After nearly running out of everything during one of my recipe testing sessions in the middle of January, I stopped by the store to pick up lots of pantry essentials and baking staples. I pushed my cart up and down the aisles, grabbing flour and cocoa powder and milk and eggs off of the shelves, but then…
I ended up doing a double take halfway done the baking aisle, then pulled my shopping cart backwards to check out the display I had almost missed. My local store had stocked some pretty interesting ingredients, which was so out-of-character for them. Normally, I feel incredibly lucky just to find my favorite brand of whole wheat flour!
As I slowly scanned the shelves, I spotted cashew flour, pecan flour, cauliflower flour, powdered almond butter, and even beet powder. Although totally tempted to grab all of them, especially the cashew flour (my favorite nut!), I ended up reaching for the beet powder and nothing else, reasoning that it was worth the spur-of-the-moment splurge and price tag because I had been meaning to experiment with it as a natural red food coloring for baking recipes. (I’m still tweaking and playing with it, but stay tuned!)
Before heading to the registers to pay for my groceries, I also stopped by the store’s seasonal aisles completely decked out for Valentine’s Day. I smiled at the sight of so many bags of chocolate bars and truffles — Ghirardelli, Lindt, Godiva, Lindor, Hershey’s Dove, Ferrero Rocher — all just as tempting as those semi-exotic baking ingredients… I’m such a chocoholic and will eat (and buy!) it almost every chance I get!
On a second aisle, I noticed different Valentine’s Day decorations and gifts covering every inch of shelf space. Wreaths made of artificial red roses, white stuffed teddy bears with red hearts as their tummies, tiny tin mailboxes for children’s school classroom Valentine’s card exchanges, garlands of paper letters strung together to spell out “I love you” and “Happy Valentine’s Day”…
And oversized coffee mugs covered in X’s, O’s, and dainty hearts that were filled with the ingredients to make microwaved single-serving chocolate mug cakes. I glanced at the instructions and nutrition information included in the packaging, my eyes immediately widening in shock, and quickly returned the mug back to the shelf.
Each chocolate mug cake could’ve easily constituted as three servings of dessert… Not just one!
As I finished perusing the Valentine’s Day displays, my mind wandered back to the adorable coffee mug containing that cake mix. The porcelain mug itself certainly looked so pretty and festive…
But I’d much rather fill it with these homemade Healthy Double Chocolate Biscotti instead! They’re just as decadent and chocolaty as that chocolate mug cake mix looked, yet these are far more sensibly portioned… And they also have no butter, oil, dairy, refined flour or sugar!
Just like my ultimate healthy classic biscotti, the cookies made in this chocolate version are simple and straightforward to bake, deliciously crisp and crunchy, and perfect for dunking in coffee or tea (or even chocolate milk or hot chocolate for an extra chocolaty treat!). They’re also 53 calories!
Continue reading & see the rest! ›› Healthy Double Chocolate Biscotti
0 Comments