This easy vegan recipe is perfect for a delicious make-ahead breakfast, a quick snack on the go, or a refreshing no-bake dessert.
I often get asked, what do vegans eat for dessert? And when they ask, I love being able to share this chia pudding recipe!
Not only is this an easy vegan dessert, but it's filled with great ingredients that make it a great plant based breakfast idea as well.
This recipe is super simple to make, using only 3 ingredients at a minimum (more for different flavors, colors, etc.), and is perfect for storing overnight or using for a vegan meal prep recipe.
Ingredients
Chia Seeds: I usually buy a big bag and use it up over several months (I make this a lot). They can be tricky to find, but I can usually find them in the "health food" section of a grocery store, near protein powders.
Check out these health benefits of chia seeds and why this is a great option for a healthier snack or treat.
Plant-Based Milk: I alternate between using oat milk and almond milk. You can use whatever vegan milk option you like best or have on hand.
Using a sweetened or flavored version will cut out other ingredients that you might use. If you do use a flavor (vanilla, chocolate, etc.) or a sweetened version, feel free to omit the vanilla extract and/or the maple syrup.
Vanilla Extract: This will give things a nice vanilla flavor, yum! Feel free to omit if you don't have any on hand, used a flavored plant-based milk, or if you just don't like vanilla.
Maple Syrup: An optional ingredient to sweeten things up. You can also use agave nectar or organic cane sugar instead. Again, feel free to omit if you use a sweetened plant milk.
Plant-Based Yogurt: Optional ingredient. Adding a scoop (roughly ¼ cup) to this recipe will make it extra rich and creamy.
If you use a sweetened or flavored yogurt, feel free to omit the maple syrup and/or vanilla. Using a flavored vegan yogurt will also be an easy way to change the entire flavor of the recipe and you can easily turn this into a mango chia pudding, coconut chia pudding, etc. The possibilities are endless!
Instructions
Step 1: Combine all of the ingredients to a mason jar or similar container that has a lid.
Step 2: Mix all of your ingredients together really well. Once mixed, cover it up and place it in the refrigerator.
Step 3: Remove from the fridge at the 5 minute mark and mix it all up again really thoroughly. This is really important because things will get really clumpy if you skip this step. Place back in the fridge for at least an hour until it really thickens nicely.
Step 4: Remove from the fridge, mix one last time, add any toppings, and enjoy!
Substitutions and Omissions
As mentioned above, you can use any plant-based milk that you prefer. I like using oat milk the best 🙂
If you use either flavored or sweetened plant-based milk or a flavored or sweetened plant-based yogurt (by the way, the yogurt is not a substitute for the milk, just an optional addition) you can omit the maple syrup and/or vanilla.
You can also add any type of flavor to your chia pudding that you would like. For example, you can stir in matcha powder and make matcha chia pudding. I also like to use powders like spirulina, dragon fruit, and acai to make spirulina chia pudding, dragon fruit chia pudding, etc.
Be sure to try some of my other recipes:
Chia Seed Pudding
Ingredients
- 1 cup plant-based milk I like to use oat milk
- ¼ cup chia seeds
- 1 teaspoon maple syrup
- ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
Optional Ingredients
- ¼ cup plant-based yogurt
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients in a mason jar or similar container.
- Mix everything well, cover, and place in the refrigerator.
- Remove from fridge and stir again after five minutes to prevent clumping. Place back in the fridge for about an hour.
- Remove once a thick consistency has formed, top with your favorite fresh fruit, granola, or anything you prefer, and enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
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Felice says
It looks delicious but I think that in the ingredients and directions you should be more specific that you mix the yogurts with powders to get the parfait look and different colors. It be much more helpful for people that are not that familiar with plant based diets etc. Otherwise it looks wonderful.
Kelsey says
Hi Felice, thanks for your comment I appreciate your feedback! This is the recipe specifically for the chia seed pudding, not the entire parfait. I'm making a recipe for the parfaits soon so stay tuned.
Lynsey says
So how do you get the colorful stuff in the pudding? In the layers?
Kelsey says
Hi Lynsey! The colorful layers are made using different flavors of yogurts. The blue is vanilla yogurt mixed with blue spirulina powder!
Sarah says
This looks great!!
For calories, is that per serving? And if so, how much is the serving? Trying to do a better job at tracking my calories each day!
Kelsey says
Thank you! Yes that is calories per serving 🙂 this yields two servings so 167 for half of the container and 334 if you were to eat the whole container. I hope that helps!
Melissa says
This is sooo delicious!
Kelsey says
Thanks Melissa! I'm so glad you enjoyed it! 🙂
Kathryn says
So in the photo of it looking like a parfait, what is the blue and purple layers?
Kelsey says
They are yogurts 🙂 both are vanilla yogurt, one is mixed with blue spirulina powder, one with acai powder.
Sandra says
I love the chia seed pudding! My five year old also loves this delicious treat, beautiful and tasty!
Planted in the Kitchen says
Hi Sandra, I'm so glad that you are both enjoying the chia pudding!!
The Dragon's Picnic says
Beautiful pictures!
Planted in the Kitchen says
Thank you!!