Chia Smoothie Bowl

Have you tried making a Chia Smoothie bowl yet? I have to admit it took me a long time to give in to the trendy idea of eating chia seed.  I mean…..if you grew up when I did the infamous recognition of these healthy jelly seed bits may be recalled in an obnoxious and ubiquitous TV commercial interrupting your Saturday cartoons and the Mary Tyler Moore show, all too often.

Do you remember that?? Me neither.

Some old people told me about it ;).

But who knew that chia has more anti-oxidants than blueberries, more omega 3’s than salmon and more calcium than milk? We need that stuff! Soon, I finally decided to give it a try and now I love to make a morning chia smoothie bowl or a small shooter size afternoon snack with the easy-to-puff-up little guys.  It’s a simple way to get a high protein breakfast on the mornings that you just don’t want a liquid smoothie or to whip up some eggs.  AND you can make it the night before so there are no excuses for the whole; I don’t have time to make breakfast wah, wah, I’m sooooooo busy (to the third power, pie R squared) drama…

So what do you say? Let’s DO THIS:

What you’ll need:

2/3 cup chia seeds
• 2 cups unsweetened coconut, almond or hemp milk
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1-2 tablespoons wild honey or maple syrup (or any sweetener you like)
• 2 tablespoons unsweetened coconut flakes
• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon (optional)

Things you can add in, you ask? How about some cocoa powder, fresh berries, a bit of nutmeg, toasted nuts – almond, macadamia, hazelnuts, or even some Cool Ranch Dorito Chips……….just checking to see if you are still with me 😉

How to make it:

Stir together seeds, nut milk and vanilla in a bowl. Refrigerate for a few hours and whisk again to keep seeds from clumping at the bottom then set for a few hours or overnight. When ready to serve, stir well and add the rest of the ingredients.
You can also sweeten it and add AMAZING vegan power protein by omitting the sweetener and adding 1 scoop of my Clean & Lean Power Protein. This is what I often do instead of a morning smoothie, because, you really gotta mix it up once in a while, no?

Let me know what you think, when you try it!