Chia Seed Pudding

I always say that you can’t argue with busy.  We are all busy in our own way, and everyone feels the effects of that “busy-ness” everyday.  Unfortunately, the area of our lives that tends to suffer when we are feeling particularly busy is in the kitchen.  After recently returning to the world of the full-time student, I’ve been feeling particularly busy lately.  And as a busy person, I urge you, another busy person, not to overlook the recently trendy chia seed.  In particular, I’d like to endorse this recipe for Chia Seed Pudding from the March issue of Food & Wine.  I overlooked it at first myself, but, at the urging of one of my restaurant co-workers, pulled it up again and tried it.  I’m so glad I did.  It is amazingly quick to make, pleasant to eat garnished or on its own, healthful, vegan (bonus if you’re into that), and easy enough to memorize and thus put together that much faster.

Chia seeds are available at stores like Whole Foods (and yes, if you’re wondering, they are the power behind a Chia Pet) and, according to Bob’s Red Mill, whose chia seeds I purchased, they were a staple food of the Mayans and Aztecs.  They also are reportedly a good source of Omega-3 and fiber.  But what I’m most concerned with is that I can combine them with almond milk, a little agave, and a small amount of lemon zest and (poof) I have pudding.  Despite the instructions in the recipe, I find that I can put all of the ingredients in at once and shake, and everything disperses quite well.  The really important thing about this recipe, though, is the shaking during the first 30-45 minutes.  I have found that if the pudding is agitated at about 15 minute intervals for the first 30-45 minutes, the seeds will not clump together and will thicken the pudding nicely.  After that, the shaking is less critical.

The finished pudding is both crunchy and creamy, with a mild melon-like flavor.  I am looking forward to varying the zest, trying lemon, lime, orange, and perhaps even grapefruit.

You can find the recipe for Grace Parisi’s Chia-Seed Pudding here.