Pumpkin Chia Pudding - paleo, vegan, & low carb
This Pumpkin Chia Pudding is healthy, so tasty, and a cinch to make. Enjoy pumpkin pie flavor all year long for breakfast, a snack, or even dessert and get great health benefits while you're at it!
This healthy pumpkin chia pudding works for almost any special diet and can be made into an extra special treat when topped with regular or coconut whipped cream.
If you're like me, finding healthy breakfast or healthy dessert recipes can be a bit tough. When I was younger, I would have dried cereal or cinnamon toast, for breakfast, but alas, those days are over now that we're eating whole foods that are gluten-free.
Before we get into this fabulous recipe for Pumpkin Chia Pudding, some other great options that you might enjoy are Breakfast Cookies, 3-Ingredient Shortbread Crisp, Homemade Protein Bars, Pumpkin Custard, Whipped Coconut Pudding, or even Fruit & Nut Cake Squares, but this vegan pudding is another favorite that I've been wanting to share with you all for awhile now -- and now's a great time that it's fall and time for all kinds of things pumpkin.
Of course, in my opinion, pumpkin should by no means be relegated to fall. First of all, pumpkin is just the perfect flavor for so many dishes, but sweet and savory, but it's also incredibly healthy.
Health Benefits of this Chia Pudding
1 Cup of Cooked Pumpkin has:
- vitamin A
- vitamin C (20% of the RDA for a woman)
- potassium (more than a banana)
- 3 grams of fiber
So here's a pudding you can feel very good about serving to your family for breakfast, dessert, or really any meal.
And besides that, really, we've had this recipe in our repertoire for a long time. We've made it a lot, and enjoyed it and I just hadn't gotten around to putting it on the blog until now. So excited to share this with you and so hope you enjoy it as much as we do!
About Chia Pudding
If you've seen chia pudding recipes on the internet, you may have noticed that a lot of them are just "mix and serve" puddings, leaving the chia whole. This recipe has an extra step -- the blending.
Yes, the no blend kind is a tad easier, but personally, I have never cared for the chia pudding that has the chia in the form of little tapioca-like balls.
For some reason, tapioca and I have never really been close friends. I think it's the "fish eye" thing. But I think it's something I can overcome.
Regardless, when you blend chia, it lends loads of lovely "comfort food texture" to the pudding. Like in my Healthy Chocolate Pudding or Berry Mousse. Creamy. Thick. Yum.
And very filling. This pumpkin pudding will keep you satiated for a long time.
And of course, feel free to add some protein powder or collagen hydrolysate to it for more protein.
Ingredients
- coconut milk
- canned pumpkin
- vanilla extract
- chia seeds
- pumpkin pie spice
- stevia extract
- sweetener
- salt
Directions
Place all ingredients in a blender
Blend to desired smoothness.
Place in serving containers, topping with desired toppings, or alternating toppings with pudding for a parfait.
Store any remaining chia pumpkin pudding (if you have any left!) in the refrigerator.
Smooth or Lumpy?
You can blend this pudding (and any other chia pudding) as little or as much as you'd like. Blend just enough to combine the ingredients for a pudding with the texture of tapioca pudding or blend a lot to have a smooth pudding texture.
I used to love the blended version only, but I really love the textured version now too. They're both great!
Substitutions
- Coconut Milk: My Easiest Coconut Milk is a great make-your-own option. You can also substitute any dairy-free milk (like my Easiest Almond Milk) or a regular milk.
- Pumpkin Pie Spice: If you would like to make your own pumpkin pie spice, see Homemade Pumpkin Pie Spice.
- Sweeteners: You can substitute any healthy sweetener for the xylitol or the stevia.
Serving Suggestions
As in the photos, topping this pumpkin chia pudding with regular or dairy-free whipped cream make a delicious parfait. You can sprinkle some Pumpkin Pie Spice or Cinnamon Sugar on top as well.
I think that my Pumpkin Snickerdoodles, Soft Pumpkin Cookies, Pumpkin Pecan Spice Cookies or even these Gingerbread Cookie Balls would taste great crumbled on top!
