A refreshing raspberry green tea lemonade with chia seeds! It’s both healthy and delicious!
I am a sucker for overpriced drinks. I seriously should’ve bought stock in Starbucks. Lately, I’ve been loving these bottled chia drinks at the checkout line. It’s one little yummy treat I get all to myself (that is, unless my husband’s around!)
$4 here and there does start to add up though. The good news is that it’s very easy to make them at home. The even better news is that it’s just as delicious AND more cost effective! Your wallet says “yay!”
I wanted to make a refreshing flavor combination using simple ingredients, preferably ones I already had on hand. I decided to use green tea, raspberries, lemons, honey, and chia seeds. I think it made a wonderful combination too!
This drink is not only delicious, it packs a powerful nutritional punch:
- Green tea contains helpful antioxidants and anti-inflammatory properties
- Lemons are rich in vitamin C and can help flush the body of toxins
- Raspberries also contain antioxidants, many nutritious vitamins, and help with digestion
- Chia Seeds are a superfood high in fiber, antioxidant rich, and full of omega-3 fatty acids
In order to get the chia seeds evenly dispersed, it’s best to gel the chia seeds in water before mixing them with the other liquids. Otherwise they will sink to the bottom and then you’ll get big clumps of chia gel in your last few sips. That even sounds gross to me..and I love chia seeds!
When the seeds are gelled and have soaked up all of the water, it should be thick and pudding-like. That’s when you know they’re ready to mix with the raspberry tea and lemon juice. Mix it together and serve immediately or chill until ready to use.
*Gelling the chia seeds takes several hours, so prepare it and let it sit in the fridge overnight, if possible.
It’s that easy, friends. Although, I must warn you, this drink is so yummy you may need to double the recipe (especially if you have to share:) The flavor possibilities are endless too. I can’t wait to test out some new combinations! Hope you all enjoy this deliciously refreshing chia drink!
Raspberry Chia Lemonade
- Total Time: 15 mins
- Yield: 2 servings 1x
Description
A refreshing green tea lemonade with fresh pureed raspberries and nutrient rich chia seeds. Healthy and delicious!
Ingredients
- 1 cup purified water
- 3 tbsp chia seeds
- 2 green tea bags steeped in 1 cup water and cooled
- 1 cup raspberries boiled with 1/4 cup water
- juice of 2 lemons, about 1/2 cup
- 1/4 cup honey or other sweetener of choice, possibly more to taste
Instructions
Gel Chia Seeds:
- Combine 1 cup purified water with 3 tablespoons of chia seeds.The chia seeds need several hours to gel, so do this ahead of time, the day before if possible.
Steep Tea:
- Steep green tea bags in 1 cup of hot water for 2-3 minutes. Discard tea bags and let cool.
Make Raspberry Puree:
- In a saucepan, combine raspberries with 1/4 cup water and bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Mash raspberries to release their juices. Strain through a fine mesh sieve and mash out as much juice as possible. Discard raspberry pulp. Combine the raspberry juice with the green tea.
Blend It All Together:
- In a small pitcher or bowl, blend together chia gel, raspberry green tea, lemon juice, and sweetener. Add more sweetener, to taste. Serve immediately or chill slightly before serving. Makes 2 servings.
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 5 mins
- Category: Drink
perfect combination. thanks for your sharing indredients.
Thank you! Have a great weekend!
Thanks for the recipe! Love it !
I have this recipe open in my computer for almost a week before I made the time to do it, and I’m regretting not doing it sooner, it is delicious!!!
I love chia seeds also and is a new and refreshing way of consuming them. I have high cholesterol since I was a child (from heritage), chia seeds and lemon help me maintain the cholesterol low, but sometimes I got a little bored of taking them in the same 3 ways I know, so this method is super refreshing and super tasty!
Thanks a lot!!!!
Thank you, Christina! Yes, we love chia drinks too! I used to buy chia drinks at the grocery store and was so happy when I discovered that I could make them at home for much cheaper and without a bunch of preservatives 🙂 I’m so glad you enjoyed it as much as we did! Thanks also for taking the time to leave your feedback! Have a wonderful weekend!
