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EDITED: Iskiate (chia drink) used by Tarahumara for energy, no-churn ice cream for fun

Mary

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EDITED AGAIN: So I've been adding the lime juice at the beginning of the chia seeds soak for a few days now, and they come out differently than when the lime juice is added at the end - they're not gelatinous at all (don't look like frog spawn as the book says) once soaked, when adding the lime juice at the beginning. I don't know if this is a good thing or a bad thing. I think we will each have to decide for ourselves what is the best way to do this, unless someone has some idea of what the heck is going on! :sluggish:

EDITED: I've changed the directions to add the lime juice at the beginning, when the chia seeds first start to soak. I think it only makes sense to do this and also I did that this morning and I believe that within a fairly short while I had an increase in energy, more than adding the lime juice at the end. Of course, correlation does not equal causation, but you never know --

I just finished the book Born To Run by Christopher McDougall. It's a great book, equal parts adventure story and science lesson about how humans evolved to run and how we survived by running. (e.g., in a distance race, a human can beat a horse) Also, just about everything most of us thought we knew about athletic shoes is wrong!

The main characters are a group of indigenous people in Copper Canyon, Mexico, called the Tarahumara, who are among the world's greatest athletes. They run 20, 30, 40, 50 miles just for fun in thin tire tread sandals, and blow the competition away.

The book mentions iskiate, a drink they make from chia seeds, lime juice and a little sugar or honey, which supposedly imparts energy and stamina. So I had to make it. There's lots of info on-line about it - this book was a big deal 10 or 11 years ago when it was first published.

Anyways, to make iskiate:

Put a tablespoon of chia seeds in a glass of water, add juice of one lime (I'm using two tablespoons of bottled lime juice), let soak for at least half an hour (stir a couple of times while soaking), add a little sugar or honey if desired. And drink.

It doesn't taste bad and it may be helping my energy a little. Bon appetit!

And just for fun, here's how to make no-churn ice cream. It takes 10 - okay, 11 actually - minutes total to make. I saw this some weeks ago on Nadiya's Time to Eat, a Netflix British cooking show. In the UK they have something called double cream which is 48% fat(!) In the U.S. we have to make do with heavy whipping cream, which is 36% fat. Oh well! So here's the U.S. version:

2 cups heavy whipping cream
1 can sweetened condensed milk (I used 2/3 of a can)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Stir the vanilla into the sweetened condensed milk. Several reviews said that one whole can made it too sweet, so I used 2/3 of a can, and was glad I did - would not have wanted it any sweeter.

Beat the heavy whipping cream until stiff peaks form. Blend one cup of the whipped cream into the condensed milk mixture, and then blend in the rest of the whipped cream. Spread into a shallow dish (freezes better that way - I used a baking dish) and freeze. The directions I read said it would take 5 or 6 hours but it only took about 3 hours in my freezer. And it was delicious! It did freeze very hard, might have been a little creamier with double cream but was still very good, has a great flavor. You can experiment with adding different flavorings.

And I gave about half away and have managed to save some for when my sister comes to visit this week-end - I've gotten hungry just thinking about it!
 
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Strawberry

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Seattle, WA USA
What a great idea! I love chia. Normally I use a can of coconut milk, and it makes like a pudding or yogurt treat. I've never had an energy boost from it though, but it sure is good.

Have you used real limes to see if it works any differently? I recently bought a bottle of lime juice as I'm danged tired of buying limes to make something, then when I have enough energy to actually MAKE what I wanted, the limes are rotted. So I am glad you mentioned you had used bottled. I will try the lime drink this weekend. The other one takes too much effort whipping the cream!
 

Mary

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Southern California
Have you used real limes to see if it works any differently?
No, I haven't. Same problem as you - I buy fresh ones and by the time I get to use them, they're no good! :aghhh: I'm making this now 2 x a day, and am curious to see how I do with adding the lime juice first

Your chia coconut milk concoction sounds good!

on my sister's suggestion, I added lime juice to taste to the remainder of the sweetened condensed milk which I didn't use in the ice cream, and refrigerated it, and after a couple of hours it's like lime pudding, or what you would get in key lime pie - delicious!
 

Strawberry

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Seattle, WA USA
lime pudding, or what you would get in key lime pie - delicious!

OMG kill me now!

If you want my very basic recipe for my coconut pudding, I use maybe 1/2 cup water and about 2 tbsp chia and a splash of maple syrup for a little sweetness, then after it is jelly I add the coconut milk. Most add more sugar than I do, but I find coconut milk to be plenty sweet. Add to your taste.

Wow I'm so happy I have a bottle of lime juice. I am SO playing around this weekend...

(oh no, my brain just went here: You put the lime in the coconut and you mix it all up... Bwahahaha)
 

Haley

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Location
NSW Australia
My favourite book :) A friend gave me a copy when I used to run (a lot, for fun!) before I got sick. I still re-read it every now and then.

