Happy Monday!
Here is a recipe I created for a little treat that will give you lots of energy without spiking your blood sugar. The hubby and I have just started the maintenance phase of our second round of the HCG diet and after 40 days of no treats we were looking to make a sweet little treat that had no starch and no sugar...not an easy task. He chose to make some artisan dark chocolates and I chose to make something a little less chocolatey because I'm not a fan of dark chocolate (gasp! I know, right).
Doing the HGC diet, overseen by our amazing Doctor of Natural Medicine, has certainly been interesting. I have lost over thirty pounds since October and it really makes me think about what I am putting into my body and how my body feels about it!
This recipe IS high in fat, particularly saturated fat because there is quite a bit of butter, however, our thinking about fat is changing too, thanks to the documentary "Fat Head" and the website deliciouslyorganic.net. Read what Carrie has to say about fat in our diets here and here. She also lists several other resources on this particular issue.
If you choose to watch "Fat Head" and I recommend it, commit to watching the whole (2 hour) movie...stick through the first half...I know it sounds like the guy is making a case for fast food...but that's not what it's about, even though it seems to take a while to get to the point. Here is a sneak peak...
and...
The Recipe:
Chocolate Almond Coconut Bites
Created By: Marie Bregg @makingmarie
Scroll to the bottom for the recipe and nutrition info.
First off, you might need to go shopping. I know I did, here's what I bought:
Coconut Flour, UNsweetened Coconut Flakes, 100% cacao chocolate, and SweetLeaf Brand Stevia or your sweetener of choice.
SweetLeaf is the brand of Stevia I use, you can buy it in a 100g or so jar. Not all Stevias are created equal, some are much more pure and therefore incredibly potent, and some have been chemically processed beyond recognition. I like this brand, but if you can't find it then I would just start with a small amount and taste the recipe as you go. I might be trying coconut sugar when we are off HCG maintenance because it has a GI rating of (only) 35.
Gather your coconut flour, almonds, coconut flakes/shreds and stevia and throw them into a food processor or blender and give them a few quick pulses, not too much.
Stevia can get clumpy, so I find that mixing the stevia at this point is easiest.
However, if you have to add it later, or you want to add more, be careful and sprinkle it evenly over your recipe before you stir it in :)
Now you need to melt your butter and your chocolate.
If you have a double boiler, then this is the job it was made for. If you don't have a double boiler you can easily make one. You need a smallish pan of water put on the stove on low, and a glass or metal bowl that will set on top of the pan without touching the water below.
Add your chocolate, butter and vanilla to the bowl and patiently wait for it to melt. Stir every few minutes until it is all melted and blended together.
I added my butter and chocolate separately as you can see in the pictures because the hubby and I were sharing a pot of melted chocolate for two different recipes. It doesn't matter which way you do it, but measuring out the chocolate while it is solid and melting them together is the easiest (and creates fewer dishes). :)
Now mix your dry ingredients and your melted ingredients together. Again, if I were doing this again, I would add my dry ingredients to the bowl that held the melty stuff and have one less dish to wash.
This photo was taken with the butter and vanilla added but not the chocolate....
Now that all of the ingredients are mixed together, I like to pause to taste the dough and add a pinch of sea salt for flavor. Also, if you LOOOVE dark chocolate, this is the time you might want to consider melting and adding a bit more. Both these steps are completely up to you and your tastebuds.
I have a 1 tbsp. cookie scoop that works perfectly for this treat, if you don't you will have to work a little bit harder to get dough balls. With my cookie scoop, I grab some dough then pack the dough in a little bit with my thumb...the dough is crumbly so this packing process helps it stick together. If you don't have a scoop then squeeze about a tablespoon of dough inside your palm and then gently roll it into shape.
Once all your dough is used, place the treats into the fridge for 30 minutes or more to set. You can use this time to clean up your little mess...
Don't forget to scrape the bowl! nom nom!
Happy snacking!
Makes about 18 "bites" maybe 19 depending on how much of the dough you eat while you are cooking ;)
Calorie content is for one 'bite'
Ingredients:
1/3 cup unsweetened coconut flakes or shreds
1/3 cup raw whole almonds
30 grams (or more to taste) 100% cacao baking chocolate
7.5 T. salted butter
1/2 cup coconut flour
1 1/4 t. Sweet Leaf Stevia powder
1 t. pure vanilla extract
Directions:
1. Mix all dry ingredients in a food processor, pulsing until chunky, not super fine.
2. Melt chocolate and butter in a double boiler, careful not to overheat and burn.
3. When chocolate mixture is melted add vanilla, stir.
4. Add dry ingredients to wet and stir until combined (will be somewhat crumbly)
5. Add a dash of salt to taste if desired.
6. Scoop or roll 1 T. at a time onto plate or dish.
7. Place in refrigerator for 30 minutes to chill.
8. Eat and enjoy!
Nutritional Facts*
Calories: 85.4
Total Fat: 7.6 g
Saturated 4.3 g
Polyunsaturated 0.2 g
Monounsaturated 0.6 g
Trans 0 g
Cholesterol 12.5 mg
Sodium 38.0 mg
Potassium 20.4 mg
Total Carbs 3.3 g
Dietary Fiber 1.8 g
Sugars 0.3 g
Protein 1.2 g
*this info is meant to be a guide, not exact. It is based on my calculations of the recipe through myfitnesspal.com and does not include and added salt or extra chocolate.
