Royal Chai Spiced Overnight Oats

A gospel choir. A sermon that referenced slavery. An independent walk down the aisle. Last month's royal wedding wasn't merely swoon-worthy, it was groundbreaking in so many ways. Meghan Markle shook tradition to make her mark as the first black woman (and American) to join the monarchy. She made clear that she wouldn't merely be a royal, but use her new position to not only be a philanthropist but an advocate for equal rights from race to gender. 

It's no surprise that I'm as obsessed with her as much as the next girl who dreamed of marrying Prince Harry and becoming a royal; but when I learned about her interest in health and her wellness website The Tig, well, things got intense. I may or may not have been in a click hole for hours looking through archived pages of the site ...maybe... 

The first step to fixing the problem is admitting you have one right? 

So, I found one of her recipes for chai-spiced chia seed pudding and jumped into creating it. While I liked it, I wanted to see if adding a few other ingredients and switching to overnight oats would make it even better and it absolutely did! 

No offense to Meghan, but I like my breakfast a little on the sweeter side so these tweaks made the dish a bit more decadent. Here's the nutrition profile: 

Gluten free oats help maintain stable blood sugar through the presence of beta-glucan, a soluble fiber. They contain more fiber than most grains and are loaded with manganese and magnesium--nutrients essential in maintaining healthy digestion (and magnesium helps me avoid migraines!). Coconut milk is a muscle builder, healthy source of fat, and provides electrolytes to prevent fatigue--making it perfect to add into breakfast to provide nutrients to power through your morning. Flax is another healthy source of fat that is great for your digestive tract as well. 

Chia, as I've said in previous posts is an excellent source of omega-3s, as well as antioxidants, iron (which most of us are deficient in), and calcium. The chai spice mix is a great balance of anti-inflammatory and stomach taming spices. Finally, the toppings are all antioxidant rich--but the real star for me is the pomegranate seeds. They really balance out this breakfast, providing tart notes to balance the earthy taste of the chai. These seeds are known to reduce join pain, fight bacterial infections, and have significant anti-inflammatory breakfast. 

With so much nutrition packed into one cup, you'd think this wouldn't taste as incredible as it does. It is filling though--I can only finish about half a cup for breakfast and maybe another fourth or half for a snack. 

So, can using ingredients that Duchess Meghan Markle uses turn you into a royal? The answer is still unclear--but it certainly feels fancy and it tastes amazing. Enjoy!