Morning Fuel - Chia, Coffee, Yogurt and Juice. Oh, My.

My husband and I enjoy our weekends. We like to catch up on much needed sleep, hang out and watch movies, visit the gym....wait a sec, we have two kids under 5. We don't get to enjoy our weekend like we used to. That's okay because we work together to make sure we both get to do the things we want on the weekends and catch up on that sleep. We have started taking turns sleeping. Saturday morning my husband gets to sleep in while I get up with the kiddos and Sunday morning it's my turn. On Friday night we also discuss the things we want to do. For example, I like to attend a certain class at the gym on Saturday and Sunday mornings while my husband just wants to get over there any time. This weekend we have family visiting so I want to get some housework done. Talking about it gives us the chance to plan an makes sure we both get what we want out of the weekend while also making sure one of us is giving attention to the kiddos and their activities.

Back to breakfast. On my morning to get up with the kids I need breakfast and coffee before we get into whatever activities they dreamt up overnight. My favorite breakfast treat right now is steel cut oatmeal. I don't usually have time to make it during the week so I look forward to having it on the weekend. If you don't like oatmeal because of the texture try steel cut oats, they are bigger, have a little crunch to them and are a little nutty. Recently we have also started using chia seeds. As I am told, they have numerous nutritional benefits including Omega 3 which I don't get nearly enough of. Check out some of the health benefits here : http://livinggreenmag.com/2014/02/28/food-health/chia-seeds-nutritional-powerhouse/

Blueberry Chia Oatmeal
Prepare Steelcut Oatmeal according to package instructions
2 Tablespoons Milk
1 Tablespoon Chia Seeds
Drizzle of Maple Syrup or Honey
1/4 Cup of Blueberries

Totally Delicious!

I really enjoy my cup of coffee in the morning, sometimes I will get a Chai Latte in the afternoon for a little energy boost but usually my one cup in the morning keeps me going through the day. In order to add a little variety without spending a fortune at the coffee shop I decided to spice it up on my own. Any combination of cinnamon, cardamom, nutmeg, cloves or other spices can be used. I just added a little less than 1/4 teaspoon of each into my fresh ground coffee and steeped as usual. I have a 1 cup French press type of coffee maker. If making a full pot, increase the quantity to 1 teaspoon each. Try them out and see what sparks your taste buds.

Spice up Your Coffee:
Cinnamon 

Cloves

Nutmeg

Cardamom

During the week my husband eats yogurt almost every day and recently our bulk food store stopped carrying his favorite kind. In an effort to find something he would enjoy I looked at recipes that mix chia seeds with yogurt for an almost tapioca pudding textured blend. I decided to give it a try. This recipe is great because you can use any plain yogurt (Greek or regular, we like Greek best because it's a little thicker). You can also use any type of milk, almond, soy etc. Look at the ingredients in your milk and go with the plainest you can find because what I found with almond and soy milk is when they are flavored there are also a lot of strange ingredients. Plain works great because you will add your own natural flavors. Also, maple syrup works best. I tried honey but it is too thick and with the cold milk and yogurt it won't distribute throughout the mix.

Chia Yogurt
1 Cup Greek Yogurt
I Cup Milk
1/4 Cup Chia Seeds
2 Tablespoons of Maple Syrup
1 Teaspoon Almond or Vanilla Extract
1/2 Teaspoon of Cinnamon

Mix all of these ingredients together and put in the refrigerator.  I usually make enough for 3-4 days.
Top with fruit of choice.  We like strawberries the best.

Finally, my daily indulgence besides coffee is fresh juice.  We received our juicer as a gift a little over a year ago and have loved having it around.  In the beginning I got all kinds of different fruits and vegetables to try but quickly realized it was expensive to try to keep numerous variations around...and if we didn't use the fruits and veggies quick enough they spoiled. For the past few months I have been getting our three favorites: apples, oranges and lemons.  I can buy them bulk at the store, they make a great juice that my husband, daughter and I all love and they are easy to prepare. I can have fresh juice ready for the three of us in fifteen minutes, including clean-up.

Our favorite combination: 2-3 apples, 2-3 oranges and 1 lemon. I get red delicious apples because they are supposed to contain more fiber, I like Cara oranges for their color and I look for nice big lemons. 

Embrace food, family and everything else that makes you happy