chia seeds — Blog — Fit Foodie Le

posing practice, weight training, cardio, grocery shopping, church, and family time.

that was my weekend. how was yours?

this particular trip to HEB was one to remember! i have been hearing about Walden Farms this and Walden farms that in cyberspace recently. Walden Farms products claim to be:

calorie-free

sugar-free

fat-free

carbohydrate-free

gluten-free

cholesterol-free

not ALL products are free of ALL of the things i listed, but just read the label to be sure!

my ears perk up when i hear '____ - free' regardless, but not once have i heard so many in the same sentence and referring to one product!!!!! my curiosity got the best of me and i ordered the infamous Walden Farms pancake syrup online. however, man, sometimes all you have to do is ASK. 'do you carry Walden Farms products?' i asked the store associate. i just knew she would look at me crazy and reply with 'who!?', but nope, HEB always come through for meeeeeee.

could that be?...no... calorie-free ketchup!? yeah it scares me too...i'll go back for it later though lol

i read A LOT of product reviews (i do hope for the best that they aren't fake or anything) and the Walden Farms dips (chocolate, caramel, marshmallow, etc.) aren't sounding too good. so, i left them alone for now.

there they are...in all their glory! bbq sauce too! WF is on a roll.

and dressings! so for those of you who like to eat salad with your dressing lol, you should give these a try.

this is what i got outta there with in addition to my fresh fruits, veggies, and proteins. syrup (pancake and chocolate) sesame ginger dressing (which is nothing short of awesome) and more PB2- there was a 50 cents off coupon running and i couldn't pass it up.

saturday morning, i made Chiso a bowl of oatmeal and topped it with fresh blueberries, chia seeds, peanut butter, and almond milk.

then i made some more of those oatmeal pancakes i had last week (i am HOOKED!!). i made up the batter the night before this time and let it sit in the fridge.

we had them again this morning. ready to try them?! here's that recipe:

super moist banana oat pancakes

the stuff:

1/3 cup rolled oats (***you can use pre-ground oat flower, or ground them yourself in your blender or food processor***)
2 egg whites
couple dashes of cinnamon (be generous)
splash of real vanilla extract (OR you can use a couple drops of vanilla creme stevia if you want them sweeter!)
1/2 a mashed ripe banana
1/8th tsp of baking powder
2 tbsp unsweetened vanilla almond milk
1 heaping tbsp greek yogurt or unsweetened applesauce

do this:

mix all the ingredients well in your blender or food processor! *s/n: if the batter is too thick for you, add some unsweetened vanilla almond milk to stretch it. i've been adding water to keep my nutritional stats the same for my competition diet though.*
pour into a non-stick/sprayed skillet or griddle. you can make 1 big cake like they do at restaurants, or a stack. i like to do 4 mini cakes.
3-4 min on each side.
you can add SO many things to your batter- the options are simply endless. top or incorporate your fav fruit or nuts and don't forget that sugar-free syrup. i also sprayed mine with some 'i can't believe it's not butter'. this is too easy!!! i don't even need a pancake cheat meal anymore! tastes so darn good. i'll be adding some PB2 into my batter when i can have it again. enjoy and get creative.

(for the ENTIRE recipe)

Chiso is a fan.

heck, oatmeal hating Sonny likes them AND the syrup too. jackpot.

About Time sent me some free samples of their whey protein this past week- chocolate and birthday cake flavor. no carbs, no fat, no aftertaste, and all natural. hmmmmmmmmmm! as usual, i will be trying, next month.

don't wait til morning, go make some pancakes right now. have a blessed rest of your sunday.

what is your experience with Walden Farms!? any products by them the world should know about? share!

thanks a TON, Ogechi!!! a girl after my own heart. she knew i would be geeked over this recipe and she was exactly right. these muffins are great for breakfast or a snack. Ogechi also makes a FANTASTIC black bean/sweet potato soup i can't wait to share with you guys- she brought me buckets of it right after i got home from delivering my son. she is just awesome like that and no you can't have her cause she's all MINE!

Banana Oat Protein YumMufffins (or bread!)

the stuff:

(Dry)

1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup vanilla whey protein
3/4 cup quick oats
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup toasted walnuts (toasting always makes a difference)

(Wet)

1/4 cup coconut oil (in solid form)
1 whole egg 2 egg whites
2 cup mashed ripe bananas (about 4 large bananas)
1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/4 cup chia gel (mix together 9 tbsp water & 1 tbsp chia seeds then wait 10-15mins to turn into gel....it's quite interesting to watch )
1 tsp pure vanilla

do this:

preheat oven to 350 right now. also, go ahead and activate those chia seeds. the chia seeds replace the oil & the butter- neither are used or needed in this recipe!

put them in a small separate bowl and add the water.

measure out all dry ingredients in a bowl MINUS the walnuts. *tip* swirl it around a few times with a whisk to combine & break apart all the ingredients. set aside.

in another bowl, mix coconut oil, eggs, bananas, applesauce, chia gel & vanilla till well combined. here's another *tip*- make sure your wet ingredients are room temperature so your coconut oil doesn't harden on you when you mix them together.

Ogechi told me this stuff made a world of difference in the flavor department for these muffins. i found it in WF and prayed it was worth all 7 dollars. it was.

be sure you buy it in solid form. looks just like hair grease.

keep adding..

my bananas weren't super ripe, but if yours are, mash them all up.

i left my batter a little chunky, of course.

gently mix the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients till everything is combined. do not over mix!

fold in walnuts aaaaaaaaaand (optional): 1/4 - 1/2 cup chocolate chips! will do that next time..don't have any right now:(

pour in a greased loaf pan or do muffins. this recipe makes 12 large muffins or 18 medium ones. top with any leftover nuts and bake.

i pulled the muffins out after about 20 minutes- look at those fresh banana chunks.

it was SUCH a beautiful Houston day! we were invited to my friend Joanna's potluck party in the park and the muffins were perfect timing. SO, because we were going to a party, i added some buttercream frosting on top and more toasted walnuts!! otherwise, no party, no frosting. keep them clean.