The final post in our gluten-free recipe series from Beth of Tasty Yummies!
If you are anything like me, as soon as fall hits I crave anything and everything pumpkin! With some delicious aromatic spices like cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves, there really is nothing better. I prefer to buy fresh whole pie pumpkins at the market and make my own puree, but a can of unsweetened organic pumpkin puree works great, too. I made some delicious mini pumpkin pie tarts (the recipe can be found on my blog) to celebrate the beginning of fall and I have been dreaming of lots of other ways to get creative with pumpkin ever since.
This chia pudding was the perfect answer to celebrate all of those lovely flavors in a delicious, creamy and healthy treat. I am a big fan of chia seeds, they are wonderful in homemade granola, in muffins, on top of salads, in smoothies and especially in puddings like this one. When soaked overnight chia seeds turn into a simple pudding, similar in consistency to tapioca (which I love). This pudding was creamy, a little thick, and it had a little bitty crunch from the seeds.
If you haven’t yet had chia seeds, you must try them. Chia seeds are a super food that provides a variety of wonderful health benefits. It a nutshell – by adding just 2 tablespoons of chia seeds to your daily diet it will give you approximately 7 grams of fiber, 4 grams of protein, 205 milligrams of calcium, and a whopping 5 grams of omega-3! And yes, these are the are the same chia seeds made famous by the Chia Pets! Chia seeds can be found at most health food stores, normally where you would find the flaxseeds.
If you are looking for a pudding consistency that is even thicker than this, you can use 1/4 cup or maybe even a little bit more of the chia seeds. If you find you want this pudding a little bit sweeter when you serve it, you can drizzle a little honey or maple syrup over top and it would be wonderful. I like mine topped with a little freshly whipped coconut cream – (recipe here). Serve this chia pudding for dessert or even breakfast, which is when I like it.
Pumpkin Pie Chia Pudding (gluten-free, vegan, sugar-free)
serves 2-4 – makes approximately 3 cups
1 cup coconut milk (the canned kind – lite or full-fat)
1 cup unsweetened almond milk (or other non-dairy milk of your choice)
1 cup pumpkin puree (here’s how to make it yourself)
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
pinch of ground cloves
5 medjool dates, pits removed
3 tablespoons chia seeds
Puree everything but the chia seeds in a blender until smooth, combined and thick. You may see a few little bits of the dates still, it’s OK. Pour the mixture into a glass bowl or a mason jar, stir in the chia seeds. Make sure to stir well to combine. Cover the bowl or put the lid on the jar. Keep in the refrigerator overnight or for at least 4 hours.
Spoon or pour into bowls, top with a sprinkle of cinnamon and maybe even some fresh whipped coconut cream, if you wish. Serve cool or room temperature.
For more of Beth’s recipes visit her blog Tasty Yummies.
More healthy recipes from the BLDG 25 Blog.
Thanks for the recipe, it looks amazing!
Would it make a difference if I made the pudding with non-fat milk instead of almond milk? I’m not a vegan so I don’t have any non-dairy drinks.
Oh! This is great! I was recently found out I’m allergic to gluten and dairy! I’m a October baby so all I eat is pumpkin. Could rice milk be used! Thank you so much I’m going to try this!!
This looks and sounds tasty. I love pumpkin anything, so I am looking forward to making this!
As for the milk questions, anything will be just fine. The main reason it’s needed is for the liquid, anything past that is personal taste.
oh wow :) trying this!!!
Hi Avril and Rin, any milk will work just fine, non-dairy or dairy. Thanks so much for your comments, I hope you like this if you make it.
Thanks Brittany!
Shani, I hope you like it if you make it. I am obsessed.
What about nutrition facts? This looks amazing, but as a diabetic, I need to know carbs.
Wow this looks amazing! I’m definitely going to try.
P.S. Kudos for whoever runs this blog! It’s amazing!! Everything I could want in one website.
Thank you for posting this recipe! I made this a couple of nights ago & it is delicious. More importantly, I feel absolutely NO guilt eating this scrumptious treat. mmmmmmm
I don’t have any medjool dates. Can I just use date sugar? Or is the pureed date a part of the pudding texture?
Kelly, you could definitely use date sugar, it may not be quite as thick, since the dates basically form a thick paste when pureed, but it would still be delicious, you could even add just a smidge more chia seeds to thicken it a bit more.
What a great alternate to pumpkkin pie! I am glad to hear any any liquid will work as I am not fond of coconut milk. I am going to skip the whip creme for a few squares of dark chocolate w/hazlenuts on the side.
omg i was delicious thank you
I tried this recipe tonight, and it was interesting but didn’t quite work out for me. I used part of a cup of that Thai brand coconut milk that I had sitting of my pantry for awhile, and it just completely overpowered the recipe. Is most coconut milk about 50% solid when you open it up, or do you think this was a funky can? I tried to lighten it up and cut through the flavor with some orange juice and zest, which helped a bit, but it’s still way too fatty and coconut-y for me. I’m interested to know if you think this was an issue with my coconut milk?
I didn’t have dates, but I had prunes…so I substituted them. This is a delicious recipe, and my first time using chia seeds in anything! I will definitely make again.
I also used the Grace brand of coconut milk that you buy in a box a little smaller than a bar of soap and mix with hot water to re-constitute. That worked fine, although I will try canned light coconut milk next time.
I don’t want to be a hater… But I made this exact recipe, and it was terrible. I was so disappointed with it. Much better pumpkin desserts out there to try, don’t waste your time with this one! I even went out and bought ingredients special for this. Waste of money!
Can the coconut milk be left of or substituted? I have an intolerance! :'(
I used 5 tablespoons of golden raisens in place of the five dates and replaced the coconut milk with 2% cows milk. I LOVED how it turned out! Absolutely delicious! Thank you for sharing this recipe! :)
I tried this and it was good. However I think I would like it better if I used less chai seeds and more dates. How many dates would you suggest that I use if I wanted to only use 1 tablespoon of chai seeds or if I did not want to use chai seeds at all.