Refuel: Chia Cups

You all know about my chia seed obsession around here. My chia craze rose to a new level when I started experimenting with chia pudding flavors last year, which happen to be an amazing pre and post workout snack. The seeds absorb water in a way that creates a gelatinous like texture that is so delicious it will make you crazy. It's beyond easy to whip these up, so no excuses here. I like making large batches and piling the jars of pudding into the fridge so I can plan my snacks for the whole work week. 

This particular batch was made on a rainy afternoon while dog sitting for Sawyer, one of the cutest pups we know. Remember him here?! He peered into the kitchen curiously as I whipped up the different flavors. The beauty of these on-the-go snacks is you don't even have to make them ahead of time. I got back from my run and had nothing to reach for in the fridge so I threw everything into the blender and knocked back a chocolate chia cup, which was more like a smoothie since I didn't give it the time to settle into pudding. You can make these whatever way you like if you are on the impatient side; they will still be delicious.

It's easy to put your own unique spin on this recipe. I included my three go-to flavors at the moment but feel free to add whatever strikes your fancy!


Chocolate Chia Cups

1 1/2 cups milk
1/4 cup chia seeds
1/4 cup apple sauce
3 tbs cocoa powder
3 tbs honey
optional garnish: hemp seeds

Vanilla Banana Chia Cups

1 ripe banana
1/4 cup chia seeds
1 1/2 cups almond milk
1/4 cup apple sauce
1 tsp cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
optional garnish: hemp seeds

Coconut Lime Chia Cups

1/2 cup coconut milk
1/4 cup chia seeds
1 cup almond milk
1/2 ripe banana
2 tbs coconut flakes
3 tbs honey
juice of half a lime
toasted coconut flakes for garnish

When adding the ingredients to the food processor or blender make sure to add them in the order listed above and pulse the blender after adding the chia seeds. This will insure that your cups won't have seed clumps which can sometimes be unpleasantly bitter.