My skin is not a happy camper lately.
I don’t know what’s up, but I know it’s ticked off. Angry. Inflamed. What’s the problem? That, my friends, is anyone’s guess. When a girl has puffy, itchy eyes and rashes on her face, it’s time to slow down and pay attention. If you’ve ever been the detective for your own strange skin reactions, you know just how daunting this process can be. Everything is questioned.
Not surprisingly, my family doctor suggested an allergy elimination diet and to examine my environment for possible culprits. I’ve switched our detergents, soaps, shampoos, and I’ve retired make-up for the time being. That was the easy part. The elimination diet and food journaling, on the other hand, are proving to be rather difficult as a recipe developer. It’s my worst nightmare actually.
Of course, skin flare ups could be from a billion things, including stress. I’m a big fan of stress-relieving practices, but I’m not so good at carrying them out in my own life. When life gets crazy and deadlines are looming, I often left my own health slide in the process. I know I’ve said it a million and one times, but I need to work on this.
As I’m leaving my doctor’s office she says, “Above all, DO NOT stress about the rashes. Stress is the absolute worst thing for your skin.”
[Is it just me or do you get more stressed out when someone tells you not to stress? ahh]
She’s so right though. I need to take a chill pill.
Of course, breakfast is a natural way to start the day on the right foot. I’m a big fan of breakfasts that can be made in advance, such as Green Monsters (just give them a good stir in the morning), raw buckwheat porridge, vegan overnight oats, and this chia pudding. Even though they take just a few minutes to throw together before bed, I’d fallen out of the habit of prepping them. But man oh man, it makes such a difference to wake up to a nutritious breakfast ready to be enjoyed!
The recipe below makes 2 servings so you can share it with a loved one or wrap up the leftovers for your next craving, which if you are like me won’t be far off.
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Chia Seed Breakfast Bowl
Yield
Serves 2
Prep time
Cook time
0 minutes
Total time
I like mashed banana in this because it thickens the mixture while adding a lot of volume. If you aren’t a banana fan, you can omit it, but you might need to reduce the milk and I also suggest adding in your own sweetener or other fruit in its place. This porridge is especially creamy when made with Homemade Almond Milk. The thickness of the chia pudding will vary based on the kind of almond milk you use, so you can add more if necessary. If your pudding is too thin for you liking you can add more chia seeds and let it sit for 10 more minutes. Finally, if you aren’t a fan of the tapioca-like texture of chia seed pudding, try blending it until smooth.
Ingredients
Chia mixture
- 4 tbsp chia seeds
- 1 – 1.25 cups almond milk (it’s great made with Homemade Almond Milk)
- 2 small bananas, chopped small
- 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- two pinches of cinnamon
Toppings
- 2 tbsp raw buckwheat groats, soaked
- 2 tbsp raisins, soaked
- 2 tbsp whole raw almonds, chopped and soaked
- couples pinches of cinnamon
- 2 tbsp hemp seed
Directions
- Mash bananas in a medium-sized bowl. Stir in chia seeds. Whisk in the almond milk, vanilla, and cinnamon until combined. Place in fridge overnight to thicken. You can add more almond milk if you want to thin it out in the morning. Or, if it’s too thin, add more chia seeds to thicken it up.
- Add buckwheat groats, raisins, and chopped almonds into another bowl. Cover in water and soak overnight in the fridge or on the counter.
- In the morning, place your desired amount of chia pudding into a bowl. (Note: at this point, you can blend your chia pudding if a smooth texture is desired, but I don’t bother). Drain and rinse the buckwheat/almond/raisin mixture. Sprinkle on top of chia mixture along with a pinch of cinnamon and a tablespoon of hemp seeds. Serve with a drizzle of maple syrup, if desired. Store leftovers in the fridge for 1-2 days.
Nutrition Information
(click to expand)
Have you ever dealt with a strange skin reaction or allergy? What did you do?
Chia seeds are a recent addition to my diet. This recipe was recommended to me by a nutritionist. I love the topping suggestions, along with the realization that I can personalize this very easily with other toppings that I love.
In response to your and all of the other posts about chronic skin problems:
My calling is intuitive energy healing, and I have helped people with skin rashes which dermatologists, allergists, acupuncturists, and even Lahey Clinic couldn’t resolve. Their answer was eating only chicken and veggies or going on prednisone.
I urge individuals with long-term or chronic skin flare ups to consult an energy healer near them or who does distance healing.
thank you, Angela <3
Kristi
Thanks for this recipe. I’m really enjoying it with finely chopped organic apple instead of the banana and walnuts (my favorite nut) instead of almonds. I was thinking about how you usually put a bit of salt in oatmeal and added a little sea salt to this too. I think it added a nice touch. This breakfast really replicates the oatmeal experience for me without messing up my blood sugar like oatmeal (unfortunately) does. And I feel great afterwards! Looking forward to trying it with pumpkin soon.
Your blog is so beautiful and inspiring…one of the happiest places on the Internet for me!
I love your blog. I just enjoyed the chia seed breakfast bowl, for my breakfast. I cannot wait to try another recipe.
Thank you
Hayley
I love your blog. I just enjoyed the chia seed breakfast bowl, for my breakfast. I cannot wait to try another recipe.
Thank you
Hayley
Hi Angela,
Could it be that you’re allergic to nickel? It’s in healthy natural foods in abundance.
