A delicious chocolate chia seed pudding that’s healthy enough to enjoy for breakfast but yummy enough that you’ll want it for dessert too 😉
Would you be interested in a recipe for pudding that you can eat everyday and not feel bad about? Or maybe that you can incorporate into your diet to help with weight loss? Or a recipe for chocolate pudding that makes a really healthy afternoon snack that keeps you full till dinner? Really, I’m being totally serious… because this chocolate chia seed pudding is it.
Chia seeds are amazing little things. They’re high in protein and fiber and so many different vitamins including B vitamins and minerals such as phosphorus, manganese, and zinc. They are a good source of calcium and omega 3 fatty acids which we could all get more of. We love sprinkling them over cold or hot cereal or on top of yogurt and fruit or even blending them in smoothies, but this is probably our favorite way to enjoy them. Just wait till you try it, this is amazing.
It’s not your typically smooth and thick chocolate pudding but it’s rich and completely satisfying. And it really fills you up.. You wont need to go back for more 10 minutes after you’ve finished because these amazing little seeds are so full of fiber. Oh, and guess what, it’s super simple and it can be topped so many different ways. One of my favorites is with fresh or even frozen raspberries and flaked coconut.
Chocolate Chia Seed Pudding
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons chia seeds
- 1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk or your favorite alternative
- 2 tablespoons agave brown rice syrup, maple syrup or stevia to taste
- 1 tablespoon cocoa powder
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
Instructions
- Mix all the ingredients together. It may take a little time to incorporate the cocoa, but eventually it will. In the past I used about a tablespoon of brown rice syrup because I like the flavor and then 10-15 drops vanilla stevia to make up the difference, but now I just use a couple tablespoons of maple syrup because it's very easy to mix in and tastes wonderful 🙂
- After everything is mixed, cover and leave on your counter for 20 minutes before enjoying. Or you can leave it in the fridge overnight and enjoy the next day. The chia seeds continue to absorb the liquid they are in so you may need to water your pudding down with some more almond milk if you leave it till the next day. You can top your pudding with fresh fruit or just eat it plain
Pictures were updated on June 4 2015. And just for laughs, here are a couple originals 🙂
Comments & Reviews
Heather Eagleson says
I’m new to Chia seeds, which I recently purchased ground organic ones from Sprouts on sale! Anyway, I’ve been drinking it in my water and other drinks lately like my iced tea at work, lately . My mom was talking to me recently about how a coworker of hers drinks it at work and if she lets it sit in the bottle for too long, it starts sprouting. Well, I’m so excited to finally be getting some Omega 3’s this way (instead of in pill form) and this will be the first recipe I’m using Chia seeds in. I actually looked this recipe up from a some vanilla Chia pudding topped with strawberries that I recently had from my work (Rubio’s Coastal Grill). I enjoyed it so much, I may just omit the chocolate and add extra vanilla and top with blueberries.
Devin says
Mmm…this was delicious. It worked great for a wheat and dairy free breakfast for me.
Heidi @ Food Doodles says
So glad you enjoyed it 🙂
Robyn says
can you use honey?
Heidi @ Food Doodles says
Sure! I just find it’s hard to mix in, but if you don’t mind you can certainly use honey 🙂
Ellie says
I can’t wait to try this version! Thanks for sharing!
Jellybean says
Do you think this would work with regular milk?
Frank says
Fantastic way to enjoy chia!
Oh, I found cocoa powder easiest to mix in by shaking– I’ll put it into a small jar with some of the “milk”, cap it, shake it up, pour it out, and then pour in the rest of the milk into the jar (to clean out any cocoa left behind), cap, shake, pour out, done! Also works if you want to just mix in everything into the jar, as long as there’s some “shake-room” of air in the jar.
Also, one variation I like doing is Mexican chocolate, by adding 1-2 Tbsp of almond butter and a 1/4 tsp of cinnamon (or more) to the wet mix and mixing thoroughly. May benefit from a tiny pinch of sea salt and perhaps a little more agave, depending on taste. Had this warm once (started with hot liquids) and it was *amazing*…
Ana Silva says
I made this, super easy. Thanks for the recipe.
