab the camera to catch their huge smiles. Henry asked me to make it every day, so I'll be sure to have the camera at the ready next time.
If you've ever thought about trying a raw recipe, this would be an excellent one to start with! Chia has tons of antioxidants, amino acids, and EFA (especially omega-3). It also is full of fiber! I'm looking forward to trying some more new recipes soon!