Things to do with chia seeds:

add to your daily smoothie, your pancakes or your yogurt

put 1 T in your juice to give you energy, calcium and omegas

make your own “Chia Pet” ~ great for Children’s birthday activities!

grind with flour and add to your bread recipes for extra nutritional benefits

Make chia seed crackers by combining coconut milk (or your favorite milk), chia seeds (1/2 raw & 1/2 ground), crushed red pepper flakes, kosher salt and garlic powder ~ spread batter on lined cookie sheet; bake for 1 hour at 275 degrees, turn off oven and allow to cool ~ cut or break into crackers and serve with a wedge of Parmigiano Reggiano!  I used about 2 cups flour, a little less than a cup of coconut milk (sorry, didn’t measure!) 1 tsp whole seeds and another 1 T ground. Next time I will write down exact measurements ~ feel free to play around with this recipe ~ crackers are so easy, versatile and yummy!

For as long as I can remember, I have been using my Grandma Birch’s recipe for zucchini bread!  YUM ~ oh, I can taste it now, she would cut thick slices of warm bread, lightly perfumed with cinnamon, scoot the butter dish closer to me so I could slather the velvety goodness on that piece of heavenly bread… this version adds yummy pineapple for moistness and the nutritional benefits of chia seeds.

Chia-Pineapple-Zucchini Bread

• 2 medium zucchini, grated
• 2  cups pineapple, blended (I used about 1/3 of a fresh one, put in my VitaMix, but I’m sure you can use canned, using juice as needed to thin batter)
• 2 T chia seeds
• 2/3 coconut oil, melted but cooled slightly
• 3 eggs, lightly beaten
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 1 1/2 cup raw sugar
• 3 cups flour (I used 1 cup coconut+ 2 cups of my ground wheat flour)
• 2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ground cloves
• 1/2 tsp ground ginger

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Prepare 3 loaf pans by lining with parchment paper and spraying bottoms only with a non-stick spray.  In a large mixing bowl, combine egg grated zucchini, pineapple, chia seeds, vanilla, sugar and oil; stir until well blended. Add remaining ingredients, stir just until incorporated into wet ingredients. Spoon into prepared loaf pans; bake for 55-65 minutes, or until tops spring back when touched or you can use the toothpick-in-the-middle-of-the-loaf test.  Remove from oven; cool on wire racks for 10 minutes before removing loaves from pans.  Serve sliced with good butter, as they are or with softened cream cheese sweetened with a little honey and spiced with a little grated fresh ginger!  Also makes a great zucchini “French” toast!  enjoy ~ with love, v

(can also be made into muffins)

The body becomes what the foods are, as the spirit becomes what the thoughts are. ~ Kemetic Saying