This lavender chia pudding is vegan, gluten-free, raw, paleo-friendly, alkaline forming, and has a delightful flavor that will make you look like a gourmet chef in less than 10 minutes prep time.

This chia pudding recipe comes from the Eat Well, Live Better, Feel Better cookbook by Julie Cove.

Living an alkaline lifestyle was a game changer for me. Watch the facebook live video I did about the importance of eating alkaline forming foods. Since I posted that video, I’ve been overwhelmed with hundreds of emails about alkalinity, and requests for awesome alkaline recipes.

This book is hands down the best alkaline cookbook I’ve seen.

Julie is a Canadian holistic nutritionist and plant-based cook. After suffering debilitating back pain, Julie educated herself on the alkaline lifestyle and reclaimed her health. She now shares incredible alkaline recipes and health tips on her website, and teaches nutrition workshops and seminars in Canada.

Julie and I bonded over our mutual belief in the extraordinary power of alkaline living, and I was honored to blurb her incredible book. This book is a triumph, and such a gift to the world.

Eat Well, Live Better, Feel Better is a step-by-step guide to thriving with an alkaline lifestyle. This book is jam-packed with information. Julie gives you every single tool you need to clean up your diet, detoxify your body, and transition to an alkaline lifestyle for optimal health. Julie’s easy-to-follow four-step program is focused on long-term health, well-being, and happiness. This is not an extreme approach to alkalinity, this is a gentle celebratory program that makes healthy living fun and accessible.

Julie begins by explaining the connection between acid, inflammation, and disease; what happens in your body when you eat certain foods; symptoms of overacidity; and where you should start to alkalize. She then shares her master alkaline foods chart, and that is worth the price of the book just on its own! The foods are broken down into high alkaline, mildly alkaline, moderately alkaline, neutral, mildly acidic, moderately acidic, and highly acidic.

She then moves into her Four-Step Program.

Step 1: Inspire is all about easing your way into the alkaline lifestyle. Julie encourages you to start with a 50/50 balance of alkaline veggies to acidic foods, then ease into 60/40, then a 75/25% balance. She recommends moving through this transitional phase over a 4 to 12-week period. There are tips for assessing your health, monitoring your digestive and gut health, testing you pH, and addressing detox symptoms. This section has a fantastic alkaline food pyramid, guide to evaluate the sugar content of fruits, and an awesome alkaline substitution chart for popular acidic comfort foods.

Step 2: Desire is the detox portion of the program. Here, Julie recommends an alkaline juice or smoothie cleanse. There’s a day-by-day routine, alkaline supplements chart, a master green juice infograph, a green smoothie how-to chart, and other tips to support you through this phase.

Step 3: Aspire is the deeper work, going from the veggie fast to whole alkaline foods to excavate deep tissue acids and improve your health. Julie recommends committing to this phase for 1 to 2 months for lasting results. This is plan designed around 90-100% alkaline foods for a serious health reboot. There are tips for stocking an alkaline kitchen for success, and suggestions for supplements to help you stay on course.

Step 4: Acquire is all about balance, and maintaining a long-term alkaline lifestyle that you can enjoy. Here, Julie suggests including 75% alkaline properly combined foods at every meal, and doing this long-term. The Alkaline Daily Snapshot Chart is particularly helpful. There is also comprehensive information on pantry and fridge essentials, and an incredible section on soaking and sprouting with a full how-to chart for nuts, seeds, and grains.

Then, there’s the righteous recipes, which will help you ease into alkalinity with great gustatory pleasure! Julie shares 150 nutritionally-balanced, delicious recipes that are really easy to prepare with just a handful of ingredients. There are nourishing smoothies, breakfasts, salads, soups, warm dishes, savory bites, and sweet treats. The recipes are adaptable, and easy to mix-and-match to help you meet your health goals.

Julie’s innovative recipes are full of delicious flavors, loaded with nutrients and alkaline buffers, and will help you stay at optimal health. Some of my favorites include: Ginger Beet Liver Tonic, Tuscan Sunshine Turmeric Tonic, Lemon-Lime Green Goodness Smoothie, Creamy Hemp Chai Smoothie, Raspberry, Rose, & Mint Water, Digestion Tea, Cardamom Buckwheat Porridge, Sprouted Buckwheat Pancakes, Baby Greens with Flower Blossoms, Butter Lettuce and Minced Pear Salad, Raw Ravioli, Angel Hair Zucchini Pesto, Kaniwa Tomato Stack, Chickpea Dill Crepes, Heirloom Cherry Tomato and White Bean Tarts, Cauliflower Pizzettes, Strawberry and Mint Jelly, Roasted Green Apple, Lime, and Avocado Creamsicles, Coconut, Lime, and Basil Tarts, and Salted Pecan Caramel Butter Cups.

This Lavender Almond Chia Pudding I’m sharing is super quick and easy, tastes like a gourmet treat, but is alkaline forming, and makes a spectacular breakfast, dessert, or snack.

Eat Better, Live Better, Feel Better is a book that will help balance your body and revitalize your life, and will be your blueprint for improved good health for years to come.

I share a lot of cookbooks on this site, but this one is seriously special. Don’t miss it.