Overnight Vanilla Chai Chia Pudding

2 Recipes below: Vanilla and Chai Chia Pudding

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I may not be English, but I find pleasure in the daily ritual of tea time. Especially the tea that comes out piping hot and scented with the rich aromas of East India Chai spices. This Vanilla Chai Chia Pudding is a great recipe for a healthy breakfast with a small dose of caffeine to keep you going all day. It also makes a great midday snack to keep your energy levels going.

Chai tea has evolved quite a bit in the past 5000 years. Many believe this drink was created for a royal court long ago and made with spices. But once tea was introduced by China and Britain, chai evolved into scalding milk poured over a black tea bag with spices and sweetener. Then strained for the perfect smooth cup.

When you walk into Starbucks and get a chai latte, you are missing a lot of the weight loss and health benefits of drinking this tea at home. But since most of us are in a hurry, what better way to have a chai tea latte than in a delicious chia pudding?

It was shocking to me how much beyond antioxidants that black tea is credited for, so I’m going to quote here from Livestrong.

“Widely recognized as a mental stimulant, black tea is also recognized for its other potential health benefits, primarily because of its caffeine and antioxidant content. Black tea also contains enough fluoride to possibly help prevent dental caries, according to the Linus Pauling Institute. Black tea can help prevent orthostatic hypertension — dizziness caused by standing too quickly — and is possibly effective for reducing the risk of heart attacks, atherosclerosis, kidney stones, Parkinson’s disease and ovarian cancer. 

Research for other types of cancer in animals suggests that black tea may have an effect in reducing the risk of certain cancers, such as prostate and lung cancer, but studies in humans have yielded mixed results. More research is needed for other supposed benefits, including those for osteoporosis, type 2 diabetes, tooth decay, high blood pressure and stomach disorders.”

This is also a great use for a bag of chia seeds. Chia seeds deliver omega-3, calcium, protein, fiber, magnesium, phosphorus, vitamin b, and other minerals. Unlike flax seeds, your body will absorb the nutrients in chia seeds whether they are ground or not. And the black pepper helps you absorb the nutrients even better.

It’s easy to say that chia pudding is so good for you! Just make sure you watch how much pudding you eat in one sitting. They may be dense calories, but they’re still like eating any other nut or seed–a couple tablespoons of seeds is plenty! So split this recipe into 7-10 servings if you are trying to lose weight.

If you’ve never had chia seed puddings, I recommend doing just vanilla extract, sweetener and milk for a traditional vanilla chia pudding and then branching out into some fun flavors like chai spiced chia pudding. 

Reason being that simple is always best when trying out something new. Just using the vanilla and not the chai tea blend will have more of a traditional tapioca pudding texture and flavor. I have a very picky husband, so, I’ve noticed simple flavors are best when the texture is a little surprising. 

Personally, I love boba, tapioca, and other gel-like textures in my puddings and drinks, but it does catch one off guard if you aren’t expecting all the texture. I remember the first time I had a berry chia drink. It was just so much going on all at once! I did not like it at all. Then I tried just plain vanilla chia seed pudding and I have been experimenting ever since. 

For plain vanilla by just skip the “chai mix” section and add 1 cup of vanilla almond milk, whole milk, or more coconut milk. Personally, I like to mix in high fat milk to keep it extra creamy, but if you want to keep it vegan, gluten free, dairy free, coconut milk is extra fatty and creamy. This makes a great base for a variety of chia seed pudding recipes. Like this:

Plain but dependable Vanilla Chia Pudding

3/4 cup chia seeds

4 cups milk (this is the modification from the recipe below)

3 tbsp vanilla

1 tsp vanilla paste (optional)

1/4 cup -1/2 cup sweetener (maple syrup or honey)

I love chia pudding because:

It’s adaptable

Chia pudding recipes are my favorite breakfast choice because they’re very flexible in both flavor and composition with just a couple tablespoons of chia seeds (talk about easy recipes!). They taste great with fresh fruit, with a little protein powder mixed in, with chocolate, almond butter, dairy milk or nut milk, and your sweetener of choice…or even sugar free with monk fruit or stevia! 

It’s Whole Food and Diet Friendly

Chia pudding is gluten free, Whole 30, and Paleo diet friendly. One thing that you may not know is how chia seeds can help you shed weight due to the carbohydrates being mostly fiber. Black tea is also touted as a weight loss aid. 

It’s Great for Make-Ahead Meal Prep

It’s also great if you like to do food prep at the beginning of the week. I reuse my Bonne Maman containers to store a week’s worth at a time, but mason jars work well too for storage. 

Can’t wait for you to try this tasty overnight chia pudding! It’s perfect for those cinnamon spice cravings without the junk. So creamy and delicious. I love this recipe with warming spices year round, but it’s extra special on a cold day.