Ed and I are very fortunate to have three wonderful nieces and three fabulous nephews. This is a tale of our middle and youngest nieces. Over Labor Day weekend we spent time with our extended family at Skytop Lodge in Pennsylvania’s Pocono Mountains. We began each day with a huge breakfast buffet. It was great fun to watch the kids enjoying multiple visits to the buffet tables. 

Our youngest niece, Margaret S (age 8), couldn’t get enough of their Chia Seed Pudding. I was actually a tad concerned about the number of chia seeds she consumed over three days! Our middle niece, Atlee T (age 13) was also a fan. She emailed Skytop Lodge for the recipe on her way home after our weekend together. I am pleased to report that Chef Christopher Chludzinski got back to Atlee and shared his recipe. Ed said that Atlee was taking after her Aunt Nicole as I’ve been known to request a recipe or two.

I was happy to see that the recipe made a small quantity as I’ve found that when I receive a restaurant recipe it usually feeds fifty or so people (I might be exaggerating slightly) and isn’t always easy to cut down despite putting my algebra skills to use. That was the good news. 

While there are only a few ingredients, Chef Christopher did not specify whether to use regular or light coconut milk, or sweetened or unsweetened almond milk. We were able to overcome this. 

Since I was making this for breakfast at home, I opted for the slightly more healthy route – light coconut milk and unsweetened almond milk. It’s just the right amount of sweetness for me. I also used maple syrup in place of Chef Christopher’s white sugar. Atlee opted for regular coconut milk, oat milk and white granulated sugar. She reported that she was very pleased with the result, as well, in a fun text exchange.

It’s best to mix this pudding together the night before. As the chia seeds sit in the liquid they expand and the end result is a thick pudding-like consistency. Chia seeds are high in fiber, so they are good for your heart plus they help fight cholesterol. They also take longer to digest so you stay full longer. It’s good for breakfast or as an afternoon snack. Don’t forget to top it with a few fresh berries.

I was talking with my sister, Sarah S, and mentioned Atlee had gotten the recipe from Skytop Lodge. She passed this news along to Margaret who was very, very excited.

Thank you, Atlee and Chef Christopher, for your contributions to this post.

Chia Seed Pudding

 

Chia Seed Pudding
5.0 from 3 reviews
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Recipe type: Side
Author:
Serves: 4
Ingredients
  • 1 cup almond or oat milk
  • 1 cup unsweetened coconut milk from a can (regular or light) (see Notes)
  • ½ cup chia seeds
  • ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 1 to 2 tablespoons white granulated sugar or pure maple syrup to taste
  • Garnish with fresh berries
Instructions
  1. Stir almond or oat milk, coconut milk, chia seeds, vanilla and sugar or maple syrup in a medium bowl or 32 ounce mason jar. It will fill up the mason jar about halfway.
  2. Let sit for 5 minutes.
  3. Stir again to break up any clumps of seeds. Cover and place mixture in the refrigerator for a minimum of 2 hours or preferably overnight.
  4. It is done when it is nice and thick and not liquidy. If it’s not thick, add some more chia seeds (1 to 2 tablespoons), stir and let refrigerate for another 30 minutes or so. If it’s not as sweet as you’d like it, add another tablespoon of white granulated sugar or maple syrup.
  5. Garnish with fresh berries.
  6. It keeps for about 5 days in the refrigerator.
Notes
* Both unsweetened regular or light coconut (from a can) work for this recipe. Regular will be slightly more thick and light will be slightly more healthy. I have not tested this with coconut milk from a carton – the kind you find in the refrigerator section next to the milk alternatives.
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Source:  Variation on recipe from Chef Christopher Chludzinski at Skytop Lodge