No Chia Pet Puns Here

Last week I tried chia seed pudding for the first time ever. It's one of those rare foods that falls nicely into the delicious, but kind of gross category. Texture is usually the make or break quality for me and chia seeds came dangerously close to the breaking point. Chia seeds absorb a ridiculous amount (I've heard between 9 and 30 times their weight/volume) of liquid when soaked. They then become a gel. It's kind of strange/awful looking. I immediately thought of frog's eggs.

But don't let that put you off. I really enjoyed the pudding I made, even though there was so much of it, it took me a good 3 hours to eat. The texture was a lot like tapioca, something I detest, but it was still tasty enough to enjoy. It left me satiated, but not full-feeling. It's probably ace as far as pre-workout snacks go.

I saw a lot of recipes out there, but I just followed the basic formula (1 cup liquid + 1/4 cup chia seeds) and added what I thought might taste good. I guess this is a good stepping stone to recipe creation. Chia pudding made for a light and refreshing breakfast and it has endless possibilities in terms of fruit, liquid, and flavors to try. I think it will be a nice option to alternate with my green smoothie breakfasts.



Here are a variations I came up with:

Basic Chia Pudding
1 cup Almond Milk
1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
1 Banana, chopped
2 Dates, chopped
1 pinch Salt
1/4 cup Chia Seeds

Throw the milk, vanilla, banana, dates, and salt into the food processor and mix until smooth.

Add the chia seeds, stir, let sit 30 minutes. Stir again and enjoy, or stick it in the fridge over night (which is what I did). Garnish with fruit, cinnamon, other spices, whatever.

This made for an excellent breakfast that took me the better part of the morning to eat. I felt satiated, but never full. This is probably a good option if you don't like to eat first thing in the morning, but need the energy.

Strawberry Banana Chia Pudding
1 cup Almond Milk
2 tablespoons Vanilla Coconut Creamer
1-1/2 cups Strawberries, chopped
1 Banana, chopped
2 Dates, chopped
1 pinch Salt
1/4 cup Chia Seeds

Throw the milk, creamer, fruit, dates, and salt into the food processor and mix until smooth. Add the chia seeds, stir, let sit 30 minutes. Stir again and enjoy.

This was fantastic and probably my favorite. All of the fruit did a lot to lessen the gelly texture of the chia.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Chia Pudding
1 cup Almond Milk
1/2 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
1/2 teaspoon Chocolate Extract
1 table spoon Cacao Powder
2 tablespoons Natural Peanut Butter
1 Banana, chopped
2 Dates, chopped
1 pinch Salt
1/4 cup Chia Seeds

Throw the milk, extracts, cacao, peanut butter, banana, dates, and salt into the food processor and mix until smooth. Add the chia seeds, stir, let sit 30 minutes. Stir again and enjoy

This would be a fantastic dessert.

A few general notes:
I like dates for sweetening purposes. A lot of the recipes I looked at suggested agave and stevia, but dates are the way to go. I chopped the dates until they were nearly a paste, and then soaked them in the almond milk for about half an hour before blending. In the future, I'd like to soak them even longer. They become super soft and it's easier on my little processor.

The recipes above make enough for two big servings, especially when you're adding in a lot of extras. I ate chia pudding up until lunch on the first day. I don't know how well it keeps, so half everything if there's no one around to eat half.