There are probably millions of recipes for chia pudding on the internet – so why am I posting one here on my blog? Because I want this little space that I share together to with you, to be filled with the recipes that we love most and this winter citrus coconut chia pudding is one of them <3
Recently, I shared some thoughts on an Instagram post about how living on a small island in Greece changed my relationship with food. The grocery stores in our village were so tiny and filled with hyper-seasonal ingredients which initially left me feeling creatively stunted, but my mindset shifted as I started to focus on what was available instead of what was not. It turned out that having less options was not a hindrance, rather, the simplicity actually enabled me to experience a freedom that I had never felt before.
The simplicity that comes from having fewer options had such a profound impact on me. Our life felt so much less stressful, food never went to waste, and even though we had so much less, it felt like we had more than ever. So, returning to the US (where it seems like we have every food known to man at our fingertips 365 days a year) left me feeling overwhelmed, to say the least. But I was determined to recreate the simplicity that I was forced to embrace in Greece back here in the US.
There are a few principles that I have been using to keep things simple, one of which is to meal plan and meal prep as often as I can. Which is why I am sharing this winter citrus coconut chia pudding recipe with you today! Having little jars of coconut chia pudding prepped in the refrigerator has been a total game changer. The chia pudding takes all of five minutes to make and keeps so well in the fridge – which means that a healthy, satisfying meal is at our fingertips all of the time!
Another principle that I am using to keep things simple is to eat seasonal & local as much as possible. Being that it is currently winter here in California means that when it comes to fruit, it is all about citrus! So a medley of locally grown citrus has been our current staple for topping our favorite coconut chia pudding! I like to use pink grapefruit, blood oranges and mandarins soaked in a bit of mandarin juice, maple syrup and cinnamon, but any seasonal fruit goes so well with chia pudding (my favorite summertime topping is fresh berries!)
In closing, I hope that sharing these tips for keeping things simple will encourage you to embrace a new approach to the way you live and cook. And if you give this winter citrus coconut chia pudding a try, I would love to know if you enjoy it as much as we do ;)
WINTER CITRUS COCONUT CHIA PUDDING
- Total Time: 0 hours
- Yield: (8) 8 oz. jars
Ingredients
FOR THE CHIA PUDDING:
- 2 cans full fat coconut milk (I like Whole Foods 365 brand)
- 1 cup full fat yogurt (any kind of yogurt would work well here, or substitute 1 more cup of milk)
- 1/4 cup maple syrup (I used sugar free monk fruit sweetened maple flavored syrup)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 3/4 cup chia seeds
- (8) 8 oz. jars with lids
FOR THE WINTER CITRUS TOPPING:
- 2 blood oranges
- 1 large pink grapefruit
- 4 mandarins
- 2 tbsp maple syrup
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/4 tsp cinnamon
Instructions
FOR THE COCONUT CHIA PUDDING:
- Empty the two cans of coconut milk into a medium sized mixing bowl (if your coconut milk is separated, you can heat it in the bowl for about 30 seconds in the microwave and then whisk to blend the cream into the liquid)
- To the coconut milk add the yogurt, maple syrup and vanilla extract, whisk until well combined
- Add in the chia seeds and whisk to incorporate the seeds into the coconut milk mixture
- Using a 1/3 cup measuring cup, scoop 2/3 of a cup of chia pudding into each 8 oz. jar (leaving about 1/2″ of space at the top of each jar (this recipe yields (8) 8 oz. jars)
- Cover each jar with a lid and store in the refrigerator
FOR THE WINTER CITRUS TOPPING:
- Use a paring knife to remove the peel & pith of the citrus
- Slice the citrus into 1/4″ slices or supreme the citrus by slicing in between each segment (either method works well, its all about personal preference) and place citrus slices in a bowl
- Juice one of the mandarins into a small bowl and add the maple syrup, vanilla extract & cinnamon to the mandarin juice, whisk well to combine
- Pour the flavored mandarin juice over the citrus slices, cover and store in the refrigerator
TO SERVE:
- Remove a jar of chia pudding from the refrigerator and spoon some of the marinated citrus over the top of the pudding (making sure to scoop up some of the citrus juice) – enjoy!
- Prep Time: 0 hours
- Cook Time: 0 hours
Oh Bella! I’ve been feasting on citrus-both from my trees and from the farmers market! I can’t wait to make this next week!
Amazing! We absolutely love eating chia pudding with citrus! I hope you and the family enjoy it as much as we do!
this was SO awesome!!!
YAY! That makes me so happy!
it was EXACTLY what The Doctor ordered!! LOVED the flavor profile of the citrus w/ the maple, it was THE Perfect compliment and flavor profile to the lusciousness of the chia pudding!!
I know right?! The citrus and maple combo goes so well together! So happy you enjoyed it!
the photos you created here are just STUNNING bella, like usual, i just love the color story here you did here, and The Way you Styled and Composed it too, The Light was spot on as well, your Light Room Editing skills are MOST definitely unmatched for sure!!!
You are too kind! Thank you so much!
I love what you said about making sure to put all of the recipes that mean the most to you here on your blog, even if there are lots of chia pudding recipes! I can’t wait to put a bunch of these in my fridge because quick breakfast is exactly what I need right now!
Thank you for your feedback Sara, I think that with the crazy amount of recipes that exist in the world, it is very important to remember to share what means most to us! And I totally feel you on the quick breakfast thing, its such a game changer!
