Pumpkin Cheesecake Chia Pudding with Praline Crumble will satisfy your fall flavor cravings and soothe a sweet tooth – in a healthier way!

Sweetened with zero-carb stevia (or monk fruit) to keep the carbs down, this no-cook recipe features pumpkin, cottage cheese, and chia seeds, all nutritional powerhouse in their own right.

First, just the fact that chia means “strength” in ancient Mayan culture, speaks for itself. A two-tablespoon serving of chia seeds has 11g fiber, 4g protein and 9g fats (5g of which are coveted Omega 3 fatty acids).  There are so many health benefits of chia seeds! These teeny-tiny seeds absorb up to 8x their weight in liquid and take on a gelatinous texture. The gel-like texture doesn’t appeal to some folks, but you’ll never notice it once it’s mixed in with the creamy (blended!) cottage cheese and pumpkin.

Pumpkin adds even more fiber to the recipe, bringing the fiber count in each serving size of this pumpkin chia pudding recipe up to 14g! That’s a big head start on your total daily recommended amount – 25g dietary fiber for women, or 35g for men. These are these are generalizations, but basically, you should aim to have 14g of fiber from every 1000 calories you eat, regardless of gender.  Pumpkin is also packed with antioxidants, especially beta carotene which is responsible for the signature orange color. Our body’s convert beta carotene into vitamin A, which may help provide some protection against certain cancers and cardiovascular disease, among other benefits.

And blended cottage cheese, that’s my secret life hack to adding more creaminess and protein to recipes. Not a fan of the curds in cottage cheese, so that’s why I always come home from the store and blend my whole container up for use later in various dishes and recipes. There are many creative uses for cottage cheese like this pumpkin spice chia pudding, to stir into oats, smoothies, baked potatoes – and also as a ricotta cheese alternative in lasagna and other recipes of the sort.

The pecan praline topping is very simple to make, it’s just chopped pecans that have been tossed around in a skillet with butter and the sugar alternative of your choice – I used a “brown sugar” monk fruit sweetener, but coconut sugar or date sugar are also options. While the chia puddings are chilling out in the fridge to set up, I make this buttery, rich topping and then let it cool to crumble on top before serving! So delicious!

By the way, I like to meal prep chia pudding in glass jars, a 12-ounce canning jar or jelly jar is just the right size – or 16 ounce will work too! But you also have the options of just keeping batch in one big bow and taking out as much as needed, or using plastic food storage containers. If taking in your gym bag or brown bagging it a lunch, a small insulated container will keep it cold! Whatever’s your preference!

Nutrition Facts: 357 calories, 26g total carb (10g net carb, 16g fiber), 18g protein.

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