Since chia is all over the place, and that everyone is talking about it in the nutrition world as a miracle little seed, I decided to try it out too. I used to sprinkle it on top of yogurt or fruits, but I never cooked with it or never made anything out of it. At least now, I can have an opinion for myself. I love to try new things when they get that much press, I am thinking it cannot get all that bad.

Chia is supposedly very nutritious, lots of proteins, fibers and amino acids. It’s good for me because I do not eat many proteins, so I thought this would supplement my needs. The fun part in this, is to play with it and make something interesting and pleasurable to the palate. If I don’t like something, it could be the most nutritious thing on earth, I will not eat it. So if it’s good and nutritious, that’s a winner because one without the other one doesn’t work.

I have been reading about chia and how to prepare it. Since it’s a very absorbing little seeds that expands, it needs to be in contact with some liquid. I used coconut milk here, but any other dairy or non dairy milk will work (almond milk, rice milk, hemp milk, etc…). Yes, it did expand and those little seeds look like caviar with a transparent shell or some dark fish eggs.

I was a bit skeptical when I took the first bite, but then I liked it. I think the more you eat it the more you like it. I don’t know why but I feel good after I eat chia and I have no idea why.

Ingredients for 3-4

• 1/4 cup chia seeds
• 1.5 cups coconut milk
• 1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
• 2 tbs unsweetened shredded coconut
• agave nectar or stevia to taste
• 2 tbs raw pistachios
• 1 banana, sliced
• dark chocolate (optional for decoration)

Preparation

In a mixing container, mix all ingredients together, except the bananas. Mix well and let rest for about 30 min until it thickens. Place in individual cups and refrigerate for about 6 hours.

Place banana slices on top and sprinkle with some additional pistachios, shredded coconut and dark chocolate

I have always wanted to try to bake a vegan cake that tasted like a non-vegan cake, the great news is that this one tastes better than a non-vegan cake made with eggs and butter. This cake is so moist and flavorful that all my future banana cakes will be vegan. Sometimes you get stuck with some set ideas, such as an eggless cake cannot taste good. I am happy I decided to go against what I thought was right. I had a great weekend and these mini cakes contributed to it….and Prince too, since I went to see him perform in San Jose. What an incredible and talented artist! I knew he was talented but didn’t know he reached this level of musical genius. So Prince and these cakes made my weekend. I have to admit that my ears are still ringing from the sound of the concert, I think I lost some sense of hearing.

I have been very busy lately, and sadly not had much time to post any exciting recipe, nor time to experiment and develop new ideas. I have had a few requests for gluten-free or vegan meals lately, and I will be experimenting more gluten free and vegan desserts. In this particular cake, the ripe bananas mashed into a cream replaced the eggs and made these cakes amazingly moist. No need for eggs!Those mini cakes are perfect for breakfast with fresh fruits or as a little “encas” (snack) with tea or coffee in the afternoon. They’re so healthy and moist, pure velvet in your palate.

I added walnuts and dried apricots in the batter and I couldn’t have found a better ingredient combination for those ones. I used a little grape seed oil instead of vegan margarine, I think oil adds more moisture to the cake than margarine and will always be my first choice when baking vegan.

Ingredients for 5-6 people

Dry ingredients

• 4.23 oz (or 120 g) wholewheat flour
• 4.23 oz (or 120 g) brown rice flour
• 4.23 oz (or 120 g) brown sugar
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp vanilla powder
• 3 tbs walnut, chopped
• 3 tbs dried unsweetened apricots, chopped

Wet ingredients

• 2 large ripe banana, mashed into a creamy texture
• 7 oz (or 200 g) coconut milk
• 2.82 oz (or 80 g) grape seed oil
• 1 tsp banana extract
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract

Preparation

Mix all “dry” ingredients together in a mixing container. In another container, mix “wet” ingredients. Add wet ingredients to “dry” ingredients and mix well to obtain a smooth batter. Using individual silicon molds, divide batter in 6 molds or one large cake dish. Cook for about 45 min at 365F, you might need to decrease temperature if the top starts getting a little dark. The cakes are cooked when you slide a knife and the blade comes out “clean”. Let it cool and sprinkle some unsweetened coconut flakes on top. Eat warm or cold with coffee or tea.