Vicky x
Vicky-
It is actually because of a systemic reaction on my hands from a nickel allergy that I ended up looking at this blog. I’m trying desperately to find something good to eat and am holding my bag of chia seeds wondering if they’re ok.This recipe looks great except that I can’t eat any of it. No nuts… Was wondering about the chia seeds though.
I’ve recently started mixing up seed ‘porridges’ or ‘mousse’ for breakfast. Hemp, chia and cocoa soaked overnight. Whipped up in the blender in the morning. Then topped with fresh fruit and nuts. Yummy! Great breakfast alternative when I want to avoid grains.
I know this is about food, but our family has a great new solution for acne. Melt 2 Tlbs. coconut oil and add 5-6 drops of melaleuka essential oil. Pour into recycled chapstick container and allow to solidify in a cool place. Treat acne twice daily-we have consistently seen results within 24 hours. Back to glowing!
I have eczema flare-ups and allergies in summer and I have found that Chia seeds cause a major reaction with my skin which is a shame because it is listed as a cure and is rich in omega 3, but not for me, and maybe you too. Also, my daughter gets hives and she had the worst reaction ever to this, her mouth became misshapen and for longer than usual after I served her the seeds in a meal. However, I haven’t tried sprouting the chia seed, so that might be an option for you but I am not going to risk it. Also dairy causes some occasional eczema issues for me too. My eczema presents with rashes on my face with some raised swelling under the eyes, and my neck has the more traditional raised, very itchy, red, dry skin. I hope this is helpful
Hi Angela, I love chia pudding, this recipe is great! I haven’t had a chance to read all 247 (!!) posts from the last few years, but my friend who introduced me to this blog has a Chia allergy! In looking into the symptoms they can manifest in rashes, hives and possibly diarrhea & vomiting in extreme cases. Due to their high level of Omega 3 they can thin blood and reduce blood pressure which is usually a good thing unless you are about to have surgery or already have low blood pressure!
Just wanted to share incase it helps anyone :) would love for you to check out my FB page www.facebook.com/sosweetsofine or instagram sofeed THANKS!! :)
Chia seeds are awesome! Would this work with chia powder?
I absolutely love this recipe! The mashed banana really gives this chia seed pudding the extra oomph for a breakfast bowl. Also I added a heaping teaspoon of cocoa powder to the recipe and it was SO delicious, I definitely recommend it to all fellow chocolate lovers out there!
Hi, this looks delicious. Only thing is… I don’t like bananas! Any alternative suggestions? Also, why do you soak your almonds?
Thank you
I this recipe but I recently have an allergy to banana. Are there and recommended substitutions? I love your blog it has me feeling some find recipes that can eat with Crohns.
hi, I get adult acne around my jaw. It’s do to egg allergy and potatoes. My skin would break out painfully and not heal. Now I can tolerate potatoes and local farm eggs.
Just wanted to thank you for this recipe. I make it once a week and it brightens up my breakfast so thanks! I top it with almonds but I’m going to try raisins this year too.
Hi I’m a very fussy eater I only eat chicken and tuna I won’t touch any other meat or fish, I don’t like mushrooms, olives or cottage cheese so a diet is quite difficult for me as they always contain these ingredients any suggestions thank you
This recipe was my first attempt using chia seeds. The only modification was using coconut milk instead of almond milk. After 8 hours in the refrigerator there was still a crunch to the seeds, rather than the tapioca consistency I was expecting. Is this normal or should they become completely gel-like? If they stay somewhat crunchy, I’m not a fan of the texture. Could I grind them first to avoid this issue? Please offer suggestions, since I bought 2 lbs. and would like to enjoy them while getting the health benefits. Thanks.
Hey Lynn, I’m so sorry for the delay on getting back to you on this! I just saw your comment today. I personally haven’t ever noticed a crunchy texture after soaking my chia seeds, so I’m not really sure what the cause might have been. But, if you find yourself not enjoying their texture, you could try blending them up as in this recipe from Oh My Veggies. I hope this helps if you decide to try chia seeds again in the future!
Hello, I was wondering if someone could please help. I made this for the first time a few weeks ago and it was delicious, I then started adding Maca into it and switched my almond milk a couple of times. The texture started looking a bit like gelatin after my first attempt, I thought it was the Maca but I stopped adding Maca and it is still looks ad has the texture of gelatin. Does anyone have any suggestions about why this is happening? Thanks!
this looks delicious. I was just wondering how strongly Is the banana flavour? I’m not a huge fan of bananas but this looks like the perfect dish for me. Thank you so much :)
Hi there! The strength of the banana taste may depend a bit on the ripeness of your bananas, and your sensitivity to it. I really like adding mashed banana because it thickens the mixture, making it super creamy while adding a lot of volume. But if you aren’t a banana fan, feel free to simply omit it! You might find you need to reduce the milk a bit, and I’d suggest adding in your own sweetener and/or other fruit in its place. A lot of readers have used applesauce in the place the of the banana; I’d recommend checking out some of the other comments for other great ideas! :) Hope this helps!!
Delicious! Used 1 cup to 4 tbsp chia seed and 1 large banana and it was perfect consistency. Let it sit overnight for 12 hours before eating.
Didn’t use any vanilla essence; didn’t miss it at all. Thanks for the recipe!