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.
Featuring all new, protein-packed salads, hearty toppers, flavour boosters, and dressings you'll want to drink, my new cookbook will transform the way you think about salads. Oh, and be sure to flip to the back for a surprise dessert chapter!
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?
This is my new favorite meal/snack! Thank you so much for sharing. =)
Looks like such a great recipe! Going to try it out soon.
Whenever I get a pimple or other skin irritation, I immediately put Tea Tree Oil on it and it seriously works like a charm! It sounds like your case may be a little more severe but it’s worth a try! Good luck.
this looks amazing! I love breakfast food :-) I’m going to try this pudding on Sunday morning
Hi Angela,
I’m a vegan from Holland and after reading this post i wanted to know more about buckwheat. Because I didn’t know what it was called in dutch. So I looked it up on wikipedia and there was this part on how the green parts of buckwheat contain fluorescent pigments with poisonous fagopyrine. And that consuming big amounts of it can cause phototoxicity. And then when your skin is exposed to sunlight it can cause skin problems, like redness and stuff. After reading this I thought you might like to know this, and maybe it’ll help you find a solution for your skin problem.
By the way this information wasn’t on the english buckwheat wikipedia page but the dutch. And it also said that buckweat doesn’t contain a lot of fogopyrine and that it useally doesn’t cause any problems. But you can always look into it. I hope this helps!!
I too find myself stressing more when told not to stress but I have learned that stress does pay havoc on our bodies and skin! I find that usually right around January and February my slight excema seems to flare up a bit… I’ve tried detoxes, diet changes, and various skin care products… Through my detective work I’ve discovered that its simply due to the weather changes. It could be that the air is dryer due to the indoor heat or who knows?
That recipie looks delish! I don’t know if anyone has reccommened this product yet http://moogoo.com.au/eczema-psoriasis-balm.html its incredible, all naturally derived and works to clear up a miraed of skin problems. its used in a few of the childrens hospitals over here (Australia) and it really is amazing!
Hi Angela…sorry to hear about your allergy problems. I have been going through similar problems and have tried every elimination possible…I recently watched a good video on GMO’s and am making more of an effort to buy organic than I used to. A lot of people have developed allergies and blame our bodies inability to process GMO’s as one of the reasons. The video I watched was called Genetic Roulette…….here is a link. http://www.responsibletechnology.org/posts/genetic-roulette-free-screening-vote-today
Thanks for all the wholesome recipes….makes it so much easier, quicker and tastier to eat healthier!
Sorry to hear about your skin! I am definitely not a doctor, but I see a nutritionist once a week. He always told me that when you skin acted up it usually links to your liver. Meaning you are eating something you shouldn’t be, or your liver is just over working. He always always suggested that I drink water with LOTS of lemon. A little natural detox never hurt anybody! And maybe it will help get that reaction calmed down some?
Good luck!
I actually had a skin rash on my chin and was getting pretty bad joint pain. My naturopath put me on a cleanse and then slowly reintroducing foods back into my diet. Turns out I have a sensitivity to soy. Good luck, I had a hard time with it in the beginning!
Angelas, hope you figure out what is going on with your skins soon!
Looks like lots of helpful comments are here
On a random note, OhSheGlow post are not showing up in my Facebook news feed anymnore? EVen though I have “liked” the page and clicked for the blog entry status updates to show in my news feed. There used to be this thing called a “page feed” on the left column but I don’t seem to have that anymore. Okay enough about that haha
More on topic: I think stress is a HUGE factor with all kinds of physical ailments…I think the mind-body connection is astronomically enormous though it’s not popular oto say that (sounds like crazy New Age rubbish to most people)
But I think it’s true.