I second the chia puddings- it's one of my staples. I often add cinnamon and/or protein powder to the mix, and then serve with fruit, nuts and seeds. I don't know how much energy it gives me, but I do notice a difference if I haven't had it for a week or so.

I never got around to trying the iskiate. It was always on the 'to try' list but never made it to the top... Will be interesting to see if it makes a difference for anyone :)
 

YippeeKi YOW !!

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Second star to the right ...
(oh no, my brain just went here: You put the lime in the coconut and you mix it all up... Bwahahaha)
Omigod .... the earworm of ALL effing time .... I'm going to be hearing it til I rip my ears off and shove them in the freezer .... :music: with the lime and the coconut and I've mixed them all up :music::music: .... oh crap, there's no escape :xeyes::xeyes: :bang-head::bang-head::bang-head::bang-head: :jaw-drop::jaw-drop: !!!!
 

YippeeKi YOW !!

Senior Member
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16,047
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Second star to the right ...
@Mary et al ....

In a strange coincidence, I started adding well-hydrated chia about 4-5 months ago to almost everything liquid, mostly because of its high protein and fiber content, as well as its Omega 3's .....

I'm not sure if I get an energy boost from it, but I think it may help. Will pay more attention from now on and let y'all know.

All your recipes sound terrific .... will have to lay in some sweetened condensed milk and bottled lime ....

Thank you all for this nifty input .:thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup: :woot::woot:...
 

Haley

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1,178
Location
NSW Australia
Do either of you think that energy from chia builds up over days? Or is it just a "now it's in my belly" energy?

I've eaten my coconut pudding many times for breakfast and not noticed energy. But maybe there wasn't enough chia.
It's not dramatic for me. I've been eating it for years, so I really only notice a difference when I stop for a period. When I eat it again is more of a slow, gradual increase in energy. Not a huge difference, but every little bit helps :)

I make it using 400ml of coconut milk with 6 tablespoons of chia, then make additions depending on what's in the cupboard. Leave it in the fridge overnight, stirring it before I go to bed (the chia tends to clump on the bottom and doesn't hydrate properly if not stirred)
 

Mary

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Southern California
Do either of you think that energy from chia builds up over days? Or is it just a "now it's in my belly" energy?
I don't know. I've only been drinking it a couple of days. In the book, the author describes how they'd been hiking/climbing all day, were exhausted and had to go further, and he was given a cup of the Iskiate to drink, and found himself able to do more. He was a healthy person, not someone with ME/CFS, so of course I'm sure it would affect him differently.

Also, I'm wondering if the lime juice is essential for the purported energy increase - does it work differently on the chia than coconut milk for example? I don't know! I guess experimenting may yield some answers. For now, I'm sticking with the lime/chia combo - we'll see!
 

Mary

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Messages
17,335
Location
Southern California
(oh no, my brain just went here: You put the lime in the coconut and you mix it all up... Bwahahaha)
Omigod .... the earworm of ALL effing time .... I'm going to be hearing it til I rip my ears off and shove them in the freezer .... :music: with the lime and the coconut and I've mixed them all up :music::music: .... oh crap, there's no escape :xeyes::xeyes: :bang-head::bang-head::bang-head::bang-head: :jaw-drop::jaw-drop: !!!!
I missed this the first time around! NOW I got it . . . yes, earworm indeed! :lol:
 

YippeeKi YOW !!

Senior Member
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16,047
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Second star to the right ...
Also, I'm wondering if the lime juice is essential for the purported energy increase - does it work differently on the chia than coconut milk for example?
Well, it's an acid and ma change the pH in some mysterious way ....


If I were going to test that hypothesis, I'd try using the same amount of something like ACV or even white vinegar or maybe just plain lemon juice and see if the effect is the same ...

Otherwise, if it works for you, stick with it !!!

EDIT ..... for totally crap syntax and other shite ....
 
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Mary

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Southern California
@Mary is honey a must ? I have diabetes. Will it work without the honey ?
I don't know, I'm not an expert on this, but - I've stopped using honey too! I don't have diabetes but I don't need the sugar either :) I'm just experimenting with it - I did see one video where someone made it with stevia. I don't know how stevia rates with diabetes though I'm guessing better than honey --
 

Strawberry

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Location
Seattle, WA USA
Are you trying to infect us all???!!! :eek::lol:

We ARE all infected now! We are going to turn into ZOMBIES! Oh wait, we all ready ARE zombies. Never mind.

I'm wanting to put juice and drinkable coconut milk into my shopping cart now. Definitely trying first with the lime water only to see if it works better. It might just be what they always used (native fruit), or the lime might add to the energy effect.

Also, something I think I will try this weekend... I've been heating chicken broth, red curry spice + turmeric & black pepper, then at the end adding a can of coconut milk. So basically a curry flavored drink. I'll add chia to it also. Afterall, I have two weeks of laundry to do tomorrow. This will be a long, hard weekend.