Last Updated on April 22, 2024

This rich and creamy dairy-free Cosmic Brownie Chocolate Chia Seed Pudding is a fun chia pudding flavor inspired by the famous Little Debbie Cosmic Brownies! 🌈 The chocolate chia pudding is made with just 5 plant-based ingredients and is topped with a 2-ingredient vegan chocolate ganache and of course vibrant rainbow candy coated chocolate chips on top (dye-free!) for a fun, nostalgic healthy dessert!

Well, if you’ve never heard of chia seed pudding I would be surprised because it has become very popular to make for both its taste and nutritional benefits- not to mention chia pudding is super easy to make. And if you’ve heard of it but never had chia pudding, today’s the day my friend! If this Cosmic Brownie Chocolate Chia Seed Pudding is your first chia seed pudding experience… you’re kicking off your chia pudding journey in a cosmic way! 🙃

If you like rich and creamy chocolate flavored desserts, you’re going to love this fudgy brownie inspired chia seed pudding recipe. But before we dive into the actual recipe, lets have an introduction to chia seeds, chia seed pudding and Little Debbie.

What Are Chia Seeds?

If you’ve spent any time on social media in the last few years you may be more familiar with chia seeds since the “Internal Shower” drink made its debut. A lot of people hopped on the chia seed lemon water trend, made super popular by Kim Kardashian. Chia seeds have always been a superfood in the health world, but this drink really pushed them into the mainstream spotlight 🌟.

Chia seeds are small (and I mean small!) round seeds that can be black, brown, or white in color. They are harvested from a flowering plant that is native to Central America. Perhaps the most interesting thing about chia seeds is that they can absorb 12 times their weight in liquid, which is why a gel forms around the seed giving them their unique texture similar to a pudding.

Chia Seed Nutrition

These tiny-but-mighty seeds have an amazing nutritional profile! They are loaded with fiber (probably why the internal shower drink is so cleansing, lol), they are high in omega-3 fatty acids (ALA), and plant-based protein. They also contain calcium, iron, magnesium, zinc, B1, and B3. Chia seeds are loaded with antioxidants too. That’s a lot to boast about for a little guy 🤗. Sources: Mayo Health Clinic & Healthline.

What Is Chia Seed Pudding?

Chia seed pudding is a delicious pudding-like dessert or breakfast that is made with chia seeds, milk, and usually a sweetener such as maple syrup, date syrup, agave syrup or honey.

You can add other items to this pudding like fresh fruit, chocolate, nut and seed butters, cacao, caramel, spices, coconut, even coffee… the flavor combinations are endless when making chia pudding!

Chia pudding is very nutritious and easy to make, making it a great option for breakfast or a healthy dessert. It’s kind of akin to overnight oats- same kind of idea but instead of oats you use chia seeds.

Typically chia pudding is enjoyed chilled or at room temperature, but I have also seen recipes for warm chia pudding.

How To Make Chia Seed Pudding

The chia seeds are soaked in a liquid, most commonly cow’s milk or plant-based milk. The chia seeds absorb the liquid and obtain a gel-like consistency that makes a pudding-like texture.

There are a few different ways to make chia pudding, all very simple and it just depends on your preference.

Method 1- The Bowl Method

The bowl method is when you combine all of your chia seed pudding ingredients together in a medium to large bowl and whisk or stir everything together until it’s well combined. Then you let the mixture rest, and then stir every 3-5 minutes until the liquid is absorbed and you’re left with a pudding-like consistency. This usually takes 20-30 minutes. The reason for stirring every 3-5 minutes is so the chia seeds don’t all sink to the bottom.

Method 2- The Jar Method

The jar method, more specifically a mason jar with a lid, is when you combine all of the chia seed pudding ingredients together in a mason jar, fasten the lid and shake the mixture every 3-5 minutes until a pudding forms. You can also use a glass food storage container with a lid.

Method 3- The Blender Method

The blender method is when you place all of the chia seed pudding ingredients together in a blender and pulse the mixture every 3-5 minutes until well combined and a pudding forms. You can use this method if you’re making a blended chia pudding, where the seeds are more blended up to make more of a chia mousse. You then transfer the chia pudding to a covered glass container and store in the fridge.

I have made chia seed pudding every way, I don’t necessarily have a favorite method, but for this method we’re using the bowl method.

What Are Cosmic Brownies?

If you grew up in the late 1990’s, early 2000’s you’ve most undoubtedly had Little Debbie Cosmic Brownies- or you’re at least familiar with these store-bought, individually wrapped brownies topped with fudgy icing and colorful chocolate chip candies. They were inspired by the Cosmic Bowling trend (remember how fun that was?!) and these brownies just shot to the top of America’s Favorite treats! (source: Little Debbie).

I think most of us recognize these brownies (for me at least) from the rainbow colored candies on top- making them stand out and memorable- and super fun to recreate at home as different chocolaty treats, like this Cosmic Brownie Chocolate Chia Seed Pudding recipe 🤩.

Cosmic Brownie Chia Pudding Ingredients

Chia seeds. You can use black chia seeds or white chia seeds, although black chia seeds seem to be more available in grocery stores. For this chia seed recipe you will need 1/4 cup of chia seeds.

