Chocolate Peanut Butter Chia Pudding
Fifteen minutes of evening prep turns four grab-and-go lunch cups into a dessert that keeps its creamy texture for four days. I build it with Greek yogurt, banana, cocoa, and peanut butter, so it…
Ingredients
- 2 cups unsweetened milk
- 1 cup plain Greek yogurt
- 1 medium ripe banana, mashed
- 1/2 cup chia seeds
- 1/4 cup natural creamy peanut butter
- 3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
- 2 tablespoons pure maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/8 teaspoon fine salt
Instructions
- Set four 10- to 12-ounce jars or lidded containers on the counter, along with a medium mixing bowl, a whisk, a flexible spatula, and four spoons. Preparing the containers first keeps the mixture moving quickly and makes the next-day lunch easy to pack.
- Peel the banana and mash it thoroughly in the bowl with the spatula until nearly smooth, leaving only a few pea-sized pieces. A fully ripe banana provides sweetness and moisture; a green-tipped banana will leave the pudding less creamy and more starchy.
- Add the Greek yogurt, milk, maple syrup, vanilla, and salt to the mashed banana. Whisk for about 45 seconds until the yogurt is dissolved and the mixture looks uniformly pale with no thick streaks clinging to the bowl.
- Sift the cocoa powder directly into the bowl, or rub it through a fine strainer with the back of a spoon, then whisk until no dry brown pockets remain. Sifting prevents cocoa lumps that would otherwise stay bitter and chalky in the chilled pudding.
- Warm the peanut butter in a small microwave-safe bowl at 50 percent power for 15 to 20 seconds, or set the bowl over warm water for 1 to 2 minutes, just until fluid but not hot. Stir it into the chocolate mixture in a slow ribbon; warming it helps it disperse instead of forming oily clumps.
- Sprinkle in the chia seeds while whisking continuously, then whisk for another 30 seconds. Scrape around the bottom and sides so every seed is coated; the mixture will still look thin at this stage, which is correct because the seeds need time to hydrate.
- Let the bowl stand at room temperature for 5 minutes, then whisk again, deliberately lifting from the bottom. This second stir breaks up early clumps and distributes the thickening seeds evenly, giving the finished pudding a spoonable rather than gelatinous texture.
- Divide the mixture among the four containers, using about 1 1/4 cups per container, and wipe the rims clean. Seal and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, preferably overnight; the pudding is ready when it holds a soft mound on a spoon and no liquid gathers around the edges.
- Before serving, stir one container firmly from bottom to top. If it is thicker than you prefer, loosen it with 1 to 2 teaspoons of milk; if it is still loose after 4 hours, stir in 1 teaspoon chia seeds and chill for 30 more minutes.
- Serve cold straight from the jar for a light everyday lunch, or spoon into a small bowl and add sliced banana or a thin drizzle of peanut butter if desired. Keep the remaining sealed portions refrigerated and use them within 4 days; do not leave a portion at room temperature for more than 2 hours.
Watch the Chocolate Peanut Butter Chia Pudding cooking video
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