Caramel Macchiato Chia Pudding tastes just like the classic drink but is made with whole foods! Silky coffee pudding is topped with an easy vegan caramel sauce.
My high school clan lived by one motto: Caramel Macchiatos were life.
My friends and I would take our newly awarded drivers licenses and roll up to the Starbucks drive through every day after school. Rain or shine Iced Caramel Macchiatos were always our order.
And as much as I am still a sucker for those flavors, I no longer want to visit sugar rush central every day. So, I turn to this Caramel Macchiato Chia Pudding instead.
It is a silky chia pudding that is made ultra creamy from blended cashews (no soaking required!). It is sweetened with dates for that caramel note without any refined sugar. Then we top it with a 5 minute vegan caramel sauce, that is optional, but highly encouraged.
The result is a decadent pudding that is healthy enough to pass as breakfast.
This coffee pugging has all the flavors of a caramel macchiato without the added caramel sauce, but just plundging a spoon into one of these jars and coming up with a layer of silky pudding and a layer of soft, but slightly sticky, vegan caramel sauce. And a sauce that only took 5 minutes to make?
Like I said, optional, but you know which side of the fence I will be on!
New late 20’s motto: Caramel Macchiato Chia Pudding is life.
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Caramel Macchiato Chia Pudding
- Cook Time: 20
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
- Category: Breakfast
Description
Caramel Macchiato Chia Pudding tastes just like the classic drink but is made with whole foods! Silky coffee pudding is topped with an easy vegan caramel sauce.
Ingredients
For the Chia Pudding:
- 3 cups unsweetened almond milk
- 10 large medjool dates, pitted
- ⅔ cup raw cashews
- 1 tablespoon instant coffee (regular or decaf)
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup chia seeds
For the caramel sauce (optional, but encouraged):
- ¼ cup maple syrup OR agave
- ¼ cup almond butter
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil
- Pinch salt
Instructions
- Add all the chia pudding ingredients, except for the chia seeds, into a high speed blender. Blend until smooth. Add in the chia seeds and blend on low until they are stirred into the liquid. Pour into jars and pop in the fridge until it the chia seeds plump up and the pudding thickens, about 4 hours.
- Once the pudding has thickened, add all the caramel sauce ingredients into a small saucepan. Heat over medium, stirring constantly, until the sauce comes together, about 5 minutes. Pour a layer of the caramel over each of the chia puddings and return to the fridge to allow the caramel to set, about 30 minutes to 1 hour. Enjoy!
So delish! Do you think it would work if I used oat milk?
★★★★★
Hi Janice! I think oat milk would be perfect in this recipe :)
Oh my goodness this is delicious! I tried to hold off until the morning when I planned to eat it for breakfast but I couldn’t wait! The chia pudding is so creamy and wonderfully coffee flavored. The caramel on top is amazing! It’s totally not optional! I divided it into 8 servings to try to have enough to share but I think I’m going to keep it allll for myself!
★★★★★
Diana! I am so so glad you enjoy this recipe as much as I do! I have definitely kept it all for myself before too :)
This is delicious! You can’t go wrong with chia!
★★★★★
Such a great superfood!
If I can’t use coconut oil is there a substitute that I can use for the caramel?
Hi Amanda, I haven’t tested it myself, but I think you would have great results if you omitted the coconut oil and added in 1 tablespoon maple and 1 tablespoon almond butter in its place! The sauce may not set up as much, but I think it would be equally delicious :) Let me know how it goes for you!
How much would you suggest if I wanted to add vegan vanilla protein powder to this chia pudding? Or would I have to alter the other ratios too much?
Hi Ally, I don’t think it would be a problem to add protein! I would make the pudding according the the directions. After the pudding has set and before you add the caramel on top, I would add the protein to taste :)
I’m confused. Where does the chocolate pudding come in? And does the sauce really taste like caramel?
Hi Cheryl! It is a typo on our end. It should say “chia pudding” not “chocolate pudding”. My apologies!
The caramel sauce has a toasted almond flavour and a caramel feel – very good, but not caramel tasting. The pudding doesn’t take like coffee, it just tastes like dates. Which is fine if you like dates but I do not. I will definitely make the “caramel sauce” again since we all really liked it but the pudding part was not good.
Hi Ally, Thank you for your feedback! The pudding will taste more or less coffee-like depending on the roast of your coffee and how strong you brew it. If you would like a richer coffee taste, I suggest an espresso roast brewed strongly.
I found this recipe several weeks ago – just happened to have all the ingredients on hand (except the cashews, which I omitted) – and it has been a delicious treat during our forced stay-at-home time. The first time I made it, I may have eaten 4 out of the 6 cups! Even hubby and 23 year old son, who are usually skeptical about “healthy” foods (especially desserts), really like it, and my son asked me to make “that pudding stuff” again! I’ve started making the pudding the night before so that it sets up well, and then I make the caramel sauce and cool to room temperature just before serving so that it’s easier to get a spoonful of sauce with each bite of pudding and it hasn’t set up firmly over the top.
So so glad to hear you are enjoying the recipe!
This was our first attempt at chia pudding and we’ve now made 2 separate batches. We doubled the instant espresso powder the second time around to really punch up that coffee flavor. This was AMAZING and that ‘caramel’ sauce is magic. Pure magic. I don’t understand how those 3 ingredients taste like caramel, but they do and its fantastic.
Thank you for this recipe. Its nice to have a dessert recipe to feel good about, and with no refined sugar!
★★★★★
Hi Tara! Thank you so much for your review! I am so glad you are enjoying the recipe :)