I love blueberries, they feature heavily in my breakfasts and smoothies. I always have a bag in the freezer, its so cheap to but them this way and using them frozen in smoothies keeps the smoothies cold and creamy.
Using chia seed to set fruits into a 'jam' is quick and results in a healthy jam not laden with refined sugar.
Blueberry Chia Jam
250g blueberries, fresh or frozen
25g chia seeds
tablespoon of lemon juice
Place the blueberries into a saucepan and cook over a medium heat for 5-8 minutes, stirring occasionally. They should release quite a lot of liquid.
Add the chia seeds, stir to combine and continue to cook for 5-10 minutes, stirring occasionally to stop it sticking. Cook until it has thickened and looks a jammy consistency.
Transfer to a sterilised jar and keep in the fridge.
I love this jam as it is, if you need it a little sweeter, this may depend on your blueberries, add 1-2 tsp maple syrup to taste when you are first simmering the blueberries.
I had this jam for breakfast a number of ways. I topped almond overnight oats (using this homemade almond butter) with pear and blueberry chia jam.
I made almond chia pudding topped with pear and blueberry chia jam, this was amazing.
I also made cinnamon porridge and topped with pear and blueberry chia jam.
I have a confession. I love vanilla. It has a reputation for being plain and boring but I do not understand why. It gives such a distinctive flavour and I enjoy desserts and bakes flavoured purely with this exotic spice. Vanilla also complements and lifts so many other flavours such as chocolate and berry fruits.
Vanilla also pairs extremely well with nuts and, as I found out, lifts the already delicious almond butter to a whole new level. I am a big fan of making my own nut butters for a number of reasons 1) it is much cheaper to make my own 2) I know exactly what is going into it 3) I can experiment with new flavour combinations.
It could not be simpler to make nut butter, you simply need a powerful food processor and a little patience!
Vanilla almond nut butter
150g skin on almonds
1 tsp unrefined coconut oil
1 tsp vanilla paste
Add all the ingredients to a food processor and blend! First the nuts will turn to a fine flour-like texture, keep going and it will come together as a ball, jut let it keep going and you will be rewarded with a super creamy almond butter. The time this takes will depend on your processor.
The amounts in this recipe make a small jar, I am definitely doubling it next time!
I have experimented with this almond butter a number of ways.
It is delicious stirred into porridge, especially delicious if raw cacao and a dash of maple are also stirred through, chocolate almondy porridge topped with a sliced banana is an oh so delicious and nutritious start to the day!
It is also fabulous in chia seed pudding. I made chia pudding with almond milk and left overnight, I then blended with a good dollop of almond butter and a third of a frozen banana, before layering up with a little extra banana. So good.
I also stirred a spoonful through pear overnight oats served with blueberry chia jam. More on the jam in a later post.
I also plan to experiment with other homemade nut butters... if I can drag myself away from this vanilla almond one that is!
