I give in to my cravings… sometimes
I may have mentioned once, twice or a few times that I have a sweet tooth. Previously I have tried to curb it, go cold turkey or reduce the amount and all that happened is that it led to an epic binge session. It wasn’t pretty and all I felt after was shame (OK maybe a little bit of pride too because have you ever seen anyone put away a mountain of sweets in 10 mins? It was worthy of a Guinness world record). In all seriousness though, the amount of sweets I used to eat was unhealthy. Like, REALLY not healthy.
Fruit has got to be up there as an easy to access, colourful and nutritious snack. This time of year especially, British strawberries are hitting the markets and the range of fruits available is astounding. If you’ve never been to a pick your own farm I recommend you do so, the experience of gathering your own fruit like that is one I personally will never forget. I think it’s close to the pride you feel when you grow your own.
Sometimes I do just snack on fruit and don’t get me wrong. I love it and everything and it makes me feel good for snacking ‘right’ but sometimes it just doesn’t cut it. Then it becomes a matter of what to find that’ll really hit the spot.
These days with my push on a healthier lifestyle and making better choices I’ve been looking for ways to make my favourite treats healthier and thought I’d share them with you. To be honest this all started with a picture a friend posted of some chocolate brownies, they looked immense. I asked her for the recipe and was not disappointed. After making them a couple of times I decided to tweak them a little to suit my macros more. This would also mean I could have two instead of the one I was allowing myself haha.
The original ingredients were:
90g oat/almond flour
60g cacao powder
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
2tbsp coconut oil melted and cooled slightly
2 large eggs room temperature)
1tsp vanilla extract
120ml agave
68g plain non-fat Greek yoghurt
My friend kindly let me share the original recipe so I wanted to show you that as well as how I adapted it. I slightly increased the amount of protein that was in them by upping the Greek yoghurt amount and I also added blocks of dark chocolate as to me there is nothing better than biting into a warm brownie and having melted chocolate pour out… Tell me your mouth isn’t watering as you read this.
110g non fat natural yoghurt
90g almond flour
60g cocoa powder
50g chocolate
2tbsp coconut oil
2 large eggs
3tbsp natural honey
I think my adaptations make the brownies easier to make as you can get hold of all of the ingredients in your local supermarket. I had to go to a health food store to get some agave but it was worth it. Both brownies tasted amazing. Give them a go and let me know what you prefer.
Another recipe I tried was a protein packed, low carb and low fat chocolate mousse. This one is so simple to make it’s unreal, seriously. It consists of two ingredients, non fat natural yoghurt and chocolate flavoured protein powder. Give it a mix and chill before eating. I did try diving in straight away, patience is not MY virtue… but the protein powder needs a little time to blend with the yoghurt. 10 mins and you’re good to go. I love it that much it’s been a part of my breakfast for the past 5 days, I’m a little bit addicted. I shared it with a colleague one day and she thought it tasted like Angel’s delight. Next week I’m using the strawberry protein powder to mix it up a little.
Ok so it’s not all chocolate I like to snack on, but there is a lot of it. There’s nothing wrong with a little of what you fancy as long as it’s part of a balanced diet… right? Non fat Greek and natural yoghurt’s are high in protein and perfect for the sporadic warm weather we’ve been getting. I like to pair it fresh or frozen fruit and then I alternate what goes on it. First up the Kellogg’s granola that I fell in love with when I went to France is perfect for adding texture. The large oaty clusters with chunks of dark chocolate and toasted hazelnuts add a great flavour and crunch to an otherwise smooth dish.
Secondly, if you’ve never tried passion fruit curd now is the time to get all up in that goodness! It’s sweet and tangy and cuts through the sharpness of unsweetened yoghurt perfectly. Thirdly and finally, @nakdwholefoods do a cocoa crunch bar that is the business. It’s chocolatey without being overly sweet and has a great texture to it. 
Are you a rice pudding fan? I love it. Hot or cold depending on the weather. Nearly a year ago now JB and I went to one of Jamie Oliver’s Thai cooking classes at his place on Portobello road and we learnt how to make a baked rice pudding using coconut milk. The flavour was amazing but since then I’ve played around with the recipe to reduce the fat content. I use unsweetened almond milk as a replacement so it is still creamy. Top it with half a frozen snickers chopped up and it’s still less calories than most chocolate bars and even more filling.
Sometimes you really just need a little bit of naughtiness to your treats!
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