This is my first experience with using Chia seeds. I happened to have a bag of black chia in my pantry that I haven’t known what to do with. After making this pudding, I will definitely keep a stock of it on hand.

Chia seeds are very nutritious — they contain omega 3 fatty acids, which we need for healthy cell membranes and to combat inflammation, and, as I mentioned, are very high in fiber. One serving of this stuff and you’re a third of the way to meeting your daily fiber needs. I’m gobbling it up for dessert.

Avery created this recipe for Vegan Coconut Oil Chocolate Bars.  They only take a few minutes to make, then you stick them in the freezer.  I added some shredded coconut and chopped pecans to mine.  mmmmmmmm….. Hubs was flipping out over this stuff, too.  I want to try them with cranberries, pepitas, almonds, and other goodies…

The Dry:
4 cups whole wheat pastry flour
2 tablespoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons ground flaxseed (for added fiber)
1 cup unbleached sugar (demerara) (next time I will use only 3/4 cup sugar)

The Wet:
1 3/4 cup unsweetened plain rice milk (almond would have been better, but I was out)
1/2 cup coconut oil
1/4 cup grapeseed oil (next time I will use all coconut oil.  I only added some grapeseed cause I’m running low on coconut)
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 teaspoons almond extract
1/4 cup almond butter
5 teaspoons poppyseeds

The How-To:
1. Grease muffin pans (or you can line them with paper cups.  I didn’t have any.)
2. Preheat oven to 350 F
3. Combine flour, baking powder, salt, flax, and sugar in a large bowl.
4. On the stove over low heat, melt coconut oil and grapeseed oil together with the rice milk.  Then add the extracts
5. Pour the warmed oil/milk mixture into the dry ingredients gradually, until combined.  You may need to add a bit of milk if the mixture seems too dry or doughy.
6. Generously fill muffin tins.
8. Bake 18 minutes, or until done.
9. Cool thoroughly.  (Note: Deb at Altered Plates recommends not covering or wrapping her lemon-poppyseed muffins for at least 12 hours.  I don’t know why, or if that still applies, given that I’ve changed the recipe so much.  Maybe she will tell us.)

The Loveliness:

And it was.  We looked at gorgeous piles of fruit, touched, smelled, put a few choice pieces in our basket.  A mango.  A starfruit. An enormous Asian pear.  Two bananas (which I rarely buy). A Meyer lemon. Pluots. Olives. I have never needed fruit so much in my life.

We brought the bounty home, along with a loaf of crusty whole grain bread and some roasted garlic, and had a fruit feast on the floor.  We both felt better.

Plants contain fiber! Eat whole grains, legumes, fruits, veggies, nuts, and seeds. More plants = more fiber.

Some other practitioners aren’t so worried about it.  You can see Dr. Weil’s take on the matter here.  Of course, Dr. W prolly can’t say what he really thinks because of risk of getting sued by the peanut industry.  He holds that the FDA tests crops and doesn’t allow those containing concentrations above 20 parts per billion to be released for consumption.   …. hmm…I’m always skeptical of anything the FDA does or says they do.

I eat peanut butter several times a week, sometimes more (I know, I should stop eating it daily, I’m working on it).   In The China Study, Dr. Campbell talks about how the risk of developing cancer from aflatoxin consumption decreases as consumption of animal protein decreases (Read the book, if you haven’t already).  So, in that respect I’m doing well decreasing my overall risk of liver cancer.

I’m not sure if that protects me altogether from the danger of aflatoxin.  We also eat popcorn pretty regularly, and corn tortillas as well.  I think at this point, I will endeavor to reduce my peanut butter consumption, and replace it with almond butter (even though almond butter is much more expensive).  But I don’t think I can give it up completely.

sigh. I’m healthier than I used to be.

Forget the white flour and use all whole-wheat pastry flour.  I used the minimum amount of sugar, and still thought they were a bit too sweet; and I used an extra 1/2 tbsp of cocoa powder in addition to what the recipe calls for.  Also, I added mini chocolate chips (PMS made me do it) once I’d poured the batter into the skillet. I tried a few with pecans, and they were good but Hubs and I liked the chocolate chip ones the best.

Don’t forgo the Maple-Sour Cream syrup.  It is the perfect compliment for these.