Recipe: Vegan Chocolate-Almond Chia Pudding

Christine Gallary
Christine GallarySenior Recipe Editor at The Kitchn
I grew up in a Chinese food-loving family, eating my first restaurant meals in Oakland's vibrant Chinatown. My love of food but lack of cooking experience led to me Le Cordon Bleu in Paris, where I graduated with a Diplôme de Cuisine in French cooking. After culinary school, I learned how to test and edit recipes in test kitchens at Cook's Illustrated and CHOW, falling in love with the process of rigorously testing recipes to make sure they were foolproof for the home cook. I've worked with thousands of recipes over the past 15 years, including developing recipes for the James Beard-award winning Mister Jiu's in Chinatown cookbook. Living in the delicious diversity of San Francisco, I never get tired of finding new ingredients or cuisines to try. My favorite type is Cantonese home cooking — I'm on a quest to recreate the dishes my grandmother used to make. All the food I test at home is eagerly tasted and enjoyed by my husband, Hayden, and daughter, Sophie, while our little dog, Mochi, looks wistfully on.
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updated Feb 5, 2020
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Credit: Maria Siriano

Serves4

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(Image credit: Maria Siriano)

I’ll admit that I’ve never really understood chia seeds; they just remind me of eating a lot of kiwi seeds. Throwing them into a blender has totally changed my perspective, however. These tiny little seeds have the miraculous ability to thicken and turn liquids into delicious pudding-like mixtures without the use of dairy or eggs!

(Image credit: Maria Siriano)

This vegan chocolate pudding has a base that includes a double dose of almonds, cocoa powder, and maple syrup as the sweetener. For a truly smooth pudding texture, throw everything in a blender. You can also just stir things together by hand if you like the texture of whole chia seeds. This chia pudding is so good I still can’t believe it’s vegan, and trust me, I’m quite picky when it comes to puddings.

Toasted coconut makes a fun garnish, but some fresh raspberries, pomegranate seeds, or a dollop of coconut cream would also be amazing.

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Vegan Chocolate-Almond Chia Pudding

Serves 4

Nutritional Info

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 cups

    almond milk

  • 1/3 cup

    chia seeds

  • 3 tablespoons

    creamy almond butter

  • 3 tablespoons

    unsweetened cocoa powder

  • 3 tablespoons

    maple syrup

  • 1/4 teaspoon

    fine salt

  • 1/3 cup

    toasted coconut flakes

Instructions

  1. Place all the ingredients except the coconut in a blender and blend until smooth. Divide the mixture into 4 (1/2-cup) jars, ramekins, or glasses, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight, until the chia seeds are fully hydrated. Serve topped with the toasted coconut flakes.

Recipe Notes

Storage: Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

Almond milk: You can use either sweetened or unsweetened almond milk — just taste and adjust with more maple syrup as needed if you're using unsweetened almond milk.

Filed in:
children
Chocolate
Dessert
easy
Gluten-Free
Healthy Living