High Protein Pumpkin Chia Pudding

This pumpkin chia pudding is the ultimate Fall breakfast or snack recipe! It’s higher in protein thanks to the greek yogurt and protein powder, and packed with so much flavor from the pumpkin spice. Only takes about 10 minutes to whip up!

Breakfast has never been my favorite meal of the day, but I do love a good meal prep recipe that actually makes me excited to get out of bed in the morning. In comes this pumpkin chia pudding! It’s so easy to make, takes only about 10 minutes of prep time and packs about 15 grams of protein per serving.

Traditional chia pudding does have a good amount of protein simply because of the chia seeds, but I wanted to spruce this up and make it even more filling by adding greek yogurt and some protein powder. We are only using a little bit of protein powder as to not change the flavor much.

It’s delicious topped with my maple air fryer apples! If you love this recipe, try my sweet potato smoothie next.

Before we get started!

• Chia seed pudding doesn’t need to soak overnight, but it does need to soak for at least 1 hour before you can eat it. It’s worth the wait I promise!
• Because the protein powder will add some natural sweetness (most vanilla proteins have stevia) you can omit the maple syrup if you prefer.

How to make pumpkin chia pudding

In a mixing bowl, whisk together the chia seeds, protein powder, pumpkin spice and salt. Whisk until no clumps of the protein powder remain.

Add in all remaining ingredients and whisk really well. Let sit for 5 minutes, then whisk again.

Cover and transfer to the fridge and let sit for at least 1 hour, or overnight to thicken.

Stir really well to ensure everything is well combined. Taste and adjust as desired, adding more maple syrup to sweeten if desired.

Serve with more yogurt, whipped cream, diced apples or banana and crushed nuts. It’s also delicious with the sauteed apples from my apple pie chia pudding or some caramelized bananas from the banana oatmeal recipe. Enjoy!

Key ingredients & swaps

Chia seeds. The star of the show! I used black chia seeds, but either black or white will work just fine, I don’t notice any kind of flavor difference!

Pumpkin. You need pure pumpkin puree here, not pumpkin pie filling. Pie filling already has all of the spices and sugar added, so be sure you have just pure pumpkin puree.

Milk. Any kind of milk will work! I used soy which adds more protein, but you can use almond, oat, coconut or regular cows milk here.

Yogurt. Greek yogurt will add a good serving of protein here! I used plain full fat greek yogurt, but you can use a lower fat option if you prefer. For a dairy free option, I suggest the Kite Hill greek style yogurt.

Protein powder. I used a vanilla pea based protein powder, but you can use whey. Vanilla is your best bet for the flavor, I don’t recommend chocolate.

How to store

Once prepared this chia seed pudding will keep in the fridge for about 5 days. It’s perfect to whip up on a Sunday and you have breakfast or a snack ready to go for the week!

I don’t recommend freezing it because the texture will not hold up when it thaws, so for best results, eat within about 4-5 days!

Can I blend it?

You can! But it will totally change the consistency of the recipe. You can full blend all ingredients together and then transfer to a container and let it sit in the fridge for an hour. This will give it more of a traditional pudding consistency without the whole chia seeds in the mix.

Blending is a technique I use in my classic vanilla chia pudding and it helps combine all ingredients really well so you don’t end up with any chunks. If you don’t like the consistency of chia seeds, you can definitely blend the whole thing! It gives it almost a mousse like texture and makes a great dessert.

More must try Fall recipes!

• Baked Pumpkin Oatmeal
• Vegan Pumpkin Spice Latte
• Sweet Potato Pie Bars

Lastly, if you want more recipes straight to your inbox, be sure to subscribe to my email list. As always, tag me on instagram if you make this recipe so I can see your creation!