You make the big decision to
eat for wellness not just for weight loss.
This means adhering to a diet largely consisting of plants, quality
proteins, good fats and oils, lower sugar intake, and other
nutrient-dense foods.
Not too long into this radically enormous lifestyle change, the
unthinkable happens—you begin to crave chocolate! What’s a junkie
turned health-foodie to do?!
This craving demands some serious and immediate attention or else those addictive
Trader Joe’s
milk chocolate caramel balls that you’ve successfully been avoiding are
gonna find their way off the shelf and into your palm. And once that
happens…I shudder to think.
Some Chocolate May Be Good for You
Fortunately,
not all chocolate is created equally.
Those that are laden with sugar and dairy additives are not the optimum
choices. However recent studies show that the darker the chocolate—the
kind with a high percentage of antioxidant-rich cocoa—the better. In
fact, I wrote an entire article about how chocolate can be good for your
skin
here and in what amounts.
Emotional Eating
You may also be interested in exploring what brought on this craving
from an emotional perspective. For a FANTASTIC article that delves into
the emotions associated with specific food cravings, click on
this link.
In the article, Linda Wojcik, a nutritional kinesiologist and
spiritual intuitive, explains how emotions get stuck and need to be
fed. She says, “When we choose to live
in the emotion instead of choosing to
move through the emotion…it becomes a repetitive pattern. Eventually, through repetition, this energy finds a place to call home within our bodies.”
As it turns out, chocolate, caffeine, and/or sugar seem to feed
several stuck emotions like disappointments, frustration, obsessive
thoughts and behavior, as well as anger. (Surprise, surprise!)
Until reaching such resolution,
here’s the edible antidote to the chocolate yearning.
Follow the link to the recipe for homemade almond milk to make this
raw. It can be vegan—just swap out the honey. And it’s deeeeluscious.
So instead of feeding your emotions, you will be nourishing your body and soul healthfully.
The original recipe can be found on About.com. I’ve adapted it with a few tweaks that boost the nutritional profile, but it is mainly the same since it came out so yummy.
Raw Chocolate Banana Milkshake:
You will need:
- 2 whole, ripe bananas
- 3-4 T. raw cacao powder, cocoa powder, or cacao/maca blend
- 1/4 C. raw organic honey Replace raw honey with maple syrup for the vegan alternative.
- 1/4 cup raw organic creamy almond butter
- 3 cups unsweetened vanilla almond milk (click here for a recipe to make your own), vanilla coconut milk, or other vanilla-flavored dairy-free milk alternative.
- 1/2 cup ice cubes (or pre-frozen, chopped bananas instead)
Preparation:
Place all the ingredients in the blender. Blend until smooth and
creamy. Serve immediately. The original recipe suggests garnishing
with shredded dark dairy-free chocolate. If someone wanted to SERVE it
to me that way, I’d take it.
Other Variations:
I LOVE add-ons in a smoothie because you can rarely distinguish the flavors, so it’s a great way to sneak in extra nutrition.
Avocado
is a favorite of mine since it boasts close to 20 essential
health-boosting nutrients and allows the flavors of the smoothie to
remain in tact. Coconut oil makes a wonderful addition too. Both these
healthy fat options can replace the nut butter, in case of nut
allergy. (We will have to discuss
good fats and oils in another post! For now, the link leads to an informative blog post written by a naturopath about healthy fats and oils.)
A few tablespoons of hemp seeds, a splash of aloe vera juice, a small
handful of greens (like spinach), a tablespoon of nutritional oils,
and/or a cup of frozen or fresh raspberries or strawberries enhance the
recipe.
Sip slowly and satisfy the urge! It is so filling that you will
not be hungry for hours, nor will your blood sugar spike then dip
suddenly. That’s why it makes a terrific breakfast or after-workout
high protein/good carb fix.
Find out what makes this shake so awesome:
Bananas High in vitamin B6, vitamin C, manganese, fiber, and potassium.
Raw organic cacao Great source of magnesium,
calcium, zinc, iron, copper, and potassium. To read about the difference
between raw cacao and cocoa powder, Nourish My Life blog offers a thorough and well-referenced discussion.
Maca powder Adds a dose of vitamins, minerals,
amino acids and sterols that can support general health, immune
function, boost stamina, enhance libido, regulate hormones, and reduce
exhaustion.
Raw organic honey Packed with live enzymes, vitamins, minerals and antioxidants, and healing agents.
Maple Syrup Not to be confused by the imposters called “pancake syrup” or “breakfast syrup,” real maple syrup comes in several grades. It’s an excellent source of manganese and zinc, both immune boosters among other benefits.
Raw organic almond butter Excellent source of
protein and high in Vitamin E and Manganese. (The original recipe calls
for raw peanut butter which is technically a legume and many people are
allergic to it, so I opted out. Cashew butter and other nut butters
work nicely too.)
Related articles
Photo Credits
- From Cupcakes to Crossfit Blog
- NPR.org