Karla says
Wow! The pudding was very good! I made it in an individual blender cup and let it sit for about 15 minutes then I blended it again and it turned smooth and creamy.
I also like to double the recipe, use vanilla creme stevia, omit the cocoa powder and add a small banana.
Thank you for sharing such a great recipe!!!
Kit says
I made this last night with nonfat cow’s milk and the chia seeds were still hard/crunchy this morning. Are they supposed to soften up or stay hard? I was expecting more of a chewy tapioca texture, but I had to chew them. Thanks.
Heidi @ Food Doodles says
They don’t really soften. They do form kind of a gel on the outside which is what makes the pudding thick, but they still have a little bite to them.
Dee says
2 tbsp of stevia is waaaay to much. It makes it super bitter.
Heidi @ Food Doodles says
Yes, some varieties of stevia are very concentrated. Depending on what kind you’re using you may need only a few drops(of a liquid variety) and tiny bit of pure stevia powder. I have used a “baking blend” in the past that is mixed with a filler so that it can be measured just like sugar. If you can, see if the stevia you’re using has a ratio so that you can figure out how much to use.
QTB says
how long can you keep this in the fridge after it is prepared ?
Adriana says
Heidi, thanks to your mouthwatering pictures I made my first chia seed pudding and absolutely loved it. I used dates instead of agave and a little more cocoa, and the pudding was soooo good:) Thank you so much for sharing the recipe. I’ve blogged about my experience with this pudding and linked back to your post.
Jill says
How long… If it even does..:) last in the fridge?
Thanks
Mum2three says
I am so happy I found your site. We are slowly changing our entire diets to healthy, clean and mostly vegetarian and this site is a god send. With 3 young kids I am finding the transition very hard (especially with snacks to send to school when I am an avid baker) and am constantly worried that not just the children but also my husband and I are missing out on important minerals and vitamins etc. I am so glad to have great recipes to turn to now 😎 Thanks so much for sharing them.
Skippie says
This recipe has changed my life! It’s very versatile; I’ve used it with unsweetened almond milk, chocolate almond milk, honey, agave, “Zero” (xylitol), vanilla extract, chocolate extract… and it always tastes terrific. It is sustaining, which is good since it’s definitely high in calories (!!!). But even with my cannot-eat-*anything* diet, these ingredients are all green lights hurray! Thank you! 😀
Kaley says
I made this yesterday morning and it was delicious!! Today I mixed everything up in my magic bullet and it gave it more of a pudding consistency and I could eat it ASAP as it also thickened right away too! Definitely going to use this recipe a LOT!! My kids love chocolate pudding and this stuff I don’t feel guilty giving it to them!!
Pam says
Is there any reason why I can’t/shouldn’t just use almond milk that is already chocolate flavored?
Theresa says
You can easily make it smooth, the traditional way we’re all used to eating pudding, if you have a Blendtec or Vitamix. I just threw all the ingredients in together and it grinds the seeds up beautifully. You can’t tell the difference especially after its chilled in the fridge for a bit.
Pieper says
I just made this- first time using chia seeds even though they’ve been sitting in my pantry for a few months now. Are chia seeds protein? I have gestational diabetes (3rd preg) and if they are, this would be a fabulous snack for me! I love chocolate and anything sweet so there ya go! Thanks!
Heidi @ Food Doodles says
Chia seeds have a good percentage of protein(I think 2 tbsp of seeds is 4g of protein, but I’m not totally sure) and a lot of fiber so that’s good too 🙂 You could maybe experiment with adding your favorite protein powder to the pudding too. So glad you like it as it is though!
Essy says
Just made this and it’s super tasty! I made the mistake of eating it right away, and it was really soupy so I reread the instructions. Duh- I was supposed to wait 20 minutes before eating!! If you wait, the chia seeds become gelatinous and pudding-y, and it’s deelish! A perfect answer to my chocolate/sweets cravings, as I too like my desserts on the not-too-sweet side.
This is the ONLY way I’ve found to use my chia seeds that I like – I usually hate them because of their texture. Love the recipe, can’t wait to try others on your site!
