A healthy low-calorie healthy breakfast that sustains you through the morning encourages a stronger, healthier smile, and a radiant glow from the inside out – plus it’s plant-based, easy-peasy and gluten-free, nut-free, and vegan!

Chia seeds are the tiny cute little black seeds that come from desert plant Salvia hispanica, a member of the mint family (*no resemblance in taste to mint). This nutrient dense seeds might be tiny and remind you of fuzzy Chia pets in clay pots, but instead of sprouting green fur chia seeds will encourage your skin and hair to bloom with the benefit of omega-3 fatty acids. Omega-3 fatty acids give your skin a radiant glow; build strong, long, healthy hair. Chia seeds are also an excellent source dietary fiber (10 grams per 2 tablespoons – about 1/3 of your DRI), protein and minerals including iron, calcium, magnesium, and zinc.

Dietary Fiber
Keeps you fuller longer: 1 ounce of chia seeds contains 12 grams of carbs and 11 grams of these carbs are fiber that does not raise blood sugar
Chia seeds expand in liquid and absorb 10 x their weight in water to become gel-like. This expansion in your stomach increases fullness, slows absorption of food, and keeps you sustained.

Protein
Chia seeds contain nearly 10% of your daily protein requirements and it’s all plant-based. They also contain all nine of the essential amino acids which our bodies need for growth & repair of blood cells, tissue, muscle, collagen… our bodies can’t produce these building-blocks, we can only obtain them from our diet.

Calcium rich
Stronger teeth and bones: A single serving of chia seeds (approximately 2 tablespoons) can provide almost 18% of your daily-recommended intake (DRI) of calcium, which is more than a glass of milk!

Omega-3 Fatty Acids
Omega-3 fatty acids are healthy fats found in fish, walnuts, flax seeds, hemp seeds and chia seeds. They reduce inflammation, increase brain function, mental clarity, build a healthy heart, and help minimize the effect of sun damage and improve sensitive skin conditions.

What I love about this recipe is that it is simple, but you can make many variations to spice it or sweeten it up! I used mango in the ingredients below because it’s always been one of my favs, plus a local find here in sunny San Diego this time of year, but you can sub any fresh local organic fruit.