Saturday is my day to lolly-gag. I went to Zumba; strolled the aisles of the mall, thrifted at Frenchies and picked up groceries, all at a very leisurely pace. I bought myself some tulips -- not something I do very often. But they spoke of spring and added such color and life to my living room later as I lolly-gagged on the couch reading my book.
We had a family dinner with a new boyfriend (very nice fellow): lasagne, salad and (something not in my diet plan, unfortunately) brownie with ice cream and chocolate sauce. We then worked off our dinner by playing several lively rounds of Phase 10 and Skip-Bo (during which there were spicy potato chips -- also not on my diet plan unfortunately).
Sunday I returned to the straight and narrow: I went to church (and prayed for help with repenting from my unhealthy ways). Then in the afternoon, I did some healthy meal planning and made a treat that I've been wanting to make for months.
Homemade Lara Bars
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1.5 cups Medjool (soft) dates
3/4 cups chopped nuts
2 oz chopped dark chocolate
1-2 Tbsp water (if necessary)
Process the first 3 ingredients in a food processor until well chopped adding a little water, if needed, to bring the mixture together. Press mixture between 2 sheets of wax paper (in a baking dish if you want). Refrigerate for at least 2 hours or freeze for 1/2 hour; then cut into 8 bars. (I cut 16 because I'd used a bigger baking dish.) Wrap individually and store in the refrigerator or freezer.
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These were much easier to make than I'd anticipated (although it took quite a bit of processing.
How do they taste?
Delicious! I fell in love (on my first date ..... & chocolate & nut).
They definitely satisfy my sweet tooth and my chocolate craving. They are gluten free, dairy free, soy free and vegan. They have loads of fibre and many other great nutritional qualities. (10 gms of dates = 23 calories & lots of fiber.) But dates are quite high on the glycemic index, so they must be eaten sparingly if you're on a diet and especially if you have Type 2 diabetes.
Still for me, this is an excellent alternative to reaching for that chocolate bar or store bought cookie. And there are so many variations in how you can make homemade Larabars -- with coconut, peanut butter, cocoa powder, different nuts. If you're interested in these, my recommendation would be to check out Chocolate Covered Katie, the healthy dessert blog (http://chocolatecoveredkatie.com/)
Do you have any healthy dessert tricks to share?
5 comments:
I love desserts, but no not a one of them would be considered very healthy for me. They do say that dark chocolate is good for us, so maybe that counts. I do love your tulips. Hope your Monday is off t a great start!
They sound deslish Sandy! Sounds like you had a fantastic weekend! Angie xo
I follow 2 blogs that are great for health desserts - Oh she glows, and Chocolate covered Katie. Check them out for great ideas!
Darlene
Yummy dessert. Sounds like a perfect weekend.
It has some of the things I love. However I could not have them in the house as I'd eat them all down.
I am cutting out gluten. Not allergic to it but it's not good for my stomach problems. Doing an okay job. Trying to cut down on sugar as I eat way tooooo much.
I was good and purchased an Angel food cake today, strawberries and whipped cream to go on it for dessert after dinner later. Better for me than the chocolate I so desire.
Love the tulips.
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