Chia Seed Pudding

 

Everyone on has a recipe for Chia seed pudding, probably because it is easy to make and quite delicious.  I usually have a basic mix of Chia seeds and almond milk in the fridge, it lasts several days and proves a blank canvas for the addition of so many tasty ingredients.  Just be careful because as Chia seeds gelatinise and bind once the almond milk is added they can tend to form a hard mass unless stirred regularly at the beginning of the process.

The other ingredient that I always have on hand is soaked cashew nuts.  I blend these seperatly to create a thick cream, which I fold though the pudding to give a great full mouth feel.  With the addition of some berries, bananas, mango, nuts, seeds apples or pears you have a fantastic breakfast.

Chia seeds are high in omega 3 fatty acids and full of protein, often called a superfood, Although I'm not so sure about this claim as I think all good foods are super and this creates unrealistic expectations in the mind of those who eat them. What I really know is this creamy pudding is delicious.

 
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Ingredients (serves 6-8)

  • 1/2 cup of soaked chia seeds

  • 1 tsp vanilla

  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon

  • 1 pear, grated (either washed and peeled or leave the peel on for greater texture)

  • 1 apple, grated (either washed and peeled or leave the peel on for greater texture)

  • Handful of dry roasted almonds

  • Cashew cream (see recipe) or unsweetened almond milk


Method

Soaked chia seeds

  1. Cover around 1/2 cup of chia seeds with 2 cups of organic sugar free almond milk.

  2. Mix and all to stand at room temperature for 5 minutes.

  3. Stir.

  4. Allow to stand for a further 5 Minutes and stir again. The Chia seeds are now ready or can be stored in the fridge for several days.

Chia “bircher”

  1. Grated the apple and Pear and mix in a bowl with the Chia seeds and some vanilla and ground cinnamon.\

  2. Adjust the consistency with some cashew cream or almond milk and the sweetness with agave or what ever liquid sweetener takes your fancy. 

  3. Top with fruit (of your choice) and scatter with toasted Almonds.

Cashew cream

  1. Soak 2 cups of raw cashew nuts in twice the amount of filtered water overnight.

  2. Drain off the liquid and place nuts in a high speed blender with 1 1/2 cups of water.

  3. Blend until smooth adding extra water if needed. It should be thick and smooth like thickened cream.