Tropical Chia Pudding

Blogging Marathon #74 Week 4 Day 3

Theme: Are you Pudding me?

Dish: Tropical Chia Pudding

A delicious Chia and fruit based breakfast pudding that takes only a few minutes to make; is super delicious and Vegan too! 

Weekend is here and I am posting a special recipe that is perfect for weekend brunch. This week I am posting Puddings in the Blogging Marathon. Yesterday it was an Indian style Kesar Kheer that is perfect as a dessert.

Today it is time for another pudding. I was planning to make Chia Pudding since a long time. It was perfect for the theme and so I made it for Saturday breakfast. I told my husband that breakfast is going to be a pudding; and he was pretty amused! Not very common to have pudding for breakfast, right?

This one is made for breakfast! It has all the things that are good for you and free from ingredients you should not have early morning. Chia seeds are the seeds of Salvia Hispanica a plant related to mint. Native to South America, these seeds were important to Aztecs and Mayans back in the day. Infact, Chia means 'strength' in Mayan. 

These seeds have gained importance and status of superfood in recent times. All the stores are stocked with these tiny black seeds and suddenly everyone has included it in their pantry essentials list! I too joined the bandwagon, with chia seeds now being a part of my monthly grocery shopping. Put it in oats, have it as a pudding or replace it for sabja (Basil seeds) in Indian delicacies. 

Yesterday I made this Chia pudding with tropical fruits. I had a batch of roasted strawberries in my refrigerator. So I used them with kiwi and mangoes. Not only were  the colors perfect for the black and white pudding, the sweetness of mango and roasted strawberries was amazing with the slightly tart kiwi fruit. 

Now that I liked this version of the pudding, I think I am going to make it more often. It is perfect for weekday breakfast, just set the pudding the previous day and serve it with fresh fruits the next day. The time required to serve it in the morning is a fraction of the time required to make any other breakfast. 

Variations

I made the pudding with coconut milk. If you have a can of thick milk, dilute it using water else the pudding will be super thick and the chia seeds will not absorb the liquid completely. If you do not fancy coconut milk, replace the milk with any nut milk like almond or cashew. Else, just add regular milk if you are not looking for a vegan version.

Plus, I used the fruits that I like and had in my refrigerator. They can be substituted with fruits of your choice. All berries taste really good with the pudding. And lastly, I made a black and white basic version of the pudding. However, you can add any fruit puree to make the pudding of a different flavor. Or just mix in nutella and you get an amazing chocolate flavored pudding. 

Ingredients

Chia Seeds 3 tbsp

Thin Coconut Milk 2 cups

Honey 1 tbsp

Fruits to top (Kiwi and Mangoes)

Roasted Strawberries 2 tbsp

Mint leaves a few

Method

In a bowl mix together coconut milk and chia seeds. Let it stand for an hour. Then refrigerate overnight or atleast 4-5 hours; till the milk is absorbed and the pudding thickens. 

Remove from refrigerator and add in honey. Mix well and set aside. 

Chop mangoes and kiwis to small pieces. Add some chopped fruits and some roasted strawberries in glasses or mason jars. 

Top with chia pudding. Add some more fruits, some strawberries and mint leaves. Enjoy!

 

Check out the Blogging Marathon page to see what the other Blogging Marathoners are doing for BM#74