Creamy Chocolate Chia Pudding

Creamy, chocolate pudding that is simple to make and, of course, completely dairy-free.When I was a little girl, my sister and I went to my grandma’s house.  We were going there for an adventure, and to spend the night.  When we got there, we decided to make a chocolate cake. Except instead of baking the cake batter, my sister and I were planning on eating the batter like pudding. My grandma must have been a really good sport to let us just eat the batter.  I remember sitting at the kitchen table eating cake batter out of a small, purple melmac bowl and refilling it three separate times. Not surprisingly, halfway through the entire bowl of cake batter, we didn’t feel so great. Grandma suggested we bake cupcakes with the remaining batter. The baked cupcakes went into the cupboard and stayed there until breakfast the next morning when we ate them with whipped cream.

I still love cake batter, and this pudding reminds me of cake batter, but better–it doesn’t leave me with a sore stomach.

I saw my first recipe for chia seed pudding on cookingwithawallflower.com and was excited to try it.  I bought a lot of chia seeds (I love buying in bulk). The recipe was easy to make and reminded me of tapioca pudding.

Not all of my family loved the texture of the chia seed pudding, and since I had lots of chia seeds, I read more about chia seed pudding and started trying different variations.  Using cocoa powder and chocolate almond milk created a more appealing flavor and color for the kids. Blending resulted in a smooth texture.  Finally, adding dates sweetened the pudding, gave it a rich flavor, and changed the texture from a slightly stringy consistency to a thicker, creamier texture that got thumbs up from everyone.

Chia seeds are high in calcium and magnesium, which is important for calcium absorption. They are a great source of fiber, protein, healthy fats, and antioxidants.  To read more about how great chia seeds are for you, check out proven health benefits of chia seeds.

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Creamy Chocolate Chia Seed Pudding

2 cups Almond Breeze Sweetened Chocolate Almond Milk

1/2 cup chia seeds

6-8 pitted dates

2 Tbls cocoa powder

Pour milk into blender.  Add chia seeds and dates.  (If your dates are hard, let them soften in the blender with the milk before you blend.)  Add the cocoa powder.  Blend until the pudding is smooth.  (I used a Vitamix blender that really got it smooth).  It will thicken when it is blending.

Chill and enjoy.