Mai says
Wow, this is dangerously good! I discovered this three days ago and have now made it three times, including a quadruple batch. I used brown rice syrup and organic cow’s milk, since that’s what I had on hand. I love that I can eat something this yummy and be boosting my protein intake (especially during pregnancy). It takes the edge off of any sugar crash I might otherwise have. I know I still don’t need this much sugar on a regular basis. I stretched it a bit with less sweetener & more milk. By the second night it had more than made up for any thinness from the milk. If we keep making it consistently I’ll probably keep stretching it, as that’s quite a bit of cocoa, even. I kept testing it along the way, and enjoyed it even when it was in the “crunchy chocolate milk” stage. Thanks for the delicious recipe!
Lucy says
I just made some, it tastes so good, can’t wait til tomorrow when it’s properly ready. To make mixing in the cocoa powder easier, mix it with the syrup and seeds first then add the milk a bit at a time, mixing in between.
beth@redandhoney says
I just bought chia seeds for the first time today, but they’re mixed with flax, I think. I was going to throw a few scoops into smoothies… now I’m going to need to run out and get plain chia seeds so I can make this! It looks amazing!
I found your blog from the comment you left on my blog. Good to meet you 🙂
Jill says
Do you store your chia seeds in the refrigerator?
Sheridan says
I made this for breakfast this morning (a double recipe) for myself and my 4 young daughters and it recieved two thumbs up! I used raw honey, raw milk and cacao powder in my pudding. I then served it with homemade yogurt (flavoured with mashed banana and cinnamon!) and will definitely make it again. 🙂
realyoganyc says
Try adding frozen cherries or raisins instead of a sweetener. Cherries are amazing with cacao! And top it of with a drop of almond extract! Yum!
Heidi @ Food Doodles says
Mmmm, that does sound good! Thanks for the suggestion!
Andrea says
Is there any other kind of sweetener you recommend using in this recipe? Honey maybe?
Heidi @ Food Doodles says
Absolutely! You could even try regular sugar if you want.
danetteandryan says
Sounds yummy! I’ll be trying this today 😉
Eric says
Wow, what a great recipe. It tasted amazing!
Heather says
The chia seeds are used raw correct? I’ve never worked with them before, I got them from a health food store that stocks in jars.
Heidi @ Food Doodles says
Yes! You don’t have to do anything to them, just mix them in 🙂
megi says
Thank you so much for sharing this recipe. I made a version of this pudding for my 15 months old daughter, she LOVED it. I used homemade goat’s milk yogurt, a little honey and scraped seeds of maybe 1/8 of a vanilla bean. She couldn’t get enough. I wish I knew about using chia seeds like this before, we used to just add them to salads… Thank you again.
Heidi @ Food Doodles says
That’s great! My daughters not much older and she’s been loving it too! I’m so glad you’re enjoying it 🙂
Ruthy says
Hmm…I am making a gluten-free grapefruit pound cake tomorrow morning for breakfast and was wondering what to put on it. I think I will skip the cocoa powder, and just use vanilla stevia and have a vanilla pudding topper with fresh strawberries! YAY!
Heidi @ Food Doodles says
Mmm that sounds really good! Let me know how it turns out 😀
megi says
I will be making a batch of homemade almond milk on Friday and will definitely make this pudding. It looks so good, thank you for sharing.
Brittany Trei says
I love chia seeds! This is a really good idea, they would be so soft.
carine says
Is soya milk fine for replacing the almond milk?
Heidi @ Food Doodles says
Yes that would be fine 🙂 But if you’re using a sweetened version you’ll have to reduce the amount of other sweetener you use or else it will be too sweet.
Krista says
I’ve never made Chia seed pudding before, but what a great idea! I have all of the ingredients, so this is going to be on the top of my to-make list when I get home from spring break!
Jess@HealthyExposures says
I love chia seed pudding!! i just tried averie’s version recently as well. love it!!
Jaclyn and Jennifer @ sketch-free vegan eating says
thanks for reminding me to make chia seed pudding 😛