Apple Chia Pudding

Last year, we got REALLY into making chia puddings, coming up with every manner of chia seed pudding recipe... but we’ve enjoying making healthy breakfast puddings from those tiny seeds for a long time.

We initially started whipping them up as a healthy breakfast recipe option when we were moving from Minneapolis to Ontario - and living in a camper.

Beyond being a delicious breakfast, it was an easy thing to make with such a limited kitchen - just a few basic ingredients, meal prep friendly, and kept well.

We’d mix a few up in small mason jars, keeping them in the fridge for a great breakfast on the go.

... But I never bothered to blog any of those recipes! Righting that wrong, now!

This apple chia seed pudding tastes like apple pie!

It may feel really seasonal - and it is a GREAT fall dessert! - but it makes a great breakfast any time of year.

The best part?

Those little seeds are loaded with nutritional benefits!

While we use them for their high fiber content, they also contain a bunch of antioxidants, fatty acids, minerals, and more!

I love it when I can disguise healthy food as a hearty dessert!

Anyway, let’s get to it...

Ingredients

This recipe uses some very simple ingredients, but I do have a few notes for you:

Chia Seeds

Chia Seeds are the main ingredient of this recipe, and a great way to pack some essential minerals, soluble fiber, essential amino acids, and even a little extra protein into a healthy dessert.

If you remember the tiny little seeds you’d spread over those Bob Ross Chia Pets back in the 90s, same thing.

Now, though, they’re more known for their health benefits - like some powerful antioxidants, and having 4 grams of fiber per tablespoon.

They’re what thickens the pudding, as chia can absorb many times its weight in liquid, and forms a kind of gel, in doing so.

White Chia Seeds are another option - they work the same, but kind of disappear into the pudding, rather than show as tiny black dots throughout.

Apples

I love using fresh fruit in my chia pudding recipes, in this case it’s shredded apples.

I tend to use Granny Smith apples for chia pudding throughout the year, aside from the fall months. At that point, it’s ALL Mutsu, all the time!

That said, you can use whatever apples you like and have on hand. Don’t worry if they’re tart, as the recipe does have added sugar in it.

Also, as a heads up - my recipe involves microwaving the apple a bit, to preserve the colour in the final pudding.

If you want to skip that step, you can use a little fresh lemon juice mixed in with the shredded apple, instead.

Milk

I use Unsweetened Almond Milk when making any chia pudding, but you can use the milk of your choice.

Regular milk is a great option for those who can handle it, I tend to use non-dairy milk so I can mostly keep my milk consumption to cheese 🙂

There are a ton of great plant-based milk options out there. I’m not even vegetarian, and I prefer them to real milk - they taste better, and don’t bother my sinuses!

My favourites - when not using almond milk - for making chia pudding are Oat milk, Cashew Milk, Flax Milk, and Macadamia Milk.

I tend to stay away from soy milk, myself, but it would definitely work as well.

Everything Else

Rounding out this recipe, you’ll need:

Light Brown Sugar (or Dark Brown Sugar)
Pure Vanilla Extract
Ground Cinnamon
Ground Nutmeg
Salt

Additionally, you can garnish your puddings!

My husband likes a swirl of whipped cream, a sprinkle of nutmeg, and sometimes some chopped nuts.

As I’m watching my carbs, I’ll usually just put a dollop of Greek yogurt on top of my chia pudding (and I also swap the brown sugar out for Swerve Brown Sugar Substitute.

How to Make Apple Chia Pudding

The full recipe is in the recipe card at the end of this post, here’s a visual walk through.

Mix apple, sugar, spices, and salt, microwave for 1 minute.

Chill for at least 2 hours.

Garnish as desired, and serve.

Leftovers

If you’re not serving it right away, cover each serving cup with plastic wrap, and it will keep for 3 days in the fridge.

Alternately, don’t divide it out into the cups, and just store the whole batch in an airtight container. Give it a stir and dole it out just before serving.

More Chia Pudding Recipes

Looking for some more tasty ways to get extra fiber into your diet? I've got you covered!

Banana Chia Pudding
Blueberry Chia Pudding
Keto Protein Pudding [Protein Powder Pudding]
Mango Chia Pudding
Pumpkin Chia Pudding

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