More Chia Pudding Recipes
If you love chia, you might want to try out these other fabulous chia pudding recipes:
Chocolate Chia Pudding
Pumpkin Chia Pudding
Berry Chia Pudding
Blueberry Chia Pudding
Pumpkin Chia Pudding - paleo, vegan, low carb
Ingredients
- 1 cup coconut milk
- 1 cup canned pumpkin
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup chia seeds
- 1 1/4 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
- 3/16 teaspoon stevia extract (or 6 scoops)
- 6 tablespoons low carb sweetener
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Place all ingredients in a blender (a high speed blender like Vitamix is recommended, and LOVED by this blog owner).
- Blend all until as smooth as you like. See recipe notes.
- Place in serving containers, topping with desired toppings (like whipped cream, crushed nuts, or cookies), or alternating toppings with pudding for a parfait.
- Store any remaining chia pumpkin pudding (if you have any left!) in the refrigerator.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and is merely an approximation. Optional ingredients are not included and when there is an alternative, the primary ingredient is typically used. We cannot guarantee the accuracy of the nutritional information given for any recipe on this site. Erythritol carbs are not included in carb counts since they have been shown not to impact blood sugar. Net carbs are the total carbs minus fiber.
The above nutrition facts are estimates only. Please read my Nutrition Disclaimer here.
Fall or not, I hope you enjoy adding this to your healthy recipes repertoire.
Note: This post was originally written in October, 2015. The photos were reshot in May 2022. This is a previous image for reference.
Have you had chia pudding before and do you like it blended or smooth?
Photo Credit (bottom image): Naomi Huzovicova
I have ground chia seeds that I purchased.....do I use the same amount of ground as I would whole... this recipe sounds great...thanks for posting it..
Hi there. Sorry for the delay. I think using 2 tsp ground for 1 T whole in this case should work but I have never tried it. Please let me know!
Are you including your sugar alcohols in the total carb count? This seems really high for one serving.
Yes, we did by accident. We just changed that. Thanks for the heads up! Sorry about that.
Love this! Cut the sugar quite a bit and added chopped walnuts and hemp seeds to the top. Yummy and power packed!
So glad you liked it!
Super easy, really yummy but I found it too sweet. Easily adjusted for and this will become a regular our household.
So glad you liked it. Yes sweetener is easily adjusted for :).
Have you tried topping it with coconut whip topping? It's amazing. Pumpkin pie is my #1 favorite dessert, but I can't do all the sugar and milk now.
I do coconut whip from canned coconut milk, refrigerate the can over night, spoon off the thick cream, sweeten if you like, and whip with a mixer like whipped cream. I also like to freeze 1/4 or 1/2 c tubs of it for topping healthy desserts later in the week or month.
I haven't yet.....but I need to!!!!
Is this 1 serving?
No, I think you will easily get at least 4 servings from this.
Fran, I am looking for a Fran who makes shea butter with lemongrass and Thieves Oil, could that be you by any chance? got the stuff in Peachtree City GA and lost the phone number and have no last name.
Hi, it looks like a great recipe. I only have liquid stevia. Any idea how many drops that would be instead of scoops?
You can find conversions online but you really do have to taste as they vary a lot. Enjoy!
Thanks. I tried it tonight and used 2 drops of stevia instead of 6 scoops. It was good but I think next time I will just leave out the stevia altogether. 🙂
Glad you liked it!
Roughly how many servings does this make? What size is the serving?
Hi there. I think it depends how much you like to eat. I would count on 4 per recipe. Thanks!
How would a sweet blend (1 cup erythritol per 1 tsp stevia) measure the same toward the low carb sweetener? 6T? tia
Is that blend 1:1 with sugar?
Has anyone tried this without any of the sweeteners? I know pumpkin can have a less than desired taste sans sweetener which makes me hesitant to try.
I would definitely use a sweetener of some kind :).
How would you make this without Stevia...also, it appears Stevia is listed twice on the list of ingredients. Thanks
Hi there. Here's help with the stevia. I only see it once - could you check again, please? https://wholenewmom.com/kitchen-tips/stevia-what-it-is-and-how-to-use-it/
Is there somewhere that shows the carb counts and how many servings this recipe makes? Sorry if it is there somewhere and I'm not seeing it.
