Kefir Chia Pudding with Maple-Ginger Cranberry Sauce

Are you a cran fan? If so you’ll love this kefir chia pudding with maple and ginger cranberry sauce! 

This chia pudding has serious cranberry cheesecake vibes going on. In fact, cranberry cheesecake was the inspo for this recipe. Kefir is a drinking yogurt, so it adds tang and lots of creaminess. It gives it a richer texture than ya average chia pudding. The vanilla extract really brings the cheesecake flavor home – so do not skip it! Adding the granola gives this chia pudding more texture and adds the crunch you would find in a good cheesecake crust.

The cranberry sauce is super simple, just put a pound of cranberries, some maple syrup, juice of half a lemon, some water, and a tsp. of shredded ginger in a sauce pan, cover, and heat over medium. Stir every so often until the cranberries break down forming a pie filling consistency. 

Chia pudding has a texture people either hate or enjoy. It is like a denser tapioca pudding – denser because chia seeds are smaller than tapioca pearls. If you dig boba that is kind of like what you get when the chia seeds gel up on a much smaller scale. 

Beyond being tasty, I really enjoyed this recipe because the kefir provides protein that keeps you fuller longer as well as probiotics for a happy microbiome. The fact that kefir and cranberries are on the sour side allows those flavors to be celebrated which in turn reduces the amount of sugar needed to make this recipe flavorful. I find that sometimes when I make chia pudding, the sugar content gets higher than I like – especially first thing in the AM! If you stick to this recipe, there is just over a tbsp. of maple syrup, about 15g of added sugar, give or take. Cranberries are also full of superfood benefits. Given the fact that Americans tend to really only eat them (especially fresh) during the holidays, I am always trying to find more ways to incorporate them into my diet in the fall and early winter. Read more about the benefits of cranberries below.

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Kefir Chia Pudding with Maple and Ginger Cranberry Sauce

Servings: makes 1

Time: 5 minutes to put together but chia pudding gels overnight

Ingredients:

• half a cup of milk (I used fresh macadamia nut milk)
• half a cup of kefir (whole fat)
• 3 tbsp. chia seeds
• 1/2 tbsp. maple syrup
• 1/8 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1/3 cup of cranberry sauce (recipe bellow)
• granola (optional)

How-to:

1. Combine all ingredients except cranberry sauce and granola. 
2. Stir or shake to mix. 
3. Allow to sit for half an hour in the fridge. 
4. After one half-hour, stir or shake to re-distribute seeds equally. 
5. Allow to sit over night.
6. When ready to eat, add cranberry sauce and (optionally) granola. 

Cranberry Sauce with Maple Syrup and Ginger

Servings: makes 2 cups

Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 pound of cranberries
• 1/4 cup of maple syrup (the real stuff!)
• juice of half a lemon
• 1 tsp. of ginger, shredded on a microplane, lightly packed
• pinch of salt

How-to:

1. Place all ingredients in a sauce pan and add 3 tbsp. of water. 
2. Cover and heat over medium.
3. Stir every couple of minutes.
4. Cranberry sauce is done when almost all berries have burst and it has become the consistency of pie filling.