Ch-Ch-Ch-Chia
Chia is not just for making Scooby-shaped plants anymore.
After all the food blogger buzz about the health benefits of chia (especially from a certain Heather), I finally ordered my own canister of the magical stuff. Trouble is…I don’t know what to do with it. Any chia recipe suggestions out there? I understand that chia is very similar to my beloved flax, so maybe I’ll use them interchangeably.
Oh, and I *might* have ordered a little something extra…
A new flavor of Spirutein! Well, it’s new to me anyway. Hello, chocolate-covered cherry shake:)
Onto the TGIF eats:
Thursday
This smoothie was a little meh. The granola was the best part by far.
strawberry-mango smoothie with Berry HempShake, soymilk, & Acai Apple granola
Friday
Alright, so I cheated a little bit with my final bowl of alphabet oats today. Are there any foods in the English language that begin with x? I think not…so I turned to Chinese. This was my first time trying the yogurt in my oats thing…not a fan. I like my oats piping hot, so stirring in the cold yogurt at the end kinda killed that. The Z-bar was tasty but didn’t really work with the other flavors. Overall, not a positive oatmeal experience.
"XYZ" Oats: oat bran with xingzi (Chinese for apricot), yogurt, PB Z Bar, plus a little flax
Layered Mexican-inspired dips are fast becoming a favorite of mine, mostly due to my discovery of homemade tofu sour cream. Plus, I just like all the different colors and textures involved–it makes for pretty pictures (hence the numerous glamor shots).
Mexican Dip: refried black beans, colby-jack cheese, no-salt-added tomatoes, chopped avocado, tofu sour cream; corn tortillas; salad; mixed berries
glamor shot #1: from the top...
from the side...
...and the tasty innards
One benefit of my thousands of hours of Food Network watching: not needing a recipe. As a result of all the time I devote to food television and other food-related media, I don’t feel the need to use a recipe in order to cook dinner. Tonight was just one such occasion. I’ve never cooked with coconut milk before, but I figured it would pair well with tomatoes and Indian spices. Add a few veggies and some tofu for protein–voila! Fan-freakin-tabulous curry.
tofu curry; spinach with garlic & almonds; oat bran pita; orange segments
tofu curry: garlic, onions, tofu, cauliflower, tomatoes, coconut milk, garam masala, cumin, curry powder, & ginger
Have a good weekend everyone! Stay tuned for Sunday’s feature post.
Filed under: Meals
Hello and welcome! I have created this blog for people who love food, especially healthful, vegetarian food.
I have just graduated from Duke University with degrees in English and psychology. I plan to pursue a master's degree in nutrition starting in Fall 2010. Ideally, I would like to combine my love of food and the written word someday as a health writer.
haha, same here! I watched so many food network shows I don’t really need to refer to recipes either! I guess watching TV actually…gasp…saves TIME?
tofu curry looks awesome, just as that amazing dip! you’re So creative and such a culinary genius, I’m sure you won’t have trouble figuring out something yummy with the chia seeds!
I have no doubt you could be on Iron Chef and kick all of their bootays. Maybe not Cat Cora…I love her.
chia is great. it readily absorbs liquid, so you can make some great “pudding” with it. just pour some nondairy milk over top of a few tablespoons, let it sit in the fridge for a while (at least 15 minutes; i usually let it sit longer), stirring (or not, if you forget) once or twice. mix in any flavors, fruit, whatever. that’s what i usually do with it, at least. have fun experimenting!
that oatmeal combo looks awesome!
Mmmm! Your layered dip looks and sounds great!!!!
-A
im watching top chef as we speak… cant say no to cooking shows!!!
Chia seeds confuse me. I know theyre so good for you.. and theyre totally cool when they absorb the liquid making them big and gel like. but i cant figure out how i like to eat them. let me know if you find somehing!
Your eats are ALWAYS ridiculously healthy and look amazing! I need to hire you to come cook for me!
I’ve been wanting to try a chia pudding recipe (http://swellvegan.wordpress.com/2009/02/18/chia-pudding/) forever but can’t find chia seeds. Where did you order it from?
I love how creative you got with your alphabet oats!
That Mexican dip looks amazing!! Way to go with the oat challenge? I loved seeing what you came up with! Everything was so creative (which wasn’t surprising as you are Miss Star Cook!)!
Caroline,
First off-Happy Saturday! Hooray for weekends!
I may have just strained my Mix My Granola this morning to get all of the chia seeds out. ;p I’m planning on making some raw pudding (cashews, water, chia, and spices) and some Heather style oat bran with them. Yum yum!
I loved all of your alphabet oats and don’t blame you one tiny bit for condensing them! I would have fizzled out long ago.
Hope your weekend is wonderful!
With Love,
Emily
All of your eats are amazing and so pretty to look at!
I love the way you eat and how you take time to prepare and enjoy your meals. I wish I could be more like that sometimes… but I often get too lazy, haha.
Have a great weekend!
Chia in smoothies! But I’m guessing you were already planning on that…
Other than that I’ve been grinding them to use in place of ground flax in baked goods.
And that curry looks absolutely delicious!
I gotta get me some chia seeds! Everyone raves about them and I can see why..they don’t sprout like chia plants into weird things like porcupines or George Bush’s head!
Love the tofu curry and the dip!
I’ve been interested in these chia seeds myself lately! Can’t wait to see what you do with them…
That mexican dip looks so good. LOVED that entire meal!
I am still scared of chia seeds
make the chia pudding — it’s sooooooo good!
your mexican layered dip looks insanely delicious.
btw, I thought you might be interested in:
Chia Herb Couscous
4 teaspoons margarine, 2 medium green onion chopped, 2 cups chicken broth, 4 teaspoon chopped fresh basil or 2 teaspoon dried basil, 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese, 2 Tablespoons chia seed, 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped, 1 1/3 cups uncooked couscous, 1/2 Teaspoon salt Melt margaine in a 3 quart nonstick saucepan over medium high heat. Cook the garlic and onions in the margarine until the onions are crisp-tender about 4 minutes. Add the chia seeds and lightly toast for about 30 seconds. Stir in the couscous, salt, and if using dried basil add at this time. Add the broth to the saucepan. Bring the mixture to a boil, then remove from the heat. Cover and let stand about 5 minutes. When ready to serve, take a fork and fluff the couscous. Stir in the fresh basil (if fresh is used) and the Parmesan cheese.
and:
Chia Seed Muffins
1/2 cup butter, 3/4 cup sugar, 2 eggs, 3/4 cup sour cream 1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla, 2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour, 1/3 chia seeds, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon baking soda cinnomon sugar – mix 1/4 cup sugar with 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a large bow, cream butter and sugar, Blend in eggs, sour cream and vanilla. In a separate bowl, combine flour, chia seed, salt and baking soda, then add the dry mixture to the creamed mixture. Fill greased muffin tins two-thirds full. Sprinkle with the cinnamon sugar. Bake for 20 minutes until golden brown. Makes 12 muffins.
can’t wait to see what you make with the magic chia seeds!
that XYZ bowl of oatmeal looks appetizing for me!
Haha I love how you said you “cheated” the alphabet oats. DAMN YOU! haha justttt kidding seriously your abc oats are insanely insane!
Ok, so I have a question….you’re definitely a granola queen, so which is your favorite Nature’s Path kind?! If you’ve tried it…..? I’ve been eyeing a couple of the flavors lately but can never decide which one!
And mmmm, that tofu curry and spinach dip look amazing…what’s new!
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