Berry Chia Compote

 This delicious Berry Chia Compote served over Breyers® Natural Vanilla Ice Cream is brought to you courtesy of my proud partnership with Unilever.

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Berry Chia Compote

If we’re friends on Instagram, you already know what a passionate gardener I am. For the majority of the year, my husband and I devote our spare time to nurturing and growing our fruit and vegetable gardens in order to consume as much fresh, sustainably grown food as possible. Late in the summer, we spend a lot of time canning, preserving and freezing so that we can have nutritious food from our backyard all year long.

One of my favorite way to preserve our homegrown strawberries and blueberries is to make this simple berry chia compote. I love this recipe because not only is it simple to make, but it has no added sugar, so it is a more nutritious alternative to traditional jams, jellies, and syrups traditionally used to top or sweeten our favorite dishes.

While I am always encouraging the consumption of more fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds for better health, I am also encouraging women to focus on mindful eating and moderation. It is unrealistic to assume anyone could live their whole life, or in my case a week, without ice cream. As I always say, when we think about food, its more important to focus on quality, not quantity. That is why Breyers® Natural Vanilla is my go-to ice cream of choice because it is made with simple, high-quality ingredients like fresh cream, sugar, and milk.

Ice cream toppings are great, but they’re not always great for us. Replacing traditional ice cream toppings with fruit compote is a simply delicious way to reduce the amount of sugar consumed while also proving additional dietary fiber, vitamin C and omega-3 fatty acids from the chia seeds. This tasty topping also helps to increase your consumption of fruits and seeds.

This past summer I had the amazing opportunity to visit The Culinary Institute of America with an impressive group of registered dietitians to learn more about how Breyers® produces their most delicious Natural Vanilla ice cream flavor. Because sustainability is so important to me, I was so happy to learn that every little vanilla bean speck you see comes from 100% Rainforest Alliance Certified™ vanilla beans, sustainably farmed in Madagascar and that both Breyers® milk and cream are all American and come from cows not treated with artificial growth hormones*.

*Suppliers of other ingredients such as cookies, candies & sauces may not be able to make this claim. The FDA states that no significant difference has been shown between dairy derived from rBST-treated and non-rBST-treated cows.

Click Here to Download Your Plant-Based, No Added Sugar Meal Plan – FREE!

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Berry Chia Compote

Berry Chia Compote, a no-sugar added fruit sauce to enjoy over all of your favorite treats.

Servings: 12 servings

Author: Emily Kyle, MS, RDN

Ingredients

• 1 cup of cold water
• 3 tablespoons of chia seeds
• 1 pound of fresh strawberries hulled and diced
• 1 pound of fresh blueberries
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon lemon zest
• Juice of 1 lemon about 2 tablespoons
• 1 container of Breyers Natural Vanilla Ice Cream
• Optional: Lemon zest and fresh mint for garnish.

Instructions

1. To Make Chia Seed Gel
   
2. Combine water and chia seeds in a mason jar.
   
3. Shake vigorously.
4. Let sit for 20 minutes. Shake frequently to prevent clumps.
   For Berry Compote
   
   
5. Place a diffuser between a medium sized pot and the stove.
6. Add the strawberries, blueberries and cinnamon stick to the pot.
7. Turn the stove to low-medium heat.
8. Allow the strawberries and blueberries to cook for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
9. After 20 minutes, use a potato masher or large spoon to break down the berries.
10. Stir in the chia seed gel, ground cinnamon, nutmeg, lemon juice and zest.
11. Simmer for 5 minutes.
12. Remove from heat and allow to cool.
13. Serve compote warm over 1/2 cup of Breyers Natural Vanilla Ice Cream
14. Enjoy!
15. 

I hope you love this Berry Chia Compote as much as I do. You can enjoy this tasty topping with all of your favorite dishes, try it on ice cream or mixed with yogurt, oatmeal or on French toast or pancakes. If you try this recipe, be sure to let me know in the comments section below!