Chia Seeds (What do you do with that?)

Alright everybody, after some grocery store inspiration last night (Thank you publix cashier), I have come up with a new segment for the blog called, “What do you do with that?”

Let me explain.

Almost every trip to the grocery store I buy something that most Americans would consider to be weird. Maybe I watch too many cooking shows, but for some reason, where most people would give it a glance and walk by, I find celery root, rutabagas, or parsnips in the grocery store and I see them as an interesting challenge.  I often fill my fridge with foods that I have no idea how to cook or eat.

Every time I get in line with these items, the cashier will ask the same question about at least one of them, “What do you do with that?”  I always have the same response: “I’m about to find out.”

So this segment will chronicle my experience in figuring out how to cook my unusual food purchases.  I grocery shop twice a month, so you can expect these posts about that often.  So, shall we give it a go?

This week’s item is: Chia Seeds

My first step in any unknown food endeavor is to check the internet.  In this world a person can teach themselves just about anything with a little youtube and pinterest.  I am sure to take full advantage of that.

Well according to Pinterest there is approximately a million things you can do with chia seeds. Case in point:

After a lot of browsing I did discover a few interesting things about the little guys.

• They are super healthy.  They are high in protein (great for all you vegetarians out there) and, according to a pinterest user called mygreenworld, they are high in antioxidants, useful for weight loss, good for the heart and brain, and much more. (http://www.pinterest.com/mygreenworld)
• They are also very useful in cooking.  A blogger who goes by Wellness Mama says she uses them as a gluten free substitute for just about everything.  She even uses them as an egg substitute in some recipes (seeds instead of eggs, really? This is where I get a bit skeptical).  She also says that they make a great thickening agent in many recipes, which is something I’d be very interested to try since my cooking usually involves a lot of flour. (http://wellnessmama.com/4981/10-uses-for-chia-seeds/)
• They actually taste very good!  This one I didn’t learn with research so much as trial and error.  I happened to be making a tortellini salad last night, and since the Chia Seed bag said they were good with salads, I thought I’d give it a go, so I threw a tablespoon in.  They added a slightly sweet and nutty flavor which went perfectly with my haphazard recipe.  Doesn’t it look good?

Does anyone else have any great ideas for how to use Chia Seeds? Let me know in the comments!

And if you are interested in seeing some of the recipes that I use in my cooking (well adapt into my own, anyway) you can follow me on Pinterest at http://www.pinterest.com/mikaelajoyphoto/