I hope you can reduce your stress level one way or another, and see if it helps
Your Chia Puddings are looking very delicious…I’ve been meaning to purchase chia seeds forever but haven’t gotten rounf to it yet. I’m trying to finish the flax seeds bag I bought from Whole Foods, it’s way too large, I accidentally bought ten years’ supply of flax seeds by mistake somehow haha
Best of luck with your skin issues…glad the coconut oil is alleviating a bit of the discomfort. Coconut oil is way popular where I’m from [Indian ladies are constantly dousing their hair in it]
Just want to say first off that I love your blog :)
Whenever I get stressed I get little hard lumps on my hands that are quite odd and create a tightness whenever I try and bend my fingers. I was given steroid cream to relieve them but it’s funny that they only appear when I’m stressed.
I also react to soy milk, I was drinking it for 5 months when I decided to stop drinking cows milk. It was giving me mild-moderate acne which was very stubborn and I could not understand what was causing the issue because I take /very/ good care of my skin and was eating well and working out plus drinking plenty of water and green tea. At a last resort I threw in the soy milk and replaced with almond and within 2 weeks my skin has completely cleared and I have hardly pretty much no active pimples/spots since and it’s been about 4-5 weeks since I’ve made the change to almond milk. Isn’t it funny that something I percieved as being so small and insignificant was making such a drastic change to my body?
Thanks for all your wonderful recipes and posts. You’re always making me laugh!
Yum! Just like a Chia Seed pudding but healthy enough to eat for breakfast… genius!
Thanks for the recipe :)
I love your blog, and your chia seed breakfast bowls and parfaits are my newest favorite breakfast recipe to make! So delicious, satisfying and simple to make!
As someone with sensitive skin, I completely feel your pain. I’ve never done elimination, though, as my skin seems to just react to…well, existing, frankly.
Just wondering, what does soaking the almonds/raisins do? I’ve never heard of that before.
Hi Mimi, Soaking helps with digestion – see my reply to someone’s comment earlier. Enjoy!
This looks amazing. I love chia seeds in my oatmeal and smoothies. They also make a great pre-exercise snack to help fuel a hard workout.
I’m not sure what I love more about the your posts…the amazing recipes, the pictures or your honesty in regards to every day issues like skin problems that allows so many people to open up and share ideas!
Thanks for another great breakfast idea!
I echo all that talk about the link between food allergies/intolerances, poor digestion and skin problems. Along with an elimination diet you might want to consider a good probiotic which is crucial for good digestion, immunity and skin health. (also make sure it is one that is free of dairy, soy, gluten, etc. since those might be part of the problem.)
If you decide to go the elimination diet it is critical to keep a food diary of how you feel after meals (and if/when you get flare ups) I have done the elimination diets and although they can be challenging it really is an eye opener to see what foods do to your body. Best of luck!!!
I know how you feel. I have trouble with my skin when my digestion is bad, which is most of the time. However, when I buckle down and eat an entirely whole food diet, it gets better. For me, even organic/vegan prepackaged foods will cause flare ups if they contain additives, especially soy products. Hormone levels can affect your skin also. That is why some women take birth control pills to correct acne. Do you consume a lot of flax? Flax is extremely high in plant estrogens and may have more of them in it than anything else does. Soy is next on the list. BPA in plastic may affect hormones as well. I noticed that my skin gets worse the more sugar I consume, whether it’s unrefined or not. Sugar can wreak havoc on you, mentally and physically. Do you sleep properly? A lack of sleep can cause a lot of problems. It might not be just one thing causing it; maybe your life in general is not balanced right now. These are just some things to think about :)
Wow- I soo understand. I travelled to Ireland last May and while I was there developed the worst rash on my calves. It was soooo itchy. It then appeared on my arms, neck and face. My dermatologist and I figured it was systemic so we took away a couple of Meds and supplements (I’m a cancer survivor-thriver) for a few weeks. It didn’t help. Finally in desperation, I had blood test for food allergies. Turns out I’m allergic to fish (yet another reason to go vegan) and rice. Now my son is allergic to gluten so no rice is tough. However, the itching has disappeared! I hope you figure it out soon.