by hello@healthfullyheather.com | Mar 25, 2019 | Recipes
While I love throwing together a simple chia seed pudding for a snack (perfect to grab-and-go!), sometimes that basic staple needs to be elevated – especially if you’re making it a meal instead of a snack.
If you haven’t tried out chia seeds yet, you definitely should! They have a host of health benefits including aiding proper digestion, helping decrease inflammation, and supporting our bodies’ natural detox processes.
The reason they are able to do all this is because of their high soluble fiber content. (Check out this post for more on fiber.) These little seeds love to soak up liquid, and their volume greatly increases when mixed with any sort of liquid creating a gel-like structure – this is how we get the pudding texture from chia seeds!
In addition to fiber, chia seeds are a plant-based source of complete protein (containing all the essential amino acids). You’ll get around 4 grams of protein in 2 tbsp (30mL) of chia seeds.
They are also a good source of Omega-3 fats, (in the form of ALA (alpha-linoleic acid), which still needs to be converted by our body into the usable forms).
And finally they are also a good source of minerals like calcium, phosphorus, and manganese!
So much from such a tiny seed!
Chocolate Chia Seed Pudding Parfait
Ingredients:
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1 ¼ cup (310mL) coconut, almond, or other non-dairy milk
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1 banana
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1 scoop (around 60mL) protein powder
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2 tbsp (30mL) cacao powder
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½ cup (125mL) chia seeds
For layering / topping:
In a blender, combine until smooth the milk, banana, protein powder, and cacao powder.
Pour the mixture into an airtight container (like a mason jar) and add in the chia seeds. Shake or mix well to fully combine. Let sit for 2 minutes and mix again. Let sit for another 2 minutes and mix again.
Refrigerate for at least 15 minutes, or even overnight (up to 2-3 days).
When ready to eat, layer with coconut yogurt, nut butter, and top with some cacao nibs. Enjoy!
Serves 2
by hello@healthfullyheather.com | Mar 8, 2019 | Recipes
You might be seeing the name ‘“Z’Oats” in the recipe title and be wondering what on Earth I’m talking about…. but Z’Oats is essentially oatmeal, but made (at least in part) from zucchini!
Stay with me, I promise it’s not as crazy as it sounds.
I personally really enjoy oatmeal, and I shared my basic overnight oats recipe not too long ago. But sometimes it’s nice to add in some sneaky vegetables into your breakfast to be that much closer to achieving your 5-a-day!
Adding shredded zucchini to oatmeal is a really simple way to do this, and I promise that the zucchini is basically tasteless in this bowl. I’ve also added zucchini to warm oatmeal with just as delicious results.
You can decide whether to leave the skin on the zucchini or not – usually I remove it, but since this dish was meant to be green, I figured I would leave it on! Maybe this is the perfect St. Patrick’s day breakfast?
Matcha Overnight Z’Oats
Ingredients:
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½ cup (125mL) non-dairy milk (I like almond or coconut)
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⅓ zucchini, grated
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¼ cup (60mL) oats
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¼ cup (60mL) yogurt (I use a full-fat Greek yogurt but would also be great with coconut yogurt!)
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1 tbsp (15mL) chia seeds
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2 tsp (10mL) maple syrup or honey
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1 tsp (5mL) matcha powder
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½ tsp (5mL) vanilla extract
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pinch of salt
In a medium sized bowl, or directly in your sealable storage container, mix together all ingredients.
Refrigerate overnight in a tightly sealed container (could be kept up to 2-3 days in the fridge).
Mix with your desired toppings and enjoy!
Serves One
by hello@healthfullyheather.com | Feb 15, 2019 | Recipes
Overnight oats are one of my new favourite go-to breakfasts. They are fast and simple to prepare the night before, then you can either just grab and go in the morning, or take a few minutes to add some delicious toppings!
Below is my basic recipe which I add to depending on my mood. You could add in some cacao for a chocolate version or play with the toppings for your own personal creation!
Here I’ve gone for a “PB&J” style bowl with my homemade chia seed jam, almond butter (and almonds), along with a banana, some coconut flakes, and a dusting of bee pollen.
