I LOVE CHIA (and flax meal)

So along with my research I've made a new discovery.. With the help of Pinterest and a few recipes shared by my mom I have found my GO TO breakfast / snack type meal.

LOW CARB "Oatmeal"

It thickens like the classic hot breakfast cereal. It fills you up like it is filled with carbs. It is just as easy as instant! SUPER quick and you don't need a TON of ingredients!

For mine I use:

2 tablespoons chia seeds
2 tablespoons ground flax meal
1/3 cup - 1/2 cup hot water
cinnamon, pumpkin pie spices, cocoa powder - to taste
sweetener, 1 packet - to taste
2 tablespoons of heavy cream (whipped or liquid)
1/2 cup of Unsweetened Vanilla Almond Coconut milk

Turns out to be barely a carb (depending on your sweetener and toppings).
You can add whipped cream, berries, nuts (coconut, almonds, pecans, walnuts)..more whipped cream.

It is super filling and easy to make.
Add the dry ingredients together and mix.
Add the hot water and let it sit about 2-3 minutes. It will thicken A LOT. You can then add either more water or the heavy cream and Almond milk.

I'm terrible at writing recipes. But there ya go!

"Jambalaya" & Cauli-Rice

* I apologize ahead of time for this recipe. I have never had authentic Jambalaya, Gumbo, Creole or Cajun cooking. Not even the pre-made packets from the store. I don't exactly call it Jambalaya, but we can call it a Creole seasoned Stoup (stew/soup).

Our neighbor raved about this local meat shop in town and how they had great Andouille sausage. We never had it and wanted to give it a try - jambalaya style.

It turned out to be a great Cauli-Rice dish!

Ingredients

1 package (rougly a pound) of Andouille Sausage, cut in rounds

2 medium green bell peppers, diced

1 medium onion, diced

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 chicken breasts, boneless/skinless & cut in pieces

small bag of shrimp, thawed from frozen or fresh (roughly a pound)

2 chipotle peppers in adobo, sliced & to taste (spicy/optional)

Creole Seasoning, to taste

3 beef bouillon cubes in 2 cups of water (roughly)

1 can of diced tomatoes (with or without green chilies)

small can of plain tomato sauce (about 1/2 cup)

1-2 tablespoons of fresh thyme

1 head of cauliflower, raw & riced

Directions

Chop the head of cauliflower into florets, place in a blender & cover with water. Pulse a few times until it resembles a rice-like consistency. Set aside. Keep raw.

Saute garlic, green peppers, onion and a few tablespoons of fresh thyme, in olive oil and seasoned with some Creole Seasoning. Add to the a bowl with the contents of a small can of plain tomato sauce.

Chop the chicken and the andouille sausage. Cook until brown and tender. You can boil the shrimp separately in a small pot with some Creole Seasoning.

(leaving the shrimp to be added at the very end or in your bowl) 

Add in the tomato sauce mixture, canned diced tomatoes, cauliflower (raw) and cook until cauliflower is tender and all meat is cooked through/sauce heated. I add in the beef bouillon after I add the cauli-rice to get a certain consistency. It is up to you. 

Serving Size: makes ROUGHLY 8 1-cup servings

Nutritional Info

• Servings Per Recipe: 8
• Amount Per Serving
• Calories: 250.9

• Total Fat: 11.6 g
• Cholesterol: 90.4 mg
• Sodium: 889.5 mg
• Total Carbs: 12.0 g
• Dietary Fiber: 3.1 g
• Net Carbs: 8.9 g
• Protein: 24.0 g