Strawberry Chia Pudding

.Having grown up in the 1970’s watching “Chia Pet” advertisements, I was a skeptic when it came to Chia pudding. Why would someone eat a seed that was designed to put green grass hair on a ceramic animal? But then I tried some Chia Pudding and it was good. And for a pudding it is pretty nutrient dense providing fiber from the seeds, calcium from the milk, and little added sugar.

Making Chia Pudding is simple. For the base you only need milk, chia seeds, vanilla, and sugar. With that base you can add cocoa or berries or nut butter to make any flavor you like.

My favorite early summer version is Strawberry Chia Pudding.
 
Mix 2 cups milk, ½ cup chia seeds, ½ tsp vanilla, and ¼ c sugar in a bowl. Blend ½ cup fresh strawberries into a puree and stir together. That’s it! Refrigerate 4 hours or overnight to set. You can make one big bowl or put in individual dishes.

I like to make twice the strawberry puree and layer into individual cups.

Chia seeds come from a flowering plant that is grown mostly in Central America. The seeds are black and uber tiny. They are hydrophilic – meaning they can absorb a lot of water. That is what makes them so good in a pudding – the seeds swell and become soft, almost like tapioca. A typical serving size a chia seeds is 1 tablespoon and provides about 60 calories, 3 grams of fat (mostly omega-3), 3 g protein, a whopping 5 g of fiber, and a little calcium, magnesium, and iron.
 
Chia seeds are great sprinkled on oatmeal, stirred into yogurt, added to baked goods, or blended in a fruit smoothie.

​Strawberry Chia Pudding 
​(makes about 4 servings)

2 C milk
½ C chia seeds
½ t vanilla
¼ C sugar
½ C strawberries, blended (double if you want to layer)
 
Stir all ingredients together. For a really smooth pudding blend ingredients in blender. Refrigerate 4 hours or overnight. Pour into small dishes before refrigeration for individual servings. Tip stir every once in a while while chilling to keep chia seeds in suspension instead of floating on the top.