Overnight Oats
Ingredients:
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½ cup (125mL) non-dairy milk (I like almond or coconut)
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⅓ cup (80mL) oats
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¼ cup (60mL) yogurt (I use a full-fat Greek yogurt but would also be great with coconut yogurt!)
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1 tbsp (15mL) chia seeds
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½ tsp (5mL) vanilla extract
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pinch of salt
In a medium sized bowl, or directly in your sealable storage container, mix together all ingredients.
Refrigerate overnight in a tightly sealed container (could be kept up to 2-3 days in the fridge).
Mix with your desired toppings and enjoy!
Serves One
by hello@healthfullyheather.com | Dec 4, 2018 | Recipes
Funny enough, we are not big jam eaters in this house (funny, because my dad loves nothing more than a really nice raspberry jam!). So it never makes sense for us to buy jam, otherwise we end up with barely eaten jars crowding up our fridge for months before we finally declutter them. What a waste! Not to mention that it can often be quite expensive to buy a nice jam that isn’t loaded down with added sugar and/or additives.
But sometimes we do want that fruity goodness to drizzle on our yogurt bowl, or enjoy with a nice slice of sourdough bread! So whatever you want to use it for, this super simple three-ingredient jam is perfect. Play around with the type of berries to make your own flavours! (Yes, dad, that means you can make this with raspberries!) You just might need to adjust the sweetener when using a tarter berry.
Since there are no preservatives being used, it’s not going to last for months in the fridge. But what’s great is you can scale the recipe up or down to make just what you need. Thaw your berries overnight and you can put this together in no time while getting your breakfast ready in the morning.
Three-Ingredient Strawberry Jam
Ingredients:
Using a fork, mash the strawberries until broken down into a paste. Stir in the chia seeds and maple syrup until fully combined.
Allow to thicken for 10 minutes in the fridge.
Top your yogurt or bread with the jam and enjoy!
Makes around 125mL (½ cup) of jam
* Thawed overnight in the fridge is perfect. You can use fresh berries, but you would need to warm them using a bain-marie on the stove to get them to break down (can do the same method if you forget to thaw your frozen berries).
by hello@healthfullyheather.com | Oct 10, 2018 | Recipes
These “two ingredient” pancakes have quickly become one of my breakfast staples! They are super simple to whip up, easy to make leftovers to reheat during the week, and the perfect vessel for loads of pancake toppings!
Why do I say “two ingredient” in quotations? Well there are two basic ingredients as the base of these pancakes – bananas and eggs! If you want, you can really just leave it right there. But I like to add a few extras just to bulk up the nutrition and the flavour a bit more.
They make a pretty thin pancake, so sometimes I will even make these into crepes! Depending on the extras you add to the batter, these can be sweet or savoury. Like a bit of cheese, ham, and an egg on top! Or keep it traditional with just a drizzle of maple syrup. Below you can find my most recent topping, an apple cinnamon compote.
“Two Ingredient” Pancakes
Ingredients:
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1 banana (for savoury go for a less ripe banana)
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2 large eggs
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1 scoop whey protein powder, optional
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1 tsp vanilla, optional (for sweet pancakes)
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For cooking: butter, ghee, or coconut oil
In a blender, combine all ingredients (except butter/ghee/coconut oil) until a smooth batter is formed.
In a frying pan over medium heat melt some butter/ghee/coconut oil to just coat the bottom of the pan.
Pour the pancake mixture into the frying pan, making either pancakes or crepes.
Once bubbles are visible on the top of the pancakes, flip (around 2-3 minutes).
Cook another 2-3 minutes on the second side until golden. Remove to a plate and continue to repeat with the rest of the batter.
Top with whatever your heart desires and enjoy!
Serves 2
Apple Cinnamon Compote
Ingredients:
In a saucepan over low heat, melt the coconut oil. Once melted add in the apples.
Cook, stirring frequently until the apples have softened (around 5 minutes).
Add in the remaining ingredients and stir to combine, cooking for another minute.
Remove from heat and use to top your pancakes!
Serves 2
