Chia seeds have become one of my most popular add-in’s in recent months. They’re loaded with omega-3 fatty acids, which despite the name, helps to lower your body’s bad cholesterol levels and raise the good ones. Most people have heard that you can get your omega-3’s from fish or fish oil supplements, which is true, but if you don’t like fish, or eat it irregularly, or if you don’t like to take supplements, then tossing in chia seeds to your diet can be the easy choice. If you like the texture of tapioca, then you’ll like chia. If you’ve never had them before you might be alarmed that when they’re added to liquid (like a smoothie, milk, or even water) they plump up and take on a gelatinous texture, similar to tapioca, just smaller. So it’s better to know that first, before buying them and then realizing you don’t like their texture and never end up using them! I typically put a teaspoon or so in my smoothies, but I had heard of chia pudding, so I wanted to give it a go…

In this recipe, I combined four things I love: coconut, chia, cinnamon and almond milk.

I’m crazy about cinnamon—the more the better in my book. 🙂 So this satisfied my love cinnamon, plus the shredded coconut for a textural contrast to the tapioca-like chia. Plus I’ve completely swapped over from dairy milk to almond milk–for many reasons–but it makes this yummy breakfast pudding completely dairy free. No tummy aches or digestion issues, plus all the health benefits of almonds–vitamins, protein and unsaturated fat.

Ingredients & Recipe (Single serving)

• 1 Tbsp chia seeds
• 1 Tbsp unsweetened coconut shreds

  

• 1 tsp cinnamon (or if you LOVE cinnamon like I do, add an extra 1/2 tsp.)
• 1/2 c. unsweetened almond milk
• Fresh or dried fruit, optional

  

1. Combine all ingredients, mix or whisk thoroughly until cinnamon no longer floats on top.
2. Refrigerate overnight in covered bowl. This is when the chia-magic happens! Single serving ready to go for the next morning.
3. Just before serving, add fresh or dried fruit (I used dried cranberries) to add natural sweetness (optional).

---

  Just so you know, don’t expect this to be very sweet–that’s where the fruit comes in. If you’re used to sugar-loaded pop tarts or breakfast cereal, this will be a drastic change for your taste buds. BUT, as you begin to desensitize your taste buds and your body to overdoses of added sugar, the beautiful NATURAL sweetness of the fruit, almond milk, coconut and cinnamon will shine through. Breaking the chain of sugar-overload can seem daunting, or even bland at first. But we don’t realize how our taste buds have been masked by high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) or skyrocketing levels of sugar in our daily processed food and drinks.

I encourage you to start taking steps to take the self-induced glucose burden off of your body, allowing your insulin levels to stabilize causing food and sugar cravings to dissipate.

This great new breakfast pudding, along with other small changes in your daily routine and diet, can be just the thing to greater vitality, more energy and rediscovering the beauty provided to us in natural, whole foods. 🙂 Take a look at my other great recipes featuring whole, satisfying foods under the “I Love Food!” category. Cheers! ~Dr. Melody