This delicious pumpkin cheesecake protein chia seed pudding is loaded with the nutrition of pumpkin, protein from creamy cottage cheese, and plant based protein and fiber from chia seeds making it the perfect way to start your day all season long!

pumpkin cottage cheese high protein chia seed pudding.

One key component of building a breakfast that will actually keep you feeling full and satisfied is to make sure you include enough protein. With many breakfast foods higher in carbohydrates, finding some high protein breakfast options can feel like a challenge… especially if you don’t like eggs.

While eggs are a fantastic protein to include at breakfast time, there are actually tons of other high protein breakfast foods for you to choose from without needing to scramble anything. Greek yogurt. Silken tofu. Protein smoothies. Or one my personal favorites, chia pudding, are a few ideas.

Chia pudding is an excellent breakfast to reach for because it’s easy to meal prep, full of healthy fats and fiber, and can be loaded with protein. Didn’t sell you on it yet? Don’t worry, this pumpkin cheesecake protein chia seed pudding will!

Made with 100% pumpkin puree and loaded with protein from cottage cheese, milk, and chia seeds, this high protein chia seed pudding is as full of fall flavor as it is of satisfying protein! Plus, it’s meal prep friendly and the perfect high protein breakfast to reach for when you are in a hurry in the morning.

This is one of my favorite recipes on the blog and I think you are going to love it too! Let’s get to it:

overhead photos of high protein chia seed pudding with pumpkin cottage cheese.

Why you’ll love this recipe:

There is a reason why this high protein chia seed pudding with pumpkin cottage cheese is one of my favorite recipes on the entire blog because honestly, there is a lot to love about it. This recipe is:

Full of fall flavors: Pumpkin cheesecake is a classic dessert in the fall so of course we needed to include the flavors. The pumpkin comes from pumpkin puree and spice while the cheesecake flavor actually comes from blended cottage cheese. Pumpkin cottage cheese, unite!
Meal prep friendly: This recipe can be prepped and stored in the refrigerator for 3 to 5 days to be enjoyed throughout the week.
Loaded with plant based foods: Pumpkin and chia seeds are two very nutritious ingredients that help you get more plant based foods into your diet.
Protein rich: This high protein chia seed pudding recipe has around 30 grams of protein (15 grams per serving) that come from blended cottage cheese, fair life milk, and chia seeds.
Fiber filled: This recipe has roughly 18 grams of fiber, or 9 per serving. Chia seeds are incredibly rich in fiber and the brand of chia seeds that I used has 8 grams of fiber per 2 tbsp serving. The pumpkin puree also adds 3 grams of fiber per 1/2 cup serving.
Easy to make: No special cooking skills needed. You’ll just need a blender, a glass container, and a little bit of patience to get this recipe ready to enjoy!

You’re going to love this healthy chia seed pudding recipe. Now let’s chat about the ingredients that you will need to pull together this super easy breakfast:

pumpkin pie spice on high protein chia pudding.

Ingredients:

Alright, let’s chat about what you will need for this recipe. This protein chia seed pudding gets its protein from chia seeds, milk, and cottage cheese (which is also the ingredient that adds the cheesecake flavor). Then, we add in some fall flavors with pumpkin puree and pumpkin spice!

For the toppings, I recommend adding some vanilla greek yogurt and some crushed graham crackers or Simple mills honey cinnamon sweet thins. Don’t have the crackers? Don’t worry, the vanilla greek yogurt is delicious on it’s own:

Here’s what you will need:

100% pumpkin puree: be sure to buy 100% pumpkin.
Cottage Cheese: This is our primary protein source in this recipe and it also adds the cheesecake flavor! Plus, you don’t have to worry about any of the texture coming through because we are using blended cottage cheese.
Milk: I recommend using Fairlife milk for the protein boost but you could use any milk you would like!
Chia seeds: A necessary ingredient for all chia seed pudding.
Maple syrup: You could also use brown sugar or honey.
Pumpkin pie spice: To really enhance the fall flavors.
Vanilla extract: To add flavor depth.
Toppings: Vanilla greek yogurt and/or crushed graham crackers or sweet thins are the best toppings for this recipe.

ingredients for healthy pumpkin cheesecake recipes.

Step by Step Instructions:

One of the reasons why I recommend chia seed pudding as a high protein, egg free breakfast is because it’s so easy to prepare and perfect for meal prep. Here’s how you will make this pumpkin cheesecake chia pudding:

Add your pumpkin, cottage cheese, fairlife milk, vanilla, maple syrup, and pumpkin pie spice to a blender or blender cup then blend until smooth.

2. Place your blended pumpkin cheesecake mix in a medium glass container.

image of blended cottage cheese with pumpkin in a glass bowl.

3. Stir in your chia seeds, cover, and refrigerate overnight.

chia seeds mixed in to blended cottage cheese with pumpkin.

4. In the morning, stir your high protein chia seed pudding and then place it in two glass containers if you want to split the servings. Top with vanilla greek yogurt and crushed graham crackers (optional) and enjoy cold!

overhead image of protein chia pudding with pumpkin pie spice on top.

Swaps and substitutions:

Aside from how easy, delicious, and nutritious this recipe is, another great thing about it is that it is super customizable and can be tailored to exactly how you like it:

No cottage cheese? No worries! You can easily swap the cottage cheese for vanilla greek yogurt.
Change your toppings: I think vanilla greek yogurt is the perfect, nutritious topping for this recipe but you can also top it with just graham crackers, chocolate chips, blended cottage cheese, or whipped cream cheese!
Make it sugar free: You can skip the maple syrup entirely or opt for a sugar free syrup option for a little sweetness without the added sugar.
Add more of the cheesecake flavor: You can do this by blending in 1-2 tablespoons of cream cheese or stirring in whipped cream cheese.

There really are so many different ways that you can serve this recipe.

bite of high protein chia seed pudding topping with vanilla greek yogurt.

Recipe FAQ:

How to store chia pudding?
1. Chia seed pudding should be stored in the refrigerator and can be kept for 3 to 5 days. Note that the longer the chia seeds sit, the more they will swell and the thicker your chia pudding will become.
Help, it still looks runny after I mixed in my chia seeds?
1. Don’t worry, it will thicken! Chia seeds swell as they absorb the liquid in the pumpkin cheesecake mix and you will be left with a thick, pudding like texture in the morning.
Can I warm up this protein chia pudding?
1. I recommend enjoy this recipe cold!

Other breakfast recipes you may love:

Chocolate Protein Chia Seed Pudding

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Blueberry Raspberry Smoothie

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Savory Cottage Cheese Toast

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Yield: 2

Author: Lauren Twigge