Spinach and Pineapple Smoothie

Having tried (and fallen in love with) the Banana and Spinach Smoothie, I decided to experiment with different combinations of ingredients so that I could enjoy this drink as often as possible, but without getting bored with it. I still used spinach but I replaced coconut water with apple juice (preferably, you'd use a natural one without any sugar added). 

When it came to deciding about which fruit I was going to use, I chose a pineapple- an excellent source of Vitamin C and manganese as well as a very good source of copper which, combined with some other nutrients, make pineapple a very healthy fruit. Its main health benefits include improved digestion, boosted immune system (less colds, infections, etc.) and antioxidant protection that helps against some types of cancer as well as improves the look of skin (reduces wrinkles, improves skin texture and fights damage caused by sun and pollution). I cannot imagine a tastier way of looking after my skin then having this wonderful smoothie!

P.S. If you would like to make this smoothie even more nutrient packed, add chia seeds.

INGREDIENTS (for 1 portion):

50g spinach,

1500ml apple juice,

150g pineapple,

1 tbsp chia seeds (optional).

METHOD:

1. Place all the ingredients except for the chia in a blender and process till smooth.
2. Stir in the chia seeds, if using.

Read More

Strawberry milkshake is surely a classic in its group although probably everyone prepares it slightly differently: some add cream, some - ice cream; some use very ripe bananas, some - frozen bananas. For a very long time I prepared it as either a treat/snack or - sometimes - as an accompaniment to breakfast.

This time I wanted it to be a wholesome breakfast and that is why I added chia seeds to my more-or-less usual ingredients. Why was chia supposed to make the difference? You may remember from one of my previous posts that chia seeds are not only nutritious but also an excellent source of dietary fiber. Additionally, these seeds are weight-loss friendly because:

• due to a pretty high (for a plant food) content of proteins - approx. 16%, they reduce appetite and
• since chia can absorb up to 10-12 times its weight in water, it becomes gel-like, expanding in your stomach making you feel fuller so you want to eat less calories.

That way when you have this milkshake in the morning you can be sure that not only you have a delicious and nutritious start to your day but also you will not feel hungry for a few hours. And did I mention it takes only a few minutes to make it?

Chia Seeds and Strawberry Milkshake[vegan]

Ingredients

• 200g fresh or frozen strawberries
• 2 bananas
• 200ml rice milk (or any other type of milk)
• 2 tbsp chia seeds

Takes 3 min, serves 2.

Instructions

1. Process everything in a blender for 40-60 seconds.

Read More

Chocolate Chia Pudding with Raspberries [vegan]

As I mentioned in one of my previous posts, chia is still a novelty ingredient for me and I am fascinated by it: it is almost difficult to believe that so much goodness can be hidden in such tiny seeds, and dietary fiber is one of them. Since 34% of Chia is dietary fiber, it makes it one of the best sources in the world.

All types of plant food include dietary fiber – components that our body cannot absorb or digest so they go through our digestive system almost intact. And what it means to us is that high fiber food, in general, has less calories for the same volume as other types of food, which helps maintain a healthy weight.

Based on dissolving (or not) in water, there are 2 types of fiber: soluble and insoluble. Chia seeds are a great source of soluble fiber which is very beneficial to us because:

• it reduces the risk of heart diseases by helping to lower the blood cholesterol and
• it reduces the risk of developing type 2 diabetes by slowing down the absorption of sugar.

Adults should daily consume 20-35g of dietary fiber. If we consider having recommended 2 tablespoons of chia seeds (25-30g) per day, that tiny amount will provide us with approx. 40% of recommended daily intake of fiber in one go!

Since chia is so beneficial to our health then why not start a day with a delicious and easy to prepare chia breakfast? Which in truth is so good, it could be also served as a dessert.

INGREDIENTS (for 1 breakfast or 2 dessert portions):

125ml almond milk,

2 tbsp chia seeds,

1 tsp cacao powder,

4 tsp maple syrup,

100g raspberries.

