Hey everyone.  This is my last chia recipe of the week.  I figured since I'm promoting my smoothie giveaway I might as well end it with a smoothie.

This smoothie is full of foods that start with the letter S- strawberries, sunflower butter, soy and seeds (make that chia seeds of course).  They are really smooth and satisfying and they were a big hit with the kids and adults alike in my house.

As with all smoothie recipes, feel free to adapt away.  Any type of milk will do, though I really like the taste and soy protein that soy milk provides,  You can opt for a nut butter as opposed to sunflower butter if you don't have it available.  My kids attend a daycare that is peanut-free to avoid allergy exposure, so I have to have alternatives in my fridge, but peanut butter will also work.  Sunflower butter is a good source of several vitamins and minerals, like Pantothenic Acid, Magnesium, Phosphorus, Copper and Manganese.  It also has protein, so that with the soy milk will help hold your kids over a little longer.

And of course, with those chia seeds these smoothies are also a great source of omega-3 fatty acids. Try them out, they are mild, smooth and have just the right amount of sweetness.  Enjoy!

Chia Super S Smoothies
Prep time: 5 minutes
Makes: 4 servings

1 1/2 cups unsweetened soy milk
1 cup chopped strawberries
2 tablespoons chia seeds
2 tablespoons sunflower butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 tablespoon honey
6-12 ice cubes

Mix all the above in a blender and blend until smooth.  Serve immediately.

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Don't forget to enter my smoothie giveway!

Other great chia recipes from this week:

It's day four of chia week!  Here's another tasty chia recipe, but this time I'm going the frozen route!  We might as well cover all the elements, seeing as we've gone baked, liquified and the pudding form (OK, so pudding is not an element but it's definitely some kind of combo) so we might as well conquer ice next. 

What I love about these bonbons is that they are a great way to stifle a sugar craving, without adding any processed sugar to the mix.  It all comes from adding chopped dates, which are one of my favorite ways of sweetening just about anything.

These are an adaptation of a a previous frozen bonbon I made that got a lot of positive feedback.  They even got on Foodgwaker, despite my shoddy photography skills.  Thank you Canon auto-focus for that.  They were originally adapted from a friend's Paleo diet plan, and in fact when I brought up chia week she suggested this adaptation.  I hope your kiddos like these.  If the sound of the chair being drug over to my freezer is any indicator, my kids sure do.

Chia bonbons
Prep: 10 minutes
Serves: 5

1/2 cup finely chopped dates
1/4 cup almond butter
2 tablespoons chia seeds
1 tablespoon melted coconut butter
1/2 cup unsweetened shredded coconut

Mix these ingredients together in a bowl then scoop out roughly one teaspoon of mix into your hand.  Roll slightly to make a ball, then drop into coconut.  Roll the ball to coat the outside of it with coconut, then drop the ball onto a baking sheet.  Repeat 10 or so times, until you've used all the mix.  Place the baking sheet in the freezer and freeze for at least one hour.  Then transfer to a freezer bag. 

Enjoy!

I’m so excited to share blog space with Healthy Kiddo Snacks!  Jill and I have the same goal, to make food delicious and healthy!   When Jill asked if I wanted to participate in chia week, I jumped at the chance, because my kids and I have never tried them!  So, right away, we set off to get some.

I live in a pretty normal suburb, but we don’t have many health food stores. In fact, we only have one and it’s quite small, with mostly supplements and vitamins for sale.  I did see chia seeds there in the sprouting section, but was unsure whether chia seeds for sprouting were the same as chia seeds for eating. So, I didn’t buy any, and we left on Spring Break.

Luckily, on the last day of spring break, we went to a local Saturday’s Market .  There were only about 4 vendors there (it was a rainy day), but one of them had glasses of water with chia seeds soaking in them!  Encouraged by the vendor, we each took a swig of the water.  She told us chia seeds were full of antioxidants and vitamins, and we could get a healthy dose of them daily, just by drinking them.  We all tried it, and were satisfied by the taste. No one spit it out, and of course, I bought a bag from her.

