Sue's Nutrition Buzzchocolate Archives

Healthy Chocolate Bars With Fruit Nuts & Coconut #SundaySupper

All Natural Healthy Chocolate Bars with cranberries, almonds, nut butter and coconut oil!! Yummy, just what I need for my sweet tooth! My Sunday Supper team is doing an April Showers theme to celebrate baby showers, bridal showers and more. I love showers and jumped in with my healthy chocolate bars. Every time I was pregnant I was craving sweet and since I had gestational diabetes I could not afford to eat sugar, so turning to healthy sweets was my only choice. I wish someone had made me these healthy chocolate bars which don’t taste one bit healthy. Let’s see, a dark chocolate base with sunflower seed butter, coconut oil and a generous sprinkling of cranberries, coconut flakes and almonds doesn’t sound too bad does it? There’s so much texture and flavor in these bars it’s pretty amazing and best of all its super easy to make. Melt, mix and set! No Bake!! The texture was great and they were so satisfying!! You can use any nut butter, dried fruit and nuts of your choice. Use vegan chocolate chips to make this a vegan healthy chocolate bar. Chocolate bar is also Pretty Paleo for all the Paleo fans!! I am taking this sweet treat to the next shower I am invited to and I am not telling them that these are healthy chocolate bars !!

Nutrition Wise!

Dark chocolate has a healthy dose of antioxidants and heart protective phenols! Nut butter and nuts contain a healthy dose of fats that are needed for healthy body function. Coconut oil and coconut meat are high in immune boosting nutrients and contain a fat that gets burnt as fuel as soon as it is ingested. To read my post on why I like coconut, click here ! Add some tart super fruit cranberry to this and you have healthy chocolate bars loaded with good stuff!

Healthy Chocolate Bars with Fruit & Nut

Print recipe

Serves	16-20
Dietary	Gluten Free, Vegan, Vegetarian
Meal type	Dessert, Snack
Misc	Child Friendly, Freezable, Gourmet, Pre-preparable

Ingredients

1 cup semi sweet dark chocolate chips (or vegan dark chocolate chips)
1 cup sunflower seed butter (or any nut butter)
1/2 cup coconut oil
1 tbsp brown sugar (optional)
1 cup cranberries (or other dried fruit)
1 cup almonds
1 cup unsweetened coconut flakes

Note

Use vegan chocolate chips to make this recipe vegan. If using sweetened coconut flakes, skip the sugar.

Directions


	Heat chocolate chips, coconut oil, sugar and peanut butter till it all melts

	Quickly mix in coconut flakes, cranberries and almonds

	Pour into a greased pan and set in refrigerator for am hour till set

Check out what the rest of my Sunday Supper team is bring to the shower ! You may get some great shower ideas

Starters, Appetizers & Snacks

Pesto Tortilla Pinwheels from Home Cooking Memories
Honey Pecan Baked Brie from Supper for a Steal
Pinenut stuffed Dates from The Not So Cheesy Kitchen
Glazed Pecans from Mama’s Blissful Bites
Bloody Mary Shrimp Cocktail from A Stack of Dishes
Mini Curry Chicken Salad Phyllo Cups from The Weekend Gourmet
Mushroom and Feta Bites from Small Wallet, Big Appetite
Antipasti Bites from Blueberries And Blessings
Spinach Dip in a Pumpernickel Bowl from The Foodie Patootie
Parmesan and Mushroom Focaccia from Basic N Delicious

Soups, Salads & Sandwiches

London Ritz’s Tea Sandwiches from My Cute Bride
Mini Shrimp & Egg Salad Sandwiches from The ROXX Box
Broccoli Bacon Salad from Country Girl In The Village
Chicken Salad on Endive from Magnolia Days
Creamy Asparagus Soup Shooters with Shrimp from Gourmet Drizzles
Alphabet Soup from Cindy’s Recipes and Writings

Main Dishes

Savory Cheesy Kale Tart with Chiles from Shockingly Delicious
Penne Ala Vodka from I Run For Wine
Easy Baked Ziti from Momma’s Meals
French Country Flat Pie from Webicurean
Crustless Spinach Quiche from Family Foodie

Cakes

Vanilla Cake with White Chocolate Buttercream from That Skinny Chick Can Bake
Strawberry Shortcake Push Pops from Hezzi-D’s Books and Cooks
Mini Vanilla Bean Cupcakes with Vanilla Buttercream Frosting from Damn Delicious
Coconut Rum Cake from The Foodie Army Wife
No Bake Lemon Cheesecakes Shots {Two Ways} from Cravings of a Lunatic
Japanese Wedding Cupcakes from NinjaBaking.com
Baby Blue Cake Pops from Neighborfood
Strawberry Buttermilk Scones from Vintage Kitchen

Cookies, Brownies & Dessert Bars

Lemon Sandwich Cookies with Pink Lemon Curd from The Girl In The Little Red Kitchen
Chocolate Covered Mcaroons from Gotta Get Baked
Pastel Pizzelles from Growing Up Gabel
Chocolate-Balsamic Macaroons from Foxes Love Lemons
Raspberry Lemonade Thumbprint Cookies from In The Kitchen With KP
Baklava Crisps from Kudos Kitchen by Renee
Healthy Chocolate Bars with Fruit, Nuts & Coconut from Sue’s Nutrition Buzz
Fudgy Carob Brownies from Pies and Plots
Pistachio Biscotti from Curious Cuisiniere

Sweet Treats

Shortbread Maple Cream Freezer Tart from A Beautiful Bite
Espresso Panna Cotta from Crazy Foodie Stunts
Bite-Size Pecan Tarts from Juanita’s Cocina
Brigadeiros from Food Lust People Love
Rosewater Raspberry Meringues from girlichef

Drink Recipes

Slushy Mango Mojito from The Urban Mrs.
Pretty in Pink Punch from Noshing With The Nolands
Pink Lemonade from Peanut Butter and Peppers

Join our #SundaySupper Chat!

