Berry Chia Pudding with PB Oatmeal Bites

Tada! I made chia pudding. The photos suck, but I want to share the recipe with you anyway because I’m proud of it. 🙂

What you’ll need:

• 1/3 cup almond milk
• 4 fresh strawberries
• 2 tbsp chia seeds
• 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
• 1-2 tbsp maple syrup, if desired (add more if you don’t like the tartness of strawberries)
• pinch of salt

• 1/4 cup rolled oats
• 1 tbsp peanut butter
• 2 tsp almond milk
• 1-2 tsp maple syrup
• 1/4 tsp vanilla extract

How to make it:

1. 1. Puree almond milk and strawberry together.
   2. Combine strawberry milk mixture with remaining ingredients. Store in an airtight container, covered, in the fridge for at least 2 hours or overnight.

1. Pulse oats in a small processor until it’s closer to a flour-like texture (but some whole flakes are okay).
2. Using a fork, mix oats with remaining ingredients.
3. Using your hands, roll the “batter” into small balls. It should be a little dry and sticky. I was able to make about 5.
4. If possible, allow to sit in the fridge for two hours or overnight, which allows the oats to soften.

1. Top Strawberry Chia Pudding with PB Oatmeal Bites. Add any other toppings as desired, such as more fresh strawberry, chopped peanuts, or any other fruits.

I only got into chia pudding recently. I never had anything against it, but I just never went out of my way for it. A pivotal moment in my relationship with chia pudding happened last December in Madrid <3. It was the day after Christmas, and I was about to go to my long-awaited appointment for my first tattoo (!!).

We were stopping for breakfast beforehand, and my anxiety was SO high. Would I hate the tattoo? Would it hurt? (I hate needles; I don’t even have my ears pierced.) And also, would the cafe have vegan options?!?! I accepted the very high possibility that I would likely just end up eating a banana. Or worse, just steal the chunk of bread off my boyfriend’s plate that Spanish restaurants serve with almost every meal.

Toma Cafe came through for me, big time. Not only was the espresso AMAZING, but they had a chia pudding that was clearly labeled as vegan on the menu. Normally, I wouldn’t get excited about chia pudding, but in the nervous state I was in, seeing the word vegan on that menu felt like a warm sloppy kiss from my papillon pup, Foxy.

And furthermore, it was good. They used coconut milk and barely sweetened it at all, and I was so into it. Just a big pow of rich and fatty and unadulterated coconut flavor, and fresh berries and banana slices at the top and bottom.

Fast forward six months, and I found myself in a similar situation in Boston. I had been to the Thinking Cup right off Boston Common several times in the past, and the only vegan options then were bananas and bagels. Since I wasn’t in the mood for a bagel that day, I was pleased to see they now had chia pudding.

I must say, I’m not mad about coffee shops making chia pudding their default lazy vegan option. It’s nice to have something simple and healthy when traveling, when you’re most likely to skimp on fiber-rich foods and just eat bread and fried food.

These two positive experiences inspired me to give chia pudding another shot in my own kitchen. See, I’ve made it a couple times, but I never got it to thicken. It would always end up being a (delicious) almond milk soup with chia seeds.

Um, there’s a good to fair chance it’s because I just eye-balled the measurements. Don’t worry: I measured this time.

The key to a satisfying chia pudding, just like with oatmeal, is variation. Swirls, chunks, slices, and dollops of your favorite topping keep each bite more interesting. That’s where the peanut butter oatmeal bites come in. The berry chia pudding combined with the peanut butter oatmeal bites create a PB&J-like experience. (Personally, I prefer grape jelly for PB&J, but I knew strawberries would make a better chia pudding than grapes!)

Random Recommendations: 

• [vids] I recently saw the movie Chef and loved it.
• [vids] Nicki Minaj’s appearance on The Late Show was hilarious.