I’ve lengthy been a breakfast individual. Not an elaborate breakfast individual, per se, however the sort who merely can’t skip the meal if she needs to be purposeful previous 11 a.m. For the final 10 years of my life, my standby has been oatmeal. A number of oatmeal. Typically packaged, not very fancy, and adorned with only a splash of almond milk and a spoon of nut butter.
However earlier this summer season, I fell into an oatmeal rut. It simply wasn’t working for me anymore. I used to be too scorching—all the time, however particularly every morning, as I emerged from the weighted blanket I insist on utilizing year-round. The oatmeal was making me sweat, and I wished to chill down.
I wanted one thing else: a breakfast possibility that was simply as fast, simple, handy, and nourishing as my oatmeal, however not as stifling. Cereal and yogurt are each nos for me—the previous isn’t filling and satisfying sufficient, and as for the latter, I can’t abdomen a considerable amount of dairy very first thing within the morning. So I attempted chia seed pudding. Quickly, I bought into the behavior of stopping by a counter-service café on my approach to the workplace, spending $6.75 on a completely pleasant bowl of it.
However right here’s the factor about my $6.75 breakfast: While you eat it three days per week, it turns into $20.25 of chia seed pudding. In a month, that’s $81. To me, that felt like some huge cash spent on a meals that matches within the palm of my hand and takes about 45 seconds to eat (maybe two minutes at most if I’m being significantly conscious).
Finally, I had a small epiphany: What if I made my very own? I hadn’t thought-about this earlier than solely as a result of the dish felt like such a deal with: somewhat vanilla-y, with some puréed mango, one other nameless seed sprinkled in, and some dried goji berries on prime. I like to prepare dinner, and do most nights, however some dishes really feel like they’re too complicated—even simply in taste—to duplicate. (Primarily, I used to be pondering, the place the hell am I going to get mango purée, as a result of I absolutely is not going to be making that alone.)
That stated, I do know loads of folks do make their very own chia seed pudding—it’s heralded as an “simple” at-home breakfast. And there was an precise human at my café, making the small containers of pudding every morning, which meant that it was bodily doable for me to do it, too. So I made a decision I’d give it a shot.
I’ll skip forward to my thesis right here: I feel that it’s best to attempt it.
I had the fundamental substances at dwelling, which I discovered from a easy Google search: chia seeds and a few number of milk. Essentially the most intimidating ingredient was time: To eat it after I wished, I’d need to make it forward. (The seeds need to soak in a refrigerated setting—extra on this later.) May I develop into the kind of one who preps their breakfast the evening earlier than? I wasn’t constructive, however I’ll attempt something as soon as, particularly if I can do it in my pajamas.