Using Chia Seeds As A Substitute For Eggs In Strawberry Ice Cream

A few months ago I heard about chia seeds from my sister. I tried chia seeds with hot milk and cereal for breakfast. I love their poppy seed like texture engulfed in a gel like covering. The gel forms when it is mixed with liquid. Though they resemble basil seeds that we use in falooda, they are not the same. There is a misconception when it comes to chia seeds. Basil seeds  are called saibaj and chia seeds are called saiba. This is the information that I gathered from bloggers and web sites. I cannot tell you enough about their benefits, they are rich in omega 3, better than flax seed, helps in weight reduction, rich in antioxidants, balances blood sugar, has a lot of fiber. For more info please do a google search on chai seed benefits and you will see a lot of information on that.

What caught my attention though was that it was a good substitute for eggs. The general formula is :

1 tbsp chai seeds + 1/4 cup liquid(water, milk) soaked for 5 plus minutes = 1 Egg

I wanted to use this substitution for making a simple strawberry ice cream using an ice cream maker. There are two ways in using the chai seeds as a replacer: Soaking the seeds in water directly or making a powder of the seeds and then soaking them. Either way it gives the same effect. I however soaked the seeds in water and them made a paste out of them. It became gooey and the texture resembled the white part of the egg.

Now, if you are wondering how the ice cream turned out, it tasted great, had a nutty texture because of the chia seeds.  The ice cream texture was very interesting to me. It was like a soft serve kind, it did set well as you can see in the pictures.

Gadgets:

Blender
Ice Cream Maker
Measuring Cups and Spoons
A container to store
Spatula
Sauce Pan

Ingredients:

2 % Milk - 1 1/2 cups
Fresh Cream - 3/4 cup
Sugar - 1/2 cup
Chia seeds - 3 tbsp
Water - 10 tbsp
Strawberries - 1 cup hulled

Preparation:

1. Soak the chia seeds in water. Allow it to set for 30 minutes.

2. Heat the saucepan with milk, sugar and cream and allow for the sugar to dissolve and bring the milk to a boil making sure to mix them often or use a milk cooker. Remove from heat and allow to cool.

3. Add them to a blender and blend until the little black seeds are finely ground and you get a grayish gooey texture.

4. Add strawberries to this mixture and blend them well. Note: you can also leave a few strawberries behind and throw them in later to get chucks of strawberries in the ice cream.

5. Add the cooled milk mixture and puree it well and turn on the ice cream maker before pour this liquid in. Allow it to churn until the ice cream comes together. I removed them when it was thick enough and allowed for the ice cream to set in the fridge.

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