This raspberry lemonade looks so refreshing! I would like one now for an afternoon snack!
Thank for sharing.
Looks really yummy.
Thank you very much for your feedback! I hope you enjoy it! 🙂
I can’t wait to try this! I love making chia seed pudding but have never made it in a beverage (though I have had those Kombucha drinks with the chia seeds in them, delish!) Thanks for the tip on gelling the chia before adding to the drink. My wheels are turning with all of the different fruits that I can try this with and I think this would taste great with a few leaves of mint or basil 🙂 Inspired as always, thank you love! xx L
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Question: Does chia seeds have a slimy texture when in smoothies like this one? I tried ‘bubble tea’ once and I couldn’t handle the texture…my gag reflexes kicked in, lol! I do love raspberry flavor, and this smoothie looks delicious! Your pictures are fabulous as usual, Joscelyn:-)
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Thanks, Andele! In regards to the texture, in this case, yes, they do have a bit of a “slimy” feel. With bubble tea, the tapioca pearls are very large, so in my opinion, would be a little more difficult to swallow for someone with textural issues. I’d say it’s similar to drinking orange juice with heavy of pulp. Try chia pudding first, and if you can handle that, you can definitely handle this drink! If you’ve never tried chia pudding, I have a recipe in the recipe archives, under “Dairy Free” (3rd page) 😉
Hi!! I just stumbled over your website and would love to follow you with my bloglovin-account, but I wasn’t able to find you there? Something wrong I did?..:)
Hi, Martine! Thanks so much for asking..I have a link to bloglovin’ at the bottom of my sidebar, right underneath the Pinterest and foodgawker boxes. Here’s also a direct link http://www.bloglovin.com/blogs/wifemamafoodie-12836299 although I’m not sure if it will be clickable for you. Please let me know if you have any other problems finding it and I’ll try to help as much as I can! Thanks again for checking into that and I’ll see you over on bloglovin’! 🙂
Yummy! Just the other day I made a strawberry green tea smoothie with chia seeds blended in- I love the berry and green tea combination. I need to give this a try! Thanks for sharing, Joscelyn.
That smoothie sounds delish, Minna! I am loving green tea/berry combos lately..they just pair well together, don’t they?! Please do try it and let me know what you think!
Wow, so yummy!! I love the color and the sound of green tea raspberry lemonade with chia… sounds divine!!! I will have to try this once I can get my hand on raspberries! have tons of lemons on my lemon tree 🙂
Thanks, Amisha! I like your title much better! I may borrow it, if that’s okay, haha! I had the hardest time fitting all of the ingredients in the title without it sounding like a mouthful! So cool that you have a lemon tree! I’ve ALWAYS wanted one, but I don’t know if the weather here would sustain it. Plus, I tend to kill any plants that are in my care within the first few weeks:( You’ll have to teach me your ways, lol!
Ofcourse Joscelyn!! 🙂 The recipe is yours 🙂 I planted the lemon tree 2 years ago, and last year I had no yield, and this year since December… we had heavy rains, and the tree went crazy!! I have about a 100 lemons on this tree now 🙂 So so happy!!! Cause I make so much jam…. I need the lemons…. also my whole family loves lemonade, so come summer… I will start making all the different fruit lemonades…. my fav is peach and mint lemonade… which was delicious !!! Anyways, am ranting off…. 🙂 You have a great day Joscelyn! and if you would like the jam samples, please do send me your add, will gladly send some to you..!! 🙂 No obligation really! I feel happy when people taste the jam… and let me know what they think honestly. Have a great Day!
Aww, thank you so much! You come up with the most creative and delicious flavor combinations:) I definitely would LOVE to try your jam! I’m sure they’re even more yummy than they look..;-) We’re actually in the process of moving this weekend, so I will email you my new address as soon as I learn it, lol! Hope you’re having a great day too..Thanks again, Amisha!