Coconut Banana Chia Pudding

If you’re looking for a delicious way to start your morning, give this Coconut Banana Chia Pudding a try! This recipe features layers of creamy coconut chia pudding and sweet banana cream, topped with slices of banana and coconut flakes. It’s the yummy plant-based breakfast you never knew you needed!

Why You’ll Love This Chia Pudding

Creamy. Thanks to the full fat coconut milk, the coconut chia pudding base is creamy and oh so dreamy. And the banana cream layer is smooth like butter. It’s a decadent combination.

Healthy Breakfast Option. This chia pudding recipe is healthy, making it a great guilt-free breakfast, snack, or even dessert option. Chia seeds are crammed with healthy fats, fiber, and even a decent dose of protein, as well as tons of vitamins, minerals and antioxidants. Bananas are also a great source of nutrients and are naturally sweet, especially when they’re extra ripe. Maple syrup is a natural sweetener, keeping this recipe refined-sugar free. And coconut milk (or other plant milk) lends a dose of healthy plant-based fats to this recipe as well. The result is a powerhouse breakfast designed to keep you full and fueled all morning long!

Plant-Based / Vegan / Vegetarian. Another wonderful aspect of this recipe is that it is plant-based, vegan, and vegetarian friendly.

Make Ahead. This recipe is perfect for making ahead so that you have breakfast ready to grab and go each morning. Thanks to a little splash of lemon juice in the banana cream, this chia pudding stores fairly well in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

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What You’ll Need for This Chia Pudding

This recipe requires just 6 ingredients, making it super quick to throw together.

Chia Seeds. Chia seeds are the star of the show. These tiny magical seeds are going to soak up the coconut milk and get plump and juicy, making a deliciously thick and creamy chia pudding.

Full Fat (or Light) Coconut Milk. You can use just about any plant-based milk in this recipe, but we prefer full-fat or light coconut milk because it lends a creamier texture. Almond milk and cashew milk work wonderfully as well.

Ripe Bananas. You’ll want fairly ripe bananas for this recipe. The riper, the better because they’ll be sweeter. Plus, they mash a little more easily when they’re ripe. The ripeness of the banana will also determine whether you want to include the maple syrup sweetener or not. We include it when we’re using lightly yellow bananas, but exclude it if we have nice spotty ripe bananas.

Pure Maple Syrup. Pure maple syrup is a great sweetener, if needed. If you like sweeter chia puddings, then you can use the full amount. If you prefer less sweet puddings, then you can reduce or completely omit the maple syrup.

Vanilla Extract. A splash of vanilla extract rounds out the flavors of the banana cream layer.

Lemon Juice. Just a slight touch of lemon juice will keep the banana cream layer from browning (oxidizing), without overpowering the flavors. Bananas tend to brown rapidly once they’re out of their peels, but a little bit of lemon juice will slow down the oxidizing process and keep the banana layer a rich creamy yellow color.

How to Make Coconut Banana Chia Pudding

Coconut Chia Pudding

In a medium bowl, mix together the chia seeds, 2½ cups of coconut milk, and 3 tablespoons of maple syrup. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Stir the chia pudding after 30 minutes. Cover and refrigerate another 30 minutes to finish setting up. Don’t skip this step! Stirring is important for creamy, fluffy, and uniform chia pudding.

After the second 30 minutes, the chia seeds should have absorb the majority of the liquid and will have swelled, making a thick mixture. You can stir in a few spoonfuls of left over coconut milk to help break up the mixture, if needed, or if you prefer a little runnier chia pudding.

Banana Cream

Slice the two bananas and add the slices to a medium bowl. Mash the slices with a fork. Whisk in the coconut cream, coconut milk, maple syrup, vanilla extract, and lemon juice. The banana cream will be a little lumpy.

Spoon in a layer of chia pudding into four small cups or jars. Divide the banana cream evenly between the four cups. Top with the remaining chia pudding. Garnish with extra banana slices and dried coconut, if desired. Enjoy!

Quick tip: While you can buy canned coconut cream, it’s easier and less wasteful to just buy a few cans of full fat coconut milk for this recipe. Chill the coconut milk for at least a few hours, or up to overnight, to help the coconut cream layer separate from the coconut milk. It will form a thick, fairly solid paste at the top as it chills. You can scoop out that solid coconut cream layer and use it for the recipe. The leftover white liquid is the coconut milk, which you’ll use for this recipe. You can transfer any remaining coconut milk or cream to an airtight container and store in the refrigerator up to 5 days (any longer than that and it may go rancid).

How to Store Chia Pudding

This chia pudding recipe lasts for up to 5 days in the refrigerator. The banana cream layer may start to oxidize (or turn slightly brown) before 5 days, but the lemon juice should slow down the oxidizing process.

Make this recipe ahead of time and store in an airtight container that seals well, like weck jars or tupperware, to help it last longer. You can even divide it up into single servings so that you can have it for a grab and go breakfast or snack option.

Let us know what you think about this Coconut Banana Chia Pudding by dropping a comment and/or rating below! We love to hear from you! 🙂

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• Healthy Cranberry Orange Muffins
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• Cinnamon Zucchini Bread