Chia

I spent the past week hanging out with 751 teens at a state-wide leadership conference. The focus of the conference is to learn about future careers and potential college major options. I co-taught a class with another youth development co-worker at our Manhattan, HyVee. We experimented with Chia!

Chia is a grain, but not any ordinary grain. It is a super grain! Doesn't that sound like some sort of super hero music should start playing now? Anyway, this grain has excellent fiber and omega 3 content -- plus many other health benefits. The grain absorbs three times its weight in water, and makes an excellent fat substitute in baked products.

The teens tried the grain, dry, in yougurt smoothies. They loved the crunch! The grain resembles a poppyseed, but has more color variation and is a bit bigger than the poppyseed.

Did you know that women need about 25 grams of fiber per day, and men need about 35 grams per day? Karen Hanson, Manhattan HyVee Dietician, said that most folks get about 11-15 grams per day. She suggested Chia as a terrific option for increasing fiber.

This picture features Karen telling some of our adult assistants about the benefits of Chia. Karen suggested mixing a little in with your fruit spread, adding it to your ice cream as a topping or even sprinkling a little on your salad. Chia does not have any taste, but it packs a powerful crunch!