Chocolate cravings should not be taken lightly. The trick is to find the purest, healthiest way to address them. This creamy pudding will nourish you with dark chocolate and omega-3 fatty acid-rich coconut oil and raw almond butter.

¼ cup raw, creamy almond butter
¼ cup organic medjool dates, pitted
¼ cup raw cacao powder
1 ripe banana
1 tablespoon pure coconut oil (can be solid)
1 teaspoon vanilla
Pinch pink Himalayan sea salt
1/8 cup water (add in stages to get desired consistency)

Combine ingredients in a food processor and process until smooth. Serve with fresh berries. Serves 4.

These bars are delicious and super satisfying…but they need to be kept in the freezer to stay in “bar” shape. If you travel with them in a ziplock back they will break apart but taste the same. Your hands will get messy making them. Have fun!

½ cup almonds
½ cup walnuts
½ cup pecans
½ cup cashews
½ cup pumpkin seeds
*note: all the nuts and seeds above should be raw and unsalted
½ cup raw cacao nibs
½ cup goji berries
¼ cup shredded coconut flakes (no sugar – check label!)
2 tablespoons raw cacao powder
4 tablespoons of honey (raw and local is best)
1 cup organic medjool dates, pits removed and firmly packed
¼ teaspoon Himalayan sea salt
¼ teaspoon cinnamon

Process the raw cocao powder, the honey and the medjool dates in the bowl of a food processor until creamy, periodically scraping down the sides of the bowl. Roughly chop the nuts by placing them in a plastic ziplock bag and crushing them with the flat side of a meat tenderizer or the back of metal spoon. Blend in a large bowl by hand all the remaining ingredients, including the chocolate mixture. Spread in one flat layer onto a 9×13 inch pan. You will need to rub your hands with olive oil so you can press the mixture down into the pan evenly without it sticking to your fingers. Chill in the freezer for at least 6 hours. Remove the pan, score and then cut into bar size pieces. Return the bars to the freezer in an air-tight container until ready to serve.

Makes 8-10 bars.

This is an all-time favorite in our house. Pure dark chocolate is a powerful antioxidant and high in fiber. Also dark chocolate is a potent mood booster. Just what we need to start the new year and keep us happy all winter long!

1 cup unsweetened organic almond milk, heated to a simmer (Pacific Vanilla)
2 tablespoons organic 100% chocolate powder (Navitas Naturals Raw Cacao Powder)
3 tablespoons agave nectar (I order this raw organic amber variety in a glass bottle from Natural Zing)

Begin by heating the almond milk until it’s simmering. Remove from the heat and set aside. In a mug mix the chocolate powder, agave and a drop of the almond milk with a small whisk until completely combined. It will form a very thick chocolate syrup – this takes patience – it will eventually combine. Slowly add the remaining hot almond milk to the mug and continue whisking to combine.

Makes 1 serving of very rich and delicious hot chocolate.

I’m always looking for great ways to add more chia seeds into my life and this pumpkin pudding is the perfect vehicle. Chia seeds are a fantastic plant-based source of essential fatty acids or EFA’s, even better than flax. Chia seeds are also a great source of protein, have 5 times the calcium of milk, and more iron and potassium than spinach and bananas. Wow!

Many thanks to Angela at Oh She Glows! I doubled her recipe in my Healthy Cooking 101 class yesterday and everyone loved it. All my cravings for pumpkin pie filling were satisfied and without the guilt. This will be in my fridge all winter long.

1 ½ cups unsweetened vanilla almond milk
2 cups canned organic pumpkin
4 tablespoons whole chia seeds (I used Navitas Naturals)
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground ginger
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
4 tablespoons 100% pure maple syrup

In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together all ingredients until combined and no clumpy bits remain. Place bowl in the fridge to thicken and chill for 1-2 hours or overnight. I served mine with organic raisins and toasted pecans.

My friend Adrienne introduced me to this delicious smoothie. It’s pure heaven, creamy and dreamy. Make sure to look for peanut butter which contains only peanuts and salt. Leave the sugar and palm oil behind and never look back. I like the brands The Peanut Butter Company and Crazy Richard’s (in the photo). For a great Omega-3 fatty acid boost add a tablespoon of ground Chia seeds from Navitas Naturals. The powder will not affect the taste so as long as friends and family don’t see you adding it they will love the smoothie and never know!

1 cup unsweetened almond, hazelnut or rice milk
1 frozen banana (see tip below)
1 tablespoon all natural peanut butter (check the label – no sugar or palm oil)
1 tablespoon ground chia seed powder

Combine all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. You can add a handful of ice to make a thicker and colder smoothie. Makes 12 ounces (1 large serving).

Tip:
Frozen bananas add instant creaminess. The easiest way to use them is to peel ripe bananas and then break each banana into 6 equal size pieces. Put all the chunks into a ziplock bag and then straight into the freezer. The bananas will keep this way for 2-3 weeks. When you use them in your smoothies you will remember, 6 chunks = 1 whole banana.

Note:
Almonds have more nutritional value than peanuts so for an upgrade you can substitute 100% pure almond butter for the peanut butter.

Welcome to my new website and blog!

With my Healthy Girl blog I’m committed to bringing you great tasting, nutrient packed recipes utilizing whole, organic and unprocessed ingredients. You will not find chemicals, additives or refined sweeteners here. I’m a passionate and creative cook…always coming up with my own new recipes and tweaking old ones. I’d like to share some of them with you.

I’m starting things off with chocolate chip cookies! Tried and true and bursting with craving satiating goodness.

Crazy idea but these cookies are so darn healthy that I offer them for breakfast. Who could argue with organic oatmeal, almonds, pure unrefined coconut oil, dark chocolate and banana? Supremely kid-friendly and adult addictive.

All organic ingredients:

3 large, ripe bananas, well mashed (about 1 ½ cups)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup unrefined coconut oil -in liquid form (you may need to soak the container in a bowl of warm water to raise the temperature and turn it to liquid)
2 cups rolled oats (not instant oats, gluten free if necessary)
2/3 cup almond meal (finely ground almonds in the flour section of Whole Foods)
1/3 cup coconut, finely shredded & unsweetened, no sugar – read label!
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon fine grain sea salt or kosher salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup chocolate chips (organic and grain sweetened – see note below)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl combine the bananas, vanilla extract, and coconut oil. Set aside. In another bowl whisk together the oats, almond meal, shredded coconut, cinnamon, salt and baking powder. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and stir until combined. Fold in the chocolate chunks or chips. Drop spoonfuls of the dough, each about 1 tablespoon in size and one inch apart (optional: line the pan with parchment paper or Silpat lined baking sheet for easy clean-up). You will need to mash each cookie slightly with the back of a fork because they will not flatten and spread when baking. Bake for 12 – 15 minutes. Careful not to burn.

Makes 3 dozen cookies.

Note:
I like to use a dark chocolate bar like Endangered Species 72% (dairy and gluten free) dark chocolate chopped into chunks instead of the chocolate chips. You can also vary the recipe by adding dried fruit and nuts instead of chocolate. Walnuts and dried cranberries (no sugar) are a great combo. Add 1/2 cup of each.