Trying a Food Trend: Chia Seed Pudding

I've been hearing about the amazing chia seed for awhile now. It seems they're the latest healthy superfood (think flaxseed five years ago). I'm generally sceptical about the whole idea of superfoods (we need ALL of the foods, right?) since at the bottom of that term is the idea that it's the nutrients that matter and not the food itself - a slippery slope that can lead to substituting real food for food-like products. But, enough ranting for now....

Anyway, I decided to give this food trend a try since it sounded so simple and clean. I went for a chia seed pudding because we're always looking for good breakfast alternatives and because I was pretty sure we'd like it (I've got a long love affair with tapioca pudding). Here's how I made it:

• 1 cup milk (we used vanilla flavored coconut milk)
• 1/4 cup chia seeds
• 1 tablespoon maple syrup

Combine all ingredients the night before in a small container. I used one with a lid for easy overnight storage. Whisk occasionally for the first hour to prevent clumping. I left the mixture on the counter while I prepared dinner and gave it a whisk every time I thought of it. Stop whisking after about an hour, put the lid on, and store in the fridge overnight. The next morning, give it a final stir then spoon into serving dishes and top with whatever fruit you have on hand (it was frozen peaches for us, but blueberries would be wonderful as well). 

Possible variations: 

• Use almond milk (I think I'll do this in the future since we generally don't buy coconut milk. Actually this was the first time we tried it and I didn't think it was great). 
• If using unflavored or dairy milk, add 1 tsp of vanilla or almond extract
• Use agave nectar instead of maple syrup

The verdict is that we both enjoyed this and will most likely be keeping chia seeds on hand to make every once in awhile as a breakfast or dessert treat. I doubt we'll have it daily or even weekly since I'm still skeptical about going crazy over any one superfood and would rather keep a variety of things in rotation.

Based on Pastry Affair's recipe for vanilla chia seed pudding.

FO: Kevin's (sort of) Surprise Christmas Sweater

Technically this sweater belongs to Kevin. I knit it in secret for him for Christmas. Except - as you have no doubt noticed by now - it is I who get to wear it. The reason for this is two-fold. One. it does not fit him. Two. it is too nice of a finished object (FO) to frog. Subpoint to point two is that it fits me quite nicely. Thus I regifted this sweater back to myself. In case you're feeling like Kevin got the short end of the stick here, he sort of did. BUT, he is also getting a spiffy new handknit sweater, which is even now in it's final stages of completion. (aka "finishing" in knit-speak, which is one of the more obvious yet official knitting terms for all those little annoying bits you have to do before after something comes off the needles but isn't yet done done like blocking, sewing on buttons, and weaving in ends. Yuck but oh so necessary.)

For his new(est) sweater he got to approve the pattern, pick out the yarn, and try on as I knit. Which is a series of participatory steps I should have followed to begin with. Which brings me to the lessons I've learned with this project, which are also two-fold. One. Do not knit sweaters for Kevin in secret. Too risky and difficult to coordinate with entirely too little reward. Two. Stop being so lazy about gauge swatches. Seriously, how many times to do I have to learn this one?!? I've actually  made it my knitting goal this year to knit a stack of sweaters for Kevin and myself so that I finally get over my stubbornness towards doing a proper gauge swatch and thus ensure the garments I slave over will actually fit in the end. Palm to face.



Thankfully, this particular knitting story still has a happy ending because I love this sweater. True, I would have preferred to knit myself a different sweater as my next "me" project, but this is still a really wonderful garment. I've worn it out several times now and am sure it will be in regular rotation until summer. The pattern is Hugo by Véronik Avery from the Brooklyn Tweed Men collection. Someday I will knit something from this collection for Kevin that actually fits (there are just so many wonderful designs!) but today was not that day. The yarn was thrifted from an area Goodwill store and fortunately I had just enough for this project. It's Bucilla Knitting Worsted. Actually, to be honest, I did run out of yarn at the very end. Since this is a discontinued yarn and I failed to get lucky on eBay, I ended up using Lion Brand Fisherman's Wool for the collar. Not a perfect match, but good enough for a not-perfectly-fitting sweater. Speaking of the collar, it's a mod from the original pattern, too. Kevin actually liked the exaggerated open turtle neck look from the pattern, but I prefer a more standard collar. So, when it was clear that this would be for me, I opted for a simple crewneck instead.