Like most of us mere mortals, I'm in the "in-for-a-penny, in-for-a-pound" camp when it comes to chocolate - aka "now I've had one square, I might as well annihilate the entire 500g slab".......ladies and gentlemen, choco-cide. We've all been there. Sadly, this does not make for the greatest enjoyment of said chocolate, which is then tinged with a distinct aftertaste of guilt (which ranges in taste from unpleasant to downright rubbish).
So, of course, again like most of us, I have attempted the odd "de-chox": moments of angelic abstinence during which I renounce all chocolate, once even for up to a month. The problem being, of course, that chocolate then comes back to haunt me in all kinds of unexpected ways: suddenly every love song on the radio seems to be about chocolate (i.e. "you are the closest thing to heaven I have ever known"/"how wonderful life is now you're in the world" etc.); M&S food-porn adverts suddenly escalate to an alarming level, frequently involving melting-middle-chocolate-puddings. In the face of such pressure, what's a girl to do?
Then again, I find I have some issues with the whole "have one square of dark chocolate a night" theory - this, to me, does not count as an indulgence. This counts as Chinese chocolate torture - aka "now you know what it tastes like...you know there's an entire bar left in the cupboard...BUT YOU CAN'T HAVE ANY *queue evil laugh*"...or something like that.
Which begs the question - how the hell does one enjoy chocolate whilst maintaining a healthy, happy relationship with one's jeans? Mmm. Tricky.
What I do love is the 80/20 rule. You probably know about this ever-increasingly-popular philosophy already; essentially, if you stick to a generally healthy diet most of the time, you can feel free to indulge every now and then. Lovely.
However.
The indulgence itself, in that case, has to be worth it. If I'm only allowed to really happily, gutlessly, gleefully indulge in a chocolate-fest 20% of the time, then this has gotta be a chocolate-fest I'm really going to savour.
Which rules out, for me, an average bar of Snickers. Now, don't get me wrong: Snickers might be your Holy Grail of chocolate. Which is great - everyone has a different chocolate paradise. I myself like to hunt out creative options - sure, sometimes all I want is a kitkat/jar of nutella + spoon/doorstep-sized wedge of chocolate fudge cake.
But, over time, I've come to find a few chocolate indulgences that really hit the spot in every way. That's to say, they taste insane AND...wait for it...they're good for you too.
No, that was not a cruel joke. Or a lie.
Now, I like to think that "healthier" indulgences like these allow me to stretch the 80/20 rule to something like a 70/30 rule...maybe even 60/40....maybe I'm wrong, and health experts all over the world are boiling over at that statement, but it seems to work for me. Anyway - I digress.
Here are a couple of my favourites, that I've discovered over time, here and there. They might be up your street, they might not. But they sure do give me a good way to enjoy chocolate without going overboard/feeling guilty/feeling the need to give it up altogether in post-gorge penance.
So let me know what you think - and also if you have any favourite indulgences of your own? Or indulgence "rules" to make the whole thing part of a healthy lifestyle?? Always love to learn more tips - I'm a bit of a lifestyle-tip-hoarder-squirrel-type-thing, actually....
Anyway, enjoy!
First up: Beyond Dark
With roughly 3x the antioxidants of other dark chocolates, 70% darl chocolate with only 189 calories a packet, coming in 3 equally delicious flavours (plain dark, orange and raspberry), it would be a sin NOT to give this a try. You can find these in pretty much any Holland & Barrett.
My favourite of the Eat Natural bar range, and described as their 'most decadent', this bar deliciously combines 70% dark chocolate (yay antioxidants), brazil nuts (omega 3 and all that jazz), apricots (iron, vitamins etc.), cranberries, coconut and seeds for an all round flavour-texture-burst of heaven.
And at 200 calories a bar, this one has snack-time written all over it. Any decent supermarket should sell these - and if it doesn't, then cry. I would.
I have to confess, this is probably one for those of you living in/with access to France/Spain/North America - I only chanced upon it during a frenzied chocolate hunt last time I was in Paris. But if you can get hold of it, then...well, just DO! 67% dark chocolate with a subtle cinnamon-biscuit flavour, as well as added flax seeds (for omega 3, fibre, and a tasty crunchy texture), and at 180 calories per serving, this bar is not only delicious but super good for you.
Ahhh, brownies. How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.... In other words, these are AH-MAZING. Containing only the healthiest organic ingredients (think cacao, natural fruit sugar, coconut oil etc.), these are both insanely tasty AND insanely healthy. I like to cut mine into kitkat-finger sized pieces (as in the central photo above) and spread them as little treats throughout the day, almost like healthy individual chocolates I guess. The mouth-watering variety of flavours is both a blessing and a curse - coming in original, pecan, raspberry and orange - as whilst these are all DELICIOUS, I did feel the need to consume several in one sitting "just to get an idea of what they all taste like".....
These little gems turn up in a lot of health food shops - I've found them in shops on Kings Road (Chelsea) and King Street (Hammersmith) among others.
Last but not least: Booja Booja
Oh. My.
These are good.
I mean, really good.
Chuck a few more "really"s in there and you'll have some idea of just HOW good these are.
Dairy free, gluten free, vegan, GMO free and (in the case of some flavours) raw and soya free too, you couldn't get more innocent than this - and yet, somehow, they also manage to taste like food of the gods. Literally. Ranging in flavour from dark equadorian to ginger to raspberry to champagne to banoffee to espresso and many more, Booja Booja is simply a treasure trove of healthy chocolates. And did I mention they also do ice cream? More of that one in a later post....
You'll find these in most health foods stores, and definitely Whole Foods, as well as Partridges on Kings Road.
Well, that's the round up for today. Obviously there are many more chunks of chocolate heaven out there - and as I discover them I'll be sure to let you know! Meanwhile, please do let me know yours! Enjoy your indulgences, guys - I, for one, want to get to the end of my life thinking I really let myself savour the nice things, and not thinking I spent my whole life feeling guilty and/or deprived...so long live, chocolate, I say - 20 percent of the time, of course.......
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