Did you know that chia seeds are considered to be one of the most nutritional foods on the planet?! Well if you didn’t, now you do. You may be asking yourself what is so special about these itty bitty little seeds? Don’t let the size of these babies fool you, they are jam packed with fiber, micronutrients, protein and omega 3 fatty acids. In fact, chia seeds are said to contain more omega-3 fatty acids than salmon gram to gram. The quality of protein is also very high, carrying 4 grams in just 2 tablespoons. Not to mention they are so versatile. You can add them to smoothies, cereals, oats, fruit salads… Skies the limit! I made pudding two ways. For the chocolate pudding I wanted it smooth so I blended the mixture together before refrigerating. And then I made some chia pudding with the seeds whole. Here are the main ingredients for the pudding (I used half pint jars):
2tbs of Chia seeds
2/3c of coconut milk
1tsp of vanilla
1-2tbs of maple syrup
Add the ingredients to the jar shake or stir and store in the fridge overnight or at least 4 hours. Then top with your favorite fruit and toppings.
For the chocolate pudding I added 2 tablespoons of cocoa powder and 4 pitted dates to the original chia pudding recipe (above) and left out the maple syrup because my cocoa powder is sweetened. Use your judgment here and taste before you refrigerate. I stored these into 2 ounce jars and refrigerated overnight or at least 4 hours.
This next one I made I got the idea from halfbakedharvest.com I had some fresh figs and really wanted to make a collaboration between the chia pudding and the fresh pink figs. I blended some vanilla bean cashewgurt with one large fig to add some color and topped with pomegranate seeds as well.
The trick to make these pretty is to make the chia pudding in a separate jar the night before. The morning of I made the maple butter (2tbs of butter and 2tbs of maple syrup melted down and then whipped until thickened) and added that to the bottom (save some for the top). I then sliced my figs nice and thin and stuck them to the sides of the jar. The trick here is to keep them thin or else they won’t stay up. Then I added the chia pudding and then the yogurt. I topped with toasted walnuts, fresh figs and pomegranate seeds. Drizzle the remaining maple butter and enjoy!
~Jessica Rovira Yogi~ 