One of the best parts of #SundaySupper is our weekly Twitter chat. If you love food, you definitely want to join us! Just follow the hashtag #SundaySupper on Twitter this Sunday, April 21st at 7pm EST, and we’ll be chatting about food and fun for baby showers, bridal showers, and parties!

Xocolatl : Dark Chocolate Coffee Beans Give You A Delish Caffeine Dose

Sunithi Selvaraj, RD @ 4.05.2012 A-Z Blogging Challenge 5 comments

Blogging the letter X in the A-Z Blogging challenge . Was Xrtemely difficult to find a topic. Then I hit on Xocolatl (Ancient Aztec for chocolate ) and decided to make dark chocolate covered coffee beans . Two terrific flavors : coffee and chocolate come together in this mouth-watering recipe !! Eat them as a snack especially when you need a caffeine boost or sprinkle them over desserts ! Chocolate, especially dark gives you a high dose of antioxidants and magnesium . Coffee beans will give you pure unadulterated caffeine . Team the two together for a heady ” wake me up” treat. This recipe is super simple and has just 2 ingredients. You can make them diabetic friendly by using unsweetened dark chocolate and agave nectar. Be creative ! Add a dash of mint or cinnamon to the recipe if you wish.

Messing around with Chocolate and Coffee is FUN !!

Print

Chocolate Covered Coffee Beans

Rating: 41

Make this recipe diabetic friendly by adding un sweetened dark chocolate and 1 tbsp of agave nectar

Ingredients

I/2 cup roasted coffee beans ( expresso beans if desired)

1cup dark chocolate chips or 100 gms dark chocolate

Wax paper

Instructions

Heat chocolate in a saucepan till melted.

Stir in coffee beans till coated with chocolate

Lift gently with fork and place on wax paper

Let cool and freeze for 4-5 hrs

Remove with a palette knife and store in an airtight container.

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http://www.suesnutritionbuzz.com/2012/05/04/xocolatl-dark-chocolate-covered-coffee-beans-to-give-you-a-boost-recipe/

To read more in my A- Z Blogging challenge, click here and check back tomorrow to read my post on the letter Y. I am going to share a yogurt based cool summer soup !

Fuel Up With This Choco Banana Peanut Butter Power Smoothie

Sunithi Selvaraj, RD @ 28.02.2012 recipes 63 comments

Dream up a creamy, chocolate banana split sprinkled with nuts that’s super healthy. I have it in a smoothie. This is one of my favorite smoothies and is a HOT favorite in my home. My entire family including the kids have this for breakfast at least 3 times a week. It super easy to whip up and keeps me full and energetic for hours … at least till my stomach signals lunch. Nutrient wise it is packed with protein, potassium and healthy fats which make it a power blaster. What better way to fuel your body than this tasty healthy treat which is why this is a favorite breakfast smoothie of mine. You can make it with any kind of milk : soymilk, rice milk, almond milk, lactaid etc. If you’re not a huge fan of peanut butter, substitute with walnuts or chia seeds which will give you the same healthy fat benefits. Chocolate lovers, this is for you !If you want to read my confessions as a chocoholic: check here.

Nutrition Nuts and Bolts about the key Ingredients

Almond Milk : high in Vitamin E and a good source of bone healthy calcium and Vitamin D.

Chocolate : I like to use Ovaltine, Nesquik when I make it for the kids since they are not huge fans of dark chocolate. You can also use chocolate syrup, cocoa or a dark chocolate mix. I like Hershey’s Dark Cocoa Mix and Endangered Species Dark Chocolate which are about 85% pure cocoa and rich in antioxidants.

Banana : Frozen bananas are so much better for smoothies ! Next time you have those overripe bananas just peel and toss into a Ziploc and freeze for the next smoothie. Packed with potassium and other nutrients, banana was believed to be a complete food in the olden times.

Whey protein: Adds protein without the heavy feeling you get in canned shakes. I like whey because it blends easily and is easily absorbed by the body

Flax Oil :Just half a teaspoon can add so much in terms of omega 3 and healthy fats to the shake. I use it and my kids are used to it but you may want to add just half the dose before you go full strength. It adds a creamy feel to the shake.

Stevia/ Agave nectar/ Honey : To sweeten the smoothie I use stevia since I count calories but for the kids I use agave nectar and honey.

Choco Banana Peanut Butter Power Smoothie

Yield: 1 seving

Make the creamy, healthy, omega 3, protein packed high potassium treat with any kind of milk.

Ingredients

Almond Milk -1 cup
Frozen or fresh banana – 1
Chocolate mix or dark cocoa mix or chocolate syrup – 1- 2 tbsps or 4 pieces Dark Chocolate.
Whey protein – 1 tbsp
Peanut Butter – 1 tbsp or walnuts – 2 tbs or Chia seeds – 1 tbsp
Flax oil – 1 tbsp
Stevia – 2 tsp or 2 packets

Instructions

Blend together Almond milk with the frozen banana, flax oil, and chocolate mix. If using pieces of chocolate, melt them in hot water or a microwave for a few seconds before adding them.
Add Whey protein, peanut butter and stevia and blend till smooth
Decorate with some chocolate shavings or whip cream for the special touch and enjoy.
If your’e a coffee luving person, add 1/2 tsp of instant coffee to give it a nice touch of Mocha !

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For more yummy healthy smoothies check out Smoothie Central !!