Cacao powder. I like to use unsweetened cacao powder vs. cocoa powder as it’s more raw and unprocessed retaining more of its nutrients, but you can use either. Just make sure to buy unsweetened if you’re being mindful of your sugar intake.

Plant milk. In this chia pudding recipe I used flax milk to make chia flax seed pudding, but you can also use oat milk to make oat milk chia seed pudding!

Date syrup. You will need 2 tablespoons of date syrup. You can swap maple syrup for the date syrup, but I find the date syrup offers a more robust, brownie flavor.

Pure vanilla extract. Be sure to buy pure and not imitation vanilla as that’s not gluten-free!

The Chocolate Ganache Topping

Plant milk. I used the same flax milk to make the chocolate ganache, but you may use whatever plant-milk you’d like. As a note though, coconut milk will create a more solid chocolate ganache (but still so delish!)

Chocolate chips. I used dairy-free dark chocolate chips. You will need 1/2 cup to make the ganache.

The Rainbow Candy Coated Chocolate Chips 🌈

Making cosmic anything requires some kind of colorful rainbow sprinkles. To remain authentic to the Little Debbie Cosmic Brownies, I am using rainbow candy coated chocolate chips. There are a few different brands that make these adorable chocolate coated sprinkles, however they usually contain dairy, gluten, soy, and synthetic colors.

I was so ecstatic when I found these Naturally Colored Candy Coated Rainbow Chocolate Chips by Pure Food by Estee! Not only do they not contain any harmful food dyes and artificial coloring, but these rainbow chocolate chips are also gluten-free, vegan, dairy-free, soy-free, nut-free, non-GMO, Kosher, and Hallel!! 👏🏻👏🏻 (not sponsored, just love them so much and wanted to share a healthier alternative!)

These little cutie candy coated rainbow chocolate chips are naturally colored with real foods- they use red radish extract, red cabbage extract, turmeric, beet red, and spirulina extract to make the best, most vibrant rainbow colors 🤗.

Aside from using them as a garnish on top of this chocolate chia pudding, you can use these colorful chips baked in cookies, muffins, cakes, or any baked treats really.

Sometimes these Candy Coated Rainbow Chocolate Chips are out of stock on Amazon (affiliate link) but they do also sell them on their website (non-affiliate/sponsored).

How To Make Cosmic Brownie Chocolate Chia Seed Pudding With Plant Milk

First, you’ll measure 1/4 cup of chia seeds and add them to a medium bowl.

Next, you’ll add the unsweetened cacao powder to the bowl.

Pour in whatever plant milk you’re using, I’m using unsweetened flax milk to make chia flax seed pudding, but you can use oat milk to make oat milk chia pudding or you can even use almond milk, cashew milk, or lite coconut milk.

Finally add in the date syrup and the pure vanilla extract.

Whisk to make sure all of the ingredients are well combined and the cacao powder is completely dissolved. Alternatively you can blend the mixture in a blender.

The mixture will be very “soupy” to start with, but as the chia seeds absorb the liquid the pudding will start to thicken.

Leave the pudding out on your counter and stir/whisk every 3-5 minutes to keep the chia seeds from sinking to the bottom as well as keeping the mixture well mixed.

The pudding is ready to disperse into glasses or bowls when it has a pudding consistency and most of the liquid is absorbed.

Spoon the chocolate chia seed pudding into cups, glasses, or bowls, about 3/4 of the way up leaving room for the chocolate ganache topping and rainbow chips/sprinkles.

I used recycled yogurt glass jars 🫙 I had kept because they’re so cute and the perfect size! But you can use whatever you have. You can get 1-3 servings out of this recipe. I added 3 tablespoons of chia pudding per jar.

To make the dairy-free chocolate ganache topping, heat the milk until it’s simmering but not boiling. You can do this on the stove or in the microwave. Whisk in the chocolate chips until they are all melted and the chocolate is smooth and creamy. Pour over the chia pudding.

Sprinkle with the rainbow candy coated chocolate chips and place in the fridge for about 1 hour or overnight for meal prep the next day 👍🏻. Keep leftover chia pudding stored covered in the refrigerator.

How To Store Chia Pudding

You’ll want to store chia pudding covered in the refrigerator. You can keep the pudding in a bowl and cover with plastic wrap or you can transfer the pudding to a glass food storage container with a lid.

If you used the jar method to make the chia pudding you can store it right in the same jar!

Chia pudding will keep fresh in the fridge for up to a week.

Why You’ll Love This Chocolate Chia Seed Pudding

This Cosmic Brownie Chocolate Chia Seed Pudding is thick and creamy, it’s rich and fudgy, and most of all it’s nostalgic and super fun!

This chocolate chia pudding recipe is easy to make, you can meal prep this pudding and make it ahead of time, and it’s nutrient rich making it a great healthy dessert. No judgement here is you happen to enjoy it for breakfast 😜.

Kids and adults alike will love this fun brownie-inspired sweet snack. Chocolate, rainbow candy sprinkles, with added nutrients- what’s not to love?! 😉.

Let me know what you think about this yummy, simple Cosmic Brownie Chocolate Chia Pudding recipe down below in the comments section, as well as giving it a five rating ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ so that others can discover a fun, simple, delicious chocolate dessert! Tag me on Instagram, Facebook, or Pinterest if you make it!

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