Don’t Miss Out On Chocolate Treats!

Don’t Miss Out On Chocolate Treats!
March 2, 2018 Nicola
chocolate as part of a healthy pregnancy diet

Whilst we’re not about to advocate tucking into unlimited chocolate over the Easter period, chocolate is not all bad!

There are plenty of reasons why a slab of dark chocolate (aim for a cocoa percentage of 70% or more) has positive nutritional benefits for pregnant women.
Dark chocolate is packed with beneficial minerals including iron, potassium, zinc and selenium. Studies have shown that chocolate can benefit your heart and circulation, helping to restore flexibility to the arteries, whilst preventing white blood cells from sticking to the walls of your arteries.
Chocolate contains phenylethylamine (PEA) which encourages your brain to release feel-good endorphins, no wonder it makes us happy!
But here’s the best one… a Finnish study found that babies born to chocolate-eating Mammas smiled more often.  Eating chocolate makes your baby smile!!!
Try these delicious treats and boost your pregnancy diet with extra fruit, hidden nutrition… and chocolate!

Chocolate Brownies

Chocolate-y goodness and additional, unexpected nutrition for pregnant women!
We tested this recipe on many willing recipients and nobody guessed the secret, oh-so-virtuous ingredient – lentils!!!!  Include lentils in your pregnancy diet and you’re adding in extra fibre, added protein and a good source of iron.

healthier chocolate brownie recipe perfect for pregnancy diet

Ingredients:

  • 300g of cooked green or black lentils
  • 175g peanut butter
  • 125g dried dates
  • 100g of good quality dark chocolate, grated
  • 1⁄2 ripe banana, mashed
  • 1⁄2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 tablespoon honey
  • 1/2 cup frozen raspberries
  • Small amount of coconut oil to grease the baking tin

Method:

  1. Preheat oven to 3500F / 1800
  2. Lightly grease an 8” square baking tin with the coconut oil
  3. Roughly chop the dates and put them in a bowl and add boiling water so they are just covered
  4. Use a blender or food processor to puree the lentils.
  5. Add the soaked dates, peanut butter, mashed banana and pulse into well mixed.
  6. If the mixture looks too stiff, add the water from the dates until you have a nice, soft consistency.
  7. Tip in the grated chocolate, honey and baking soda and mix well.
  8. Pour the mixture into the baking dish.
  9. Chop the frozen raspberries slightly and sprinkle on top
  10. Bake in oven for 30 minutes. Check – it should be slightly gooey in the middle. Cool, slice and enjoy.

Chocolate and Banana cake

This cake gets its sweetness from the bananas and a modest amount of honey.

Ingredients:

  • 3 ripe bananas, mashed
  • 1/2 cup natural Greek yogurt
  • 1/3 cup honey
  • 1 tsp vanilla essence
  • 2 tbsp crunchy peanut butter
  • 1 egg, lightly beaten
  • 1 ½ cups self-raising flour
  • 1/3 cup cocoa powder
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 cup good quality dark chocolate roughly chopped
  • Small amount of coconut oil for greasing the baking tin

Method:

  1. Preheat the oven to 350º F / 180 ºC
  2. Use the coconut oil to grease the baking tin
  3. Combine the bananas, Greek yogurt, honey, vanilla, and peanut butter in a food processor (or use a large bowl and a hand blender).   Blend until smooth, 1-2 minutes.
  4. Add the egg and mix well
  5. Sieve together the flour, cocoa powder, and baking soda and fold into the mixture
  6. Add the grated chocolate and mix well.
  7. Pour the cake into the prepared tin. Sprinkle additional chocolate chips on top of the cake.
  8. Bake for 25-30 minutes and test with a skewer. It should come out clean (although we prefer it slightly gooey in the centre!

Delicious served warm with an extra dollop of Greek yogurt.

Chocolate and banana cake for you a healthy pregnancy this Easter