It's safe to assume your mornings are just as hurried as ours.  Mine goes like this:  wake up, get self ready (aka barely splash some water on face and put a bra on), dress children, make breakfast, pack lunches and most importantly drink that coffee that's getting cold dammit.  The saving grace of warmer mornings now is more simple options for breakfast, such as chilled overnight oats or overnight chia puddings.  Lately the girls have been obsessed with chia pudding parfaits and they really get a kick out of choosing their own fixings and assembling their own little parfaits.  Which is a complete score for me.  I can sip my hot coffee while they take over that part of the morning routine.

Besides hurried mornings, this Do-It-Yourself concept translates really well for overnight guests or a weekend brunch gathering with friends too, as the main event (as it is definitely filling enough) or a hands-off component of a larger spread.  The assortment of goodies is more or less the same, although you may add more options to make it extra special (see my suggestions further below).  All you need to do is scale up in quantity.  The best part is how it can be styled beautifully into an impressive spread, as I've done for this blog post.  Isn't it pretty?  As a mama of a daughter with food restrictions, it's bonus for me that it is suitable for both adults and children, as well as people with dietary constraints since the entire set up is dairy-free, gluten-free, refined sugar free, vegan and paleo-friendly (if the granola is omitted from the parfait for those individuals).  

The golden trifecta of a good chia pudding parfait is creamy chia pudding + fresh fruits + crunchy thing(s).   There's really nothing else to it!  Everything gets prepared the day/night before:  soaking the chia seeds before bed, prepping the fruits, making or buying the granola, nuts, seeds, etc.  Whenever I have people over, I front-load as much of the preparation as possible so I am not diverting my focus from the company.  Plus it sucks to miss out on the fun and chatter if I'm busy preparing food.  FOMO much?       

My chia seed pudding recipe below makes enough for 4 people.  Scale it up for a larger group. Leftovers keep well in the fridge, covered tightly, for at least 3-4 days.  If you have time, make a big batch of granola (here is my favorite granola recipe).  If you don't have time, grab some quality granola at the store - there are so many good ones on the market now.  Also make sure to get an assortment of nuts, seeds and other toppings for variety.  It really adds to the fun of assembling!  

Here are some topping ideas of things typically in my pantry:

• Fresh fruits, your favorites of whatever is in season - wash and prepped

• Granola - homemade or store-bought

• Sliced or slivered almonds

• Seeds such as pumpkin or sunflower

• Freeze dried fruits such as strawberries or pomegranate

• Cacao nibs

• Small dried fruits such as cranberries, blueberries or goji berries

• Unsweetened desiccated (dried shredded / flaked) coconuts

• Ground cinnamon

• Extra maple syrup to sweeten for those who like it a little more sweet

Those are my go-to's but I'm sure you can come up with other good ones too!

NOTE ADDED: You may have to adjust (increase) the amount of liquid in the chia pudding.  The thick/thinness of store-bought almond milk varies depending on the brand.  For example, I use Earth's Own Organic or Silk which is much thinner compared to Califia Farms.  

MAKE IN ADVANCE:  The chia pudding is most ideally made the night before to allow it to thicken, although 3-4 hours will do it too if tight for time.  If you make it even further in advance, that works too as it can be stored tightly covered in the fridge for 3-4 days. 

DIY Chia Pudding Parfait

{ gluten free, dairy free, refined sugar free, vegan, paleo }

Serves 4.

INGREDIENTS

For the base chia pudding:

1/3 C chia seeds

1 1/2 C unsweetened almond milk* (or 2 C full-fat coconut milk**) 

2-4 tbsp pure maple syrup

1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract

For layering and topping (see my other suggestions above):

1 box organic strawberries, hulled and cut into ~1 cm small pieces

2 ripe mangos, skinned and pitted, then cut into ~1 cm small pieces

granola, store-bought or homemade 

other toppings such as pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, freeze-dried fruit, etc. (see my other suggestions above)

METHOD

1. Place all ingredients in a container. Give everything a very thorough stir.  Cover and refrigerate overnight (or a minimum of 2-3 hours) to allow it to thicken.  If you remember to, give the mixture a stir once or twice more at some point to minimize clumping.

2. Just before serving, give it one more stir.  Add more unsweetened almond milk or coconut milk whichever you're using, if you prefer it thinner (since different brands of milks can differ in in thickness).  Serve the chia pudding chilled, along with the prepared fruits and other toppings for layering into bowls, cups or clear jars as I do for a pretty presentation.

*You may have to adjust (increase) the amount of liquid in the chia pudding.  The thick/thinness of store-bought almond milk varies quite a bit depending on the brand.  For example, Earth's Own Organic (my go-to) or Silk are much thinner compared to Califia Farms.

**Full fat coconut milk is noticeably thicker than almond milk so I like to use more of it when making chia pudding.  The fat in the coconut milk solidifies after refrigeration.  Take it out of the fridge and allow the chill to subside and stir vigorously to reincorporate.  

Enjoy and thank you for reading!  xx

If you like this recipe, pin it to Pinterest!  You can also leave me a comment below to let me know what you think of this post - I would love that.  If you make the recipe and post it to Instagram, tag your post with #saltnpepperhere so I can peep you :)