Monday, April 19, 2010

chia… goodness?

So I won a giveaway from the lovely gals over at The Actors Diet. Er… actually, I won it kind of awhile ago. Through no fault of Christy and Lynne’s (the company was backordered) it just arrived.

The contents of my box:

DSCF4139

Four packs of Chia Goodness Cereal: in apple almond cinnamon, cranberry ginger, original, and chocolate.

Me being who I am, I first went for the chocolate.

Everyone said chia seeds makes things congeal like pudding, so I was like, hey, yes, chocolate pudding! I did one part cereal to 2 parts liquid, as per the directions, and let it gel (I actually was skedaddling off to choir practice, so it got a good 2 hours of pudding-ifying time). Before (exciting-looking cacao nibs and chunks!) and after (… slime):

DSCF4142 DSCF4143

The verdict?

Um, I know everyone in the blogworld is obsessed with chia seeds, and they are a nutritional powerhouse but… um, I kind of hated this bowl. Of course I am not giving up, but I have learned that I find straight-up chia seeds dissolved only in water pretty… disgusting, unfortunately.

Had to get the taste out of my mouth with one of these:

DSCF4144

Delicious, but to quote my beloved Stephen Colbert, a WAG OF THE FINGER at the Girl Scouts of America. Trans fat, Girl Scouts?! Seriously?! How are you supposed to live strong and thrive and all of that with partially hydrogenated oils raising your cholesterol?! Time to reformulate! But still oh man Samoas. The perfect cookie. And the only cookie on Earth where, weirdly, I am satisfied with just one. (Thin Mints, I eat at least 6 in a sitting!)

But anyway (wow tangent) this story has a happy ending.

Take two: overnight oats. Chia seeds would play a SUPPORTING role rather than shouldering the whole show themselves.

Last night I combined…

DSCF4176

The Yo Plus I got a coupon for a free box. I am unimpressed with it on its own (vair artificial tasting) but I thought it might make a nice sweet base for overnight oats.

How it looked last night:

DSCF4177

I checked on it last night after a few hours and it already looked really gelatinized, so I added a splash of milk. Then that was all absorbed this morning so I added another splash! Along with strawberries and walnuts. The result:

DSCF4196

Yummy McYummerson!

I’m still on the bircher-muesli quest (an ongoing thing, partially chronicled here and here) and this creation had the pleasant chewiness and sweetness of that wonderful concoction!

And the walnuts are definitely the essential nut for this- they have a unique flavor.

DSCF4197

Quite honestly, I’d have no idea chia seeds existed were I not a regular food blog reader, and probably be none the unhealthier for not having them in my life. However, I’m pleased with the texture I achieved with their presence, and far be it from me to mess with a good thing- in fact, I have this same mixture gellin’ up in the fridge right now for tomorrow’s brekkie. I also think there will be green monster implications.

8 comments:

Anais said...

I enjoy them mixed into other stuff - like oatmeal. I've never tried Chia goodness but i think I may think the same :P

Sarah @ TheSmartKitchen said...

Gosh, I know how you feel about the chia obsession....I bought some from the bulk bins at Whole Foods since everyone was obsessed, and I sprinkled them on my oatmeal...and while they do add an interesting crunch...I just don't know...

Anonymous said...

While chia seed pudding = snot, try this: add them to water with lemon and lime juice plus grated zest (or strawberries, or cucumbers, or whatever) and pop it in the fridge. It's a really refreshing drink in summer if you just let them congeal slightly and use way more water than necessary. Oatmeal sounds like a good base for them, too.

Molly said...

WOOT WOOT for Girl Scout cookies. I did not get any this year, but my favorite were those pones!

Never tried that cereal.. but congratulations on winning the giveaway!!

Lauren said...

I feel the same way about the pudding! But loooove it in my overnight oats!

MelindaRD said...

I still haven't tried them yet. Very cool that you won them so you can get some experimenting in.

Maya said...

I love chia seeds. I think it has to do for my love of bubble tea. It reminds me of those tapioca bubble pearls in very miniature form.

Add raisins or other dried fruit to your overnight oats! I love the chew with the nuts for crunch.

Part of my word verification word to comment was CHIA. Nice!

tara said...

I have never heard of chia seeds, keep trying different creations though I bet youll fall in love with one eventually!!!
Haha I have always found that so ironic about girl scout cookies!! They seem more into getting the $$ for them then the nutrition tney provide! hehe well hey they only come once a year, and really a cookie isnt supposed to be super healthy so enjoy! =D
ps sorry i havent been a good commenter for a verry long while, glad to be back reading though!! <3 <3