Chia Seed Breakfast Pudding

Chia seeds are nutritionally dense seeds that will thicken any liquid you add them to. Mix them up with coconut and almond milks and you’ve got an almost instant pudding with a tapioca-like texture and gently sweet flavor. This recipe is meant for breakfast, but if you add a little honey to the seeds as they swell, it will be sweet enough for dessert. You can use either black or white chia seeds here, or a mix. The pudding will continue to thicken as it sits, so feel free to thin it out to taste with a little more almond or coconut milk before serving.

Ingredients

130 grams whole dried apricots (about 20), more as needed
⅓ cup passion-fruit juice or nectar (passion fruit-pear is fine)
50 grams sugar (3 tablespoons)
1 ½ teaspoons lemon juice
Fine sea salt, as needed
2 cups unsweetened almond milk
½ cup coconut milk
85 grams chia seeds (1/2 cup)
45 grams toasted kasha (1/4 cup), optional (see note)
Roasted whole almonds, coarsely chopped, as needed
Toasted unsweetened coconut flakes, as needed
Sliced banana, as needed, optional

4 servings

Preparation

Coarsely chop half of the dried apricots. Place chopped apricots in a small pot with passion-fruit juice, 25 grams sugar (1 1/2 tablespoons), lemon juice and a pinch of salt. Simmer very gently over low heat until apricots are soft and liquid has turned syrupy, about 30 minutes.
While chopped apricots cook, put remaining whole apricots in a bowl and cover with boiling water. Let soak until plump, 10 to 20 minutes. Drain and reserve plumped apricots and the apricot sauce for garnish.
Meanwhile, in a quart container with a lid (or use a cocktail shaker), combine almond and coconut milks, remaining 25 grams sugar (1 1/2 tablespoons) and a pinch of salt. Stir in chia seeds and kasha, if desired; shake thoroughly so that seeds are evenly hydrated. Let rest at least 20 minutes or until pudding has a rich, creamy texture. Seeds should be fully hydrated. (Pudding will keep for up to 3 days but may require rehydrating with more almond or coconut milk as the seeds continue to absorb liquid.)
To serve, spoon pudding into bowls. Top with apricot sauce, plumped apricots, almonds, coconut flakes and sliced banana, if desired.

Toasted kasha, also known as buckwheat groats, can be hard to find. But you can easily toast raw kasha in a dry skillet for 2 to 3 minutes, stirring often. Or leave it out.

1 hour