First of all, happy birthday to my sister, Lindsey! She is 30 years old today! I hope you said goodbye to your 20s yesterday…. I have a feeling you are going to love your 30s!
Did you feel like something was missing this weekend with no football?!? It was weird not having a game to work around yesterday. I guess I better get used to it because after next Sunday we’ll have 7 or more months of no football!
Hopefully the Broncos come out and kick some A so these next 7 months are bearable! It should be a fun game.
One of the easiest and most healthy desserts you can make is chia pudding. What is even better is chia pudding takes very few ingredients and it is very customizable. Basically any recipe or toppings you’ve seen for oatmeal, you can put on chia pudding.
The first chia pudding recipe I put on the blog was Mocha Chia Pudding. It used instant coffee and cacao powder for the flavorings.
Toasted Almond Chia Pudding uses almond extract and toasted almonds for the flavorings and vanilla protein powder for additional protein and sweetness. You could also substitute chocolate protein powder as well for a chocolately-almond pudding. Yum!
Chia pudding is very easy to make. You put all the ingredients in a bowl and wait for the magic to happen. I do suggest stirring the chia mixture after 30 minutes of it sitting in the fridge. You do not have to do this, but I think it helps redistribute the chia. If you skip this step it will still taste the same, the chia just settles at the bottom. If you stir it after 30 minutes it helps to keep it from settling so much.
I prefer to eat chia pudding as a dessert, but it would also work as a snack. Add some fruit on top or some almond butter and eat between breakfast and lunch!
- 1 cup unsweetened almond milk
- 1 scoop vanilla protein powder
- 3 Tbsp chia seed
- 1/2 tsp almond extract
- 1/4 tsp cinnamon
- 2 Tbsp sliced almonds, toasted
- In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the milk and protein powder. Add the chia, cinnamon, and almond extract to the bowl and continue to whisk until evenly distributed.
- Place bowl in refrigerator. After 30 minutes, stir the mixture to redistribute the chia seeds. Return to the refrigerator and continue to refrigerate for another 2 hours.
- To toast the almonds, place a small saute pan over medium heat. Add sliced almonds to the pan and shake occasionally to stir the almonds. The almonds will turn a golden brown and become fragrant. Be careful not to burn. Toasting should take 3-5 minutes.
- Stir pudding before serving. Divide chia pudding between two small serving dishes. Top each with 1 Tbsp toasted almonds.
- Almond milk may be substituted with milk of choice.
- Additional almonds may be toasted and stored in an airtight container or baggie for up to 3 months.
