chia seeds

i have found a recipe for lunchwraps i wanted to try for the kids lunchboxes. it has ground up chia seeds in them. it doesnt say in the recipe if they are there for nutritional value or for texture. does anyone know?

When wet, chia seeds get somewhat gelatinous, so they may be included to bind the mixture. They are sometimes used as an egg substitute. They are also used for soluble fiber supplementation.

so for a wrap without eggs or gluten wheat flour, it would make the texture better. i will see if i can find some when i go to the shops to try.

I really like adding some to beverages, don't care so much for its properties (though they all sound pretty good) but I'm a fan of the texture.

i still didnt manage to get some. i guess i have this mental block from my vegan days of all this funky stuff that got added to things for "health" benefits. but i will make the effort and try as lunch wraps would be very useful to be able to make for school lunches.

Chia seeds make a wonderful tapioca style pudding --

Using a pint size jar (I like the wide mouth) pour about 2/3 full with whole milk, or part milk and part half half and half.

Add
1 tablespoon maple syrup
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 cup of chia seeds.


Put the lid on and shake well. (You may have to use a spoon to stir and get the seeds off the bottom of the jar.) Then shake or stir every couple of minutes or so until the seeds swell up stay well distributed - maybe 15 -20 minutes. Then stir in more milk until the jar is full. Store in the refrigerator. Ready in about an hour -- or overnight. Serves 2 or 3 -- good for breakfast or dessert!

Note: I tried making this in a quart size jar, but it was too big for the shaking method and I got clumps of seeds. To make a bigger batch, make in a bowl and stir it well rather than shaking it.

thankyou =) the kids will like this and i have access to raw milk. do the seeds go transparent and swell up like tapioca does?

The pudding is delicious, but no, the seeds swell but they don't become transparent like tapioca. They look kind of like 'blackberry seeds' in the pudding.

I also make this with coconut milk and without sweetener for a yummy, low carb topping for berries.

[QUOTE]I also make this with coconut milk and without sweetener for a yummy, low carb topping for berries. [/QUOTE] yumm i will try as i have just started whole 30 ing.

I think chia seeds have a good amount of phytates in them...and IIRC their benefits aren't actually all that readily bioavailable. Not 100% sure though.