I enjoyed reading this post, Bella and a lot of what you wrote resonated with me. Like you, I am a big believer in enjoying seasonal produce (though I have never successfully been able to plan my meals). I’ve been making chia pudding for years now, but never added yogurt. I always use coconut/almond milk to soak the chia seeds. This was the first time I added yogurt and I actually enjoyed the tang it added to the pudding. It also offset some of the richness from the coconut milk. Since it’s currently strawberry season here in India (we get them only for a short while in cooler weather), I served the chia pudding with a homemade strawberry-orange compote. We ate it as dessert instead of breakfast and everyone at home loved it. Thanks for sharing your recipe because I learned something new. Also, your photos are a treat to the eyes. Love your work! 💕
Reading your comment brought me so much joy and was really affirming! I am so happy that you like the yogurt addition and that you got to eat the pudding with strawberries (they are just getting ready to come into season here in Northern California!) I appreciate your love and support!
This looks so good, can’t wait to try! Do you think I could sub a non-dairy yogurt?
Oh yay! I am so excited for you to try it! Yes, any type of yogurt will do!
Hi Bella,
Thank you for sharing your amazing recipes! I have a question for this pudding. Can I add the topping to the pudding the night before and eat it the next morning? I’m constantly looking for breakfast options that can be prepared the night before so I can easily take them to work. Thank you!
Absolutely! Adding the topping the night before would be totally fine! Just make sure that the chia pudding has fully chilled before adding any toppings!
My first thought when I saw this recipe was, “This is fantastic! I already have all the ingredients except for the citruses. I think honey dew melon and blackberries will work with it just fine!” I can fruits and vegetables in the summer and knew I had jelly jars available and I also had a little bit of homemade maple syrup left so I was even more thrilled knowing I could put a homemade ingredient into this pudding. My older son loves coconut anything and is always willing to try something new, and he especially loves bringing that ‘something new’ for his school lunch. My husband loves it so much he asked how many jars I made because he wanted more and I told him to have as much as he wanted because the ingredients are in my pantry and fridge and there’s a new bowl of citrus fruits on the counter. This recipe is seriously so simple and delicious, I can’t believe I never tried chia pudding before. It’s definitely a keeper recipe for our household. Thanks, Bella for sharing your stories and recipes.
Oh, how amazing! I am so happy that my recipe turned your whole family on to chia pudding! Thank you so much for sharing, its reading comments like these that keep me creating! I appreciate you taking the time to write your experience!
Bella, I spent a few days this week in Tahoe with a couple of girlfriends. When I mentioned that I would be using them as guinea pigs to test out a few new recipes they were game. However, when asked what I’d be making and I got to your ‘winter citrus chia pudding’ I could see out of the corner of my eye that my friend winced. I looked up and asker her what her hesitation was about the pudding. She said that she was skeptical of chia and just didn’t understand what the fuss was about. I said not to worry, if she didn’t like it we had a plan B.
So, I made the pudding put it in the fridge overnight. The next morning I sliced up some beautiful citrus, blood oranges, navel oranges and cara cara oranges. I set the puddings and the bowl of sliced citrus for my friends to grab and help themselves. Before I could even grab mine, I heard from my friends, “oh my, this is so good!”, “I had no idea chia pudding could be so good” and “please send me this recipe ASAP, I can’t wait to make this when I get home”. Needless to say I didn’t need the “plan B” breakfast option!
Since we are weekly farmers’ market shoppers we started dreaming up future toppings. Kiwi just hit the market and strawberries are not far behind. Both will be excellent additions to this delicious pudding! Thanks for sharing this recipe!
Oh my goodness, reading your comment made me so happy! I am just delighted that you and your girlfriends, especially the skeptical one, loved the chia pudding! I totally agree about changing up the toppings with each season, and you are so right, kiwi and strawberry will be PERFECT! Thank you for sharing your experience!
This chia pudding is SO DELICIOUS! It has become a staple in our home, and I absolutely love it with the honey sweetened Meyer lemon curd found here as well. You have got to try it!
Thank you for taking the time to comment Aubree! I am SO happy that your family loves this recipe and I agree with you that my lemon curd recipe is a perfect match with the chia pudding!
Just made this recipe for the third time! I had been on the hunt for the perfect chia pudding and I am happy to say I finally found it. We have really been enjoying it plain, or with fresh oranges. So good!
This makes me SO happy! Thank you Kayla, so so glad you love it!
I made this pudding the other day and was thrilled how simple the recipe was and tasted amazing! I have made chia pudding a couple times before with other recipes and this by far is my favorite. It pleased the whole family and much healthier then alternative desserts. I will definitely be making this again.
YAY! This is the best news! I am so thrilled that you and the family fell in love with my recipe for chia pudding! Thank you for taking the time to let me know it was a success! <3
Thanks for this beautiful recipe Bella! In addition to be stunningly beautiful to style and photograph (😆), it’s amazing to eat too. I’ve made a lot of variations of chia pudding but this one is my favourite in flavour and consistency. AND, the kids will eat it too 🙌🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻 Win win!
Reading your comment makes me SO happy! I am so honored to know that my recipe has become your favorite! Thank you so much for stopping by the blog to let me know!
I just had to update that we are on week three or four straight of having a constant supply of this Chia pudding in the fridge. I am doing the keto diet, and this is so satisfying in SO many ways!
YAY! Thank you for the update! So happy that this chia pudding has become a staple for you!
I love this version of chia pudding! Strawberries are in right now and I’m making mine with a balsamic-berry topping!! So yummy.
Oh yay! That makes me so happy! And that strawberry balsamic topping sounds SO good!