METHOD:

1. Pour the chia seeds into a small bowl with the almond milk, stir well with a fork and put to a fridge for min. 1.5 hours or overnight. If possible, stir again after 15 min.
2. Add the cocoa powder and 2 tsp of the maple syrup to the chia and stir well.
3. Liquidise or mash the raspberries with the 2 tsp of maple syrup.
4. Serve in a glass layered chocolate chia and raspberries.

Subscribe to our Delicious and Healthy Recipes Newsletter

* indicates required

Email Address *

First Name

Last Name

Read More

Lemon Cake with Chia Seeds

When it comes to Chia seeds, I am still on a voyage of discovery and experimentation. I read how healthy they are and therefore intend to use them as an ingredient in my food as often as possible. I have already tried them out in a few simple recipes (I will post them soon) but what I really wanted to do was to bake a cake with this novelty ingredient.

Chia reminds me a bit of poppy seed so I used it in a lemon cake as a substitute for poppy seeds. The cake turned out delicious: very moist with crunchy little bits. And although I do realize this is not the healthiest cake in the world (I tried to use healthy rapeseed oil instead of butter but it didn’t work), I am sure that adding chia seeds certainly made it healthier.

INGREDIENTS (for 8 portions):

175g butter, in room temperature,

175g sugar,

200g flour,

2 tsp baking powder,

Zest from 3 lemons,

2 tbsp lemon juice,

3 eggs,

100g Greek yoghurt,

2 tbsp chia seeds,

Icing:

100g icing sugar,

1 tbsp + 1tsp lemon juice.

METHOD:

1. Preheat an oven to 180 Celsius Degrees (160 for fan ovens).
2. Put a disk of parchment paper on the bottom of a round 18cm-diameter cake tin and grease its side.
3. Beat the butter and sugar till fluffy, add the rest of the cake ingredients and beat until everything is well combined.
4. Pour the batter into the prepared tin and bake in the hot oven for 50-60 minutes (when a wooden stick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, the cake is ready).
5. Cool down the cake at first in the tin and after 10 minutes on a wire rack.
6. Prepare the icing by mixing the icing sugar with the lemon juice, pour it over the cake.

Subscribe to our Delicious and Healthy Recipes Newsletter

* indicates required

Email Address *

First Name

Last Name

Read More

Healthy Chocolate Mousse with Chia Seeds [vegan]

I have heard many times about a chocolate mousse made with avocado and was really intrigued by the idea. Even though I often find avocados very uncooperative - they can be too hard for days and then suddenly one day they are already overripe: brown and not looking appetizing at all - I still like them a lot. But to use them in a chocolate mousse?! The only way that I could convince myself this whole idea would work, was to make such a mousse myself.

When I made it for the first time, to be honest, I wasn’t quite sure about the result. But other family members who tried it, liked it a lot. So I gave the mousse a second chance. I adjusted the amounts of ingredients, I also decided to make it even healthier by adding chia seeds. This time I absolutely loved it: nice, chocolatey and creamy. Even though the portion seems to be small, it is quite filling. And another advantage of this mousse is that you can have it either as a healthy dessert or healthy breakfast. And who could say no to a guilt-free but super-healthy chocolate mousse for breakfast?

INGREDIENTS (for 1 portion):

1 tbsp chia seeds,

75ml coconut milk,

0.5 avocado,

1 banana,

3 Medjool dates (or 6 normal dates, soaked beforehand in hot water for 10 minutes),

2 tsp cocoa powder,

Raspberries (fresh or frozen) or other berries to serve.

METHOD:

1. In the evening put the chia seeds and the coconut milk to a cup, stir and put to a fridge for the night.
2. In the morning place the avocado, banana, dates and cocoa powder in a food processor or blender and process till smooth.
3. In a small glass/bowl put half of the chocolate mousse on the bottom, cover it with majority of the chia and coconut mixture, then place the other half of the mousse and the rest of chia seeds.
4. Decorate with raspberries.

Read More