Chocolate Chia Seed Pudding

I feel like every week there is a new health craze. Last month it was quinoa, the month before that kale was the craze; don't even get me started on last years acai berry fad but lately there has been a lot of talk about chia seed overnight pudding. This definitely grabbed my attention. I already put chia seeds into my yogurt and smoothies because I absolutely love the texture that they take (like a small tapioca) but I had never considered blending them into nothingness. 

For those of you who aren't quite sure what I am talking about, who remembers ch-ch-ch chia! (You know, Chia Pets!) Speaking of chia pets I grew up with the dog one but if you had the Bieber/Obama/B.Spears one I salute you because that is just to amazing for words. 

Anyways, back to the pudding. Lo is so precious. She has 100% jumped on board the health train after introducing her to so many healthy snack alternatives. She always asks if she can have a healthy snack or will tell people things like, "You need to eat your fruits and veggies so you can be healthy, right mamma?" Ugh, so proud. She has tried time and time again to convince me that pudding is just like yogurt. If pudding = yogurt and yogurt = healthy than boom bang pudding = healthy. Nice try kid. 

We finally decided to try this pudding as breakfast because that's the best meal to eat pudding at, duh. Don't try these because they are chocolatey delishesness, try them because look at these amazing benefits of this powerful little seed! 

1. Combat Diabetes - Chia is being studied as a potential natural treatment for type 2 diabetes because of its ability to slow down digestion. The gelatinous coating chia seeds develop when exposed to liquids can also prevent blood sugar spikes.
2. Fiber - Just one ounce serving of chia has 11 grams of dietary fiber, about one third of the recommended daily intake for adults. Adding chia seeds to your diet is an easy way to take care of digestive health.
3. Omega 3 - Who said you can only get Omega 3 from fish pills? Chia seeds are packed with omega 3 fatty acids (aka the good fat), with nearly 5 grams in one ounce. These fats are important for brain health. 
4. Potassium and Calcium - Stronger teeth and bones. A serving of chia seeds has 18 percent of the recommended daily intake for calcium. Add that to the almond milk in this pudding (which has 55% more calcium that cows milk) and you're on your way osteoporosis prevention! 
5. Phosphorus - If you are active or aging (which we all are) then you need phosphorus for muscle and tissue growth and repair. Chia offers 27% of the daily need of phosphorus.
6. Protein - If you follow my facebook than you know that we are going vegan! After months of deliberation the Makeover with Aspen family is finally making the switch to a healthier and more environmentally friendly lifestyle. When asked where we get our protein chia is a main ingredient in that (along with broccoli, kale, quinoa, lentils, ext) On serving of chia is 10% of daily recommended intake of protein. 
7. Smaller Waist Line - Because chia slows down digestion you feel fuller, longer. It also stabilizes blood sugar which fights insulin resistance which causes belly fat. Eat pudding and be skinnier. That is what we call a win, win. 
8. Improve Heart Health - According to the Cleveland Clinic, chia seeds have been shown to improve blood pressure in diabetics, and may also increase healthy cholesterol while lowering cholesterol, which is awesome for your ticker!

Sorry for that mini lesson but I just love chia seeds! 

Before I finish with the recipe I have to address the elephant in the blog, there are only three spoons in the picture but there are four cups. I was grabbing all the pieces to my brand new set and dropped one where it shattered into a million pieces. Ok it was like four pieces but I don't want to talk about it. 

Four Servings

Ingredients

2/3 cup Chia Seeds

2 cups unsweetened Almond milk

4 tbsp unsweetened Cocoa Powder

2 tbsp Maple Syrup

2 tbsp Agave

2 tsp ground Cinnamon

pinch of Cayenne (for a mexican pudding or just leave as is)

Recipe

1) Add all ingredients to a bowl and mix well

2) Place in refrigerator for 8 hours or overnight. 

3) In the morning take the bowl of pudding and blend well. I blended a good 5 minutes to get the consistency right. 

4) You may want to refrigerate again because after the blender the pudding is a little warm (or just pop it in the freezer for 20ish minutes) 

I added some stevia to my daughters because we used the unsweetened cocoa powder.