Upon bringing them home, my cute little two year old neighbor stuck her hand in the bag and just started chomping on them.  (see them on her lips??)

 So, because my kids aren’t interested in drinking their chia seeds plain, we decided to make some homemade juice and it was even better. Letting the chia seeds absorb the juice instead of water, turned a non-tasting drink, into a drink that was high in flavor, plus high in nutrients.  Our final recipe was this:

Golden Chia Chugger

1 orange
1 peach
1 carrot
1 TBL chia seeds

Place orange, peach, and carrot into a juicer and juice.  Mix in chia seeds. Let sit for 10 minutes while chia seeds absorb the juice.  Stir once more and drink.

I’m so glad we tried this!  We are going to be drinking a lot more chia now that I have some and we know we like it!

Amy blogs at the Super Healthy Kids Blog where you’ll find recipes, meal plans, and more!

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Is this all you know about chia?  Uh oh, time for a chia crash course.

I first stumbled upon chia when my little guy stopped tolerating dairy.  OK that's not totally true, chia pets were my first introduction.  But I heard about the actual seeds through the grapevine, although I never really investigated their health benefits at the time.  In fact chia seeds are full of calcium, which is great if your kids have issues with dairy.  One serving (two tablespoons) of chia seeds has 6% of your daily calcium allotment.

Chia seeds have benefits far beyond their calcium content, but first here's little historical background for those of you that keep hearing the ch-ch-ch-chia song in your heads.  Chia is an edible seed that comes from the desert plant Salvia hispanica, which grows abundantly in Southern Mexico. In ancient times they were integral Aztec and Mayan diets.  In fact chia seeds were essential rations for Aztec warriors and are still a main component in the Tarahumara Indian's diet, those famous runners in Mexico that can run hundreds of miles without resting.

Back to my original point, chia are full of nutrients.  Here's a concise list:

-Chia are full of omega-3 fatty acids.  In fact they have even more omegas than flax seeds.
-Chia seeds have calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, manganese, copper, iron, molybdenum, niacin, and zinc.
-Chia seeds have lots of fiber per serving.
-Chia is rich in antioxidants.  In fact the seeds don't deteriorate and can be stored for long periods without becoming rancid, like other seeds and nuts.
-Unlike other super seeds like flax, chia seeds do not have to be ground to be absorbed.

With all those health benefits and their nutritional stability, why not add them to your kiddos snacks?  And here's your first idea for sneaking them in.  How about... brownies?

Now I know brownies aren't the quintessential healthy snack.  But this is a processed-free version adapted from one of my favorite processed-free foods sites, Out of the Box Food.  With whole wheat flour, chia, flax and hazelnuts these are a great, healthy brownie alternative.  And they are rich, moist and decadent.  In fact you'll never know these are bursting with omegas, fiber and nutrients.  But your kiddos are sure to love them, if mine are any indicator.  Enjoy!

Chia brownies

Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 30 minutes

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
1 cup raw (turbinado) sugar
1/2 cup applesauce
1/2 cup water
1/3 cup chia seeds
3 tablespoons flax meal (if not available, omit along with 1/2 cup water and use an additional 3 eggs)
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon vanilla
1 egg
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1/2 cup ground hazelnuts  (or another 1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour)
1 1/2 cups dark chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 350F.  Lightly grease a 9x9 inch square baking pan.

Melt the butter in a large saucepan.  Whisk in sugar and bring back to a simmer.  When mixture is simmering, add applesauce and water and then cook for an additional minute, whisking until smooth.  Remove from heat.

Whisk in chia seeds, flax, cocoa powder, baking powder, salt and vanilla.  Cool slightly,  Then stir in egg until well incorporated. 

Using a food processor or a clean coffee grinder, grind hazelnuts until fine.  Stir in flour and ground hazelnuts until just mixed.  Mix in chocolate chips and pour into baking pan.  Cook for 30 minutes or until a wooden skewer comes out with crumbs but not a wet batter.  Cool completely before serving.

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