Hi Patty. I'm sorry but I haven't done nutritional counts for my recipes b/c of the issues that can arise w/ different varieties of ingredients, etc. Hope you can still enjoy it!
Love the presentation of your chia pudding in those cute little jars. Looks delicious
Thanks so much! I just hired a photographer to help me out and she is doing a great job!!
Could I use regular milk versus Almond milk here? I was able to buy Splenda as my low carb sweetener (packets) and Stevia (packets), any idea how many of each to use?
Thanks!
Yes, you could do that. I have no idea about subbing in those packets but I do think they have information on the packets about how much sugar they sub for. 1/32 of a tsp stevia extract = 2 T sugar: https://wholenewmom.com/kitchen-tips/stevia-what-it-is-and-how-to-use-it/
Thank you for the quick reply, I am so dying to make this! Just found out I have gestational diabetes and am looking for delicious low carb options.
If I did everything correctly, I think 6T splenda is = 9 packs and the 6 scoops of stevia extract is = 4 1/2 packs of Stevia. I will let you know if it does not work out. Hopefully this can help someone else who may not have the other items on hand! 🙂 Thanks again!
Hi there. Please look at the ingredients in Splenda. It has maltodextrin and dextrose. The glycemic index for dextrose is 100. I personally would be concerned about that for diabetics. I have an acquaintance who told me it messed up her blood sugar. Take care.
I just made this and mine doesn't look orange like your picture does. I used canned pumpkin and followed the recipe to the t except for the stevia/xylitol. I used honey. Do you have any idea why mine isn't orange but a muddy almost brownish color.
Hi there. I think it depends on a lot of things - the type of pumpkin used, etc. The honey most likely added to the brownish color. Hope it tasted good!
I made this with 6 Tbsp of rapadura and no stevia, and it was excellent, a little sweet but not very. If 1 scoop of stevia is equal to 2 Tbsp of sugar, than in sweetness that would be 12 Tbsp of 'sugar', and honey would be half of that. If made with a liquid sweetener like maple syrup or honey it will work though it might be a little softer. Considering it's pudding though, not cutting squares or anything, that doesn't really matter. I'd use anywhere between 3-6 Tbsp on honey, depending on how sweet you like things (easy to taste test).
Thank you! We need to be careful of the sugar thing for health reasons (cancer), so thinking 3 tbs honey will be very nice. Do you think the same amount would apply for maple syrup? I'm also not a lover of the stevia after taste - it can ruin a batch of whatever for us.
I think they are about the same sweetness. Enjoy!
I'm with Carol that I don't really care for stevia and I would prefer to use something like real maple syrup or honey to sweeten instead of the low carb sweetener + stevia.
Do you know what the substitution would be for a liquid natural sweetener to replace the ones in the recipe?
The recipe looks great otherwise and I might actually get my guys to eat something pumpkin-y for once!
Hi there. 1/32 tsp of stevia is the equivalent typically of about 2 T of a typical sweetener. Hope that helps! https://wholenewmom.com/kitchen-tips/stevia-what-it-is-and-how-to-use-it/
We tried blending chia seeds in the chocolate pudding version, but found it imparted a *very* strong nutty, almost flax-y taste to the pudding. Is this common? I wondered if I blended it too long
I have never had this. Are your chia seeds possibly spoiled?
My family and I love pumpkin anything. Blender? right up my alley. My kids would scarf this down knowing this could be dessert for breakfast.
I so hope they like it!!! We love our blender too!
6 TBS low carb sweetener PLUS 6 TBS stevia??
I can’t stand stevia. I have really tried to, but it leaves such a bitter aftertaste, And no, I’m not using too much. I did the first time, but now use so tiny an amount, but it STILL leaves a bitter taste.
I think I’ll make this and use honey instead of the 6/6 TBS.
It really sounds delicious, and I’m not a huge fan of pumpkin. It’s ok, just not one of my faves.
Hi Carol. Thanks for commenting. No, it's 6 scoops of stevia. This might help you but of course, use something else if you like. https://wholenewmom.com/health-concerns/how-to-like-stevia/