Creamy Chia Rice Pudding

Creamy Chia Rice Pudding

My silky Chia "Rice" Pudding is one of my favorite desserts or snacks- in fact I just had it this afternoon topped with a little extra virgin coconut oil and cacao nibs. SO delish! In the recipe below, I've shared a few tricks I use to make my version even better than other recipes you'll find. The result is a luxuriously comforting, creamy and rich dessert that takes less than five minutes to prepare. It's a cross between tapioca pudding, rice pudding and classic vanilla custard.

Chia seeds, best known for their role in animal shaped potted plants, rival flaxseeds for nutritional super status. In fact, I now use Chia instead of flax because flax has 3 times the phytoestrogenic properties of soy. In addition, the oils in flax oxidize very easily becoming rancid and biologically harmful when the oxygen–rich environment of the body causes oxidative destruction of these oils after they are consumed.(1) Chia on the other hand is extremely shelf stable allowing it to be kept for several years! Chia is also incredibly satiating because it holds up to 10-15 times it's own weight in water. And, it's very versatile in it's recipe application- not to mention amazing for our skin, hair, digestion, overall health and beauty.

See for yourself...

Check out these 18 awesome reasons to enjoy Chia every day!

1. Chia boasts 8 times more Omega 3 than salmon, making it a super food for the heart and brain and an anti-inflammatory in the body.

2. It's super high in dietary fiber making Chia excellent for digestion as well as healing digestive issues and cleansing the body of toxicity.

3. Chia boasts 20% protein.

4. Its protein is a complete protein containing all 8 essential amino acids.

5. Chia is a gluten free whole grain.

6. Chia is very high in antioxidants, boasting 4 times higher ORAC value than blueberries!

7. It contains 3 times more iron than spinach

8. Chia contains 5 times more calcium than milk

9. Chia contains 7 times more vitamin C than oranges

10. Chia is an excellent egg replacement. Simply combine with water to form a gel, and add to recipes that call for egg.

11. Chia can also be added to recipes as a thickener. Just blend it up (in your Vitamix) alongside the rest of your dressing or sauce ingredients.

12. It has twice the potassium content of banana

13. Chia is great food for healthy hair, skin and nails.

14. It balances blood sugar levels, because of it's soluble fiber content, making it outstanding for diabetics.

15. Chia is easily digestible. For example, unlike flax seeds, which need to be ground to obtain their full nutrition, chia can be eaten and digested whole.

16. Chia seeds are great for athletes because they are highly hydrophilic. Chia seeds can absorb over 10 times their weight in water making them a great enhancer in hydrating our bodies; they absorb the water we drink holding it in our system longer.

17. Chia seeds gel when wet. In our digestive systems, this gel prevents absorption of some of the food (and calories) we eat, making the chia seed a great assistant for anyone looking to lose weight!

18. Chia can be sprinkled on salads, cereals, oatmeal, smoothies, yogurt (dairy & soy free of course). They can be added to dressings, baked goods and, of course, made into the delicious chia pudding below!

My favorite type of Chia Seeds are the white ones below by The Chia Company. However, when I can't get those, I also enjoy the Nutiva brand.

From The Chia Company, my favorite Chia source

Recipe for Creamy Chia "Rice" Pudding (makes 1 large serving, or 2 small servings)

Ingredients

1/4 cup chia seeds
8 oz almond milk
Madagascar vanilla extract to taste (I like a lot)
liquid stevia to taste (I use 1 1/2 droppers full)
cinnamon (again, I use a lot!)
pinch of Himalayan or Celtic sea salt (optional)
heaping teaspoon cacao nibs (optional)
extra virgin coconut oil (optional)

Method

Add almond milk to a small, heavy-duty pot and gently warm til baby bottle temperature (to keep raw) or lightly steaming. This is the 1st of my tricks which result in an immediate thickening of the chia into a delicious porridgey pudding.
Whisk the vanilla, stevia and cinnamon into the milk.
In the meantime, grind chia seeds with a pinch of sea salt in a spice grinder until fine and place in serving bowl/s. (The second of my tricks which adds to the immediate thickening of the chia.) You may prefer to leave your chia seeds whole, in which case you'll need to stir the chia, after you add the milk in step 5 below, several times throughout a 15 min period until thickened. This will create more of a rice or tapioca pudding texture.
Pour steamed almond milk mixture over the seeds, whisking with a fork til thickened.
If desired, top with extra virgin coconut oil for additional yummy richness.
Add a sprinkling of cacao nibs for a fabulous chocolatey crunch- plus another sprinkling of powdered stevia/raw honey/coconut nectar over the nibs if you're me :-)
Enjoy!!