Chocolate..

I'm curious about making something chocolatey but want to keep it health-ish.

A recipe in front of me call for triple chocolate cookies, custard & margarine (Aust recipe too!). Which one of these would you replace? Comparing this one (a chocolate pear tart) vs the other (chocolate self saucing pudding) which one would be worse? There's 12g of fat, 22g of sugars & 257Cal in t he pear thing. 376 cal, 11g fat & 36g of sugar in the other.

I don't make treats very often as i have to then eat them. We would like to have a friend over at easter for a cool dinner & want one of these as a dessert.

I'm new to cooking :o

Are you against reducing the sugar amount? I usually reduce abit of the sugar in a dessert recipe if I know it will not affect the dough. If the recipe calls for sprinkling the dessert after it's baked with sugar, I won't do it. Just lazy is my excuse, not necessarily the health reason. :p

Pears are naturally sweet when you bake them in any dessert...I would drastically cut back on the sugar if added to pear mixture.

We make pear strudel at home with phyllo pastry. It's our own recipe. And very fast. We only use a couple of tablespoons of honey. No sugar. The pears themselves are sweet. Naturally sweeter than apple.

He has made up desserts, by poaching pears in wine and balsamic vinegar. maybe abt of honey. That's it. No sugar needed, after all it's already in the wine.

It's a bit of work, but you can key in all the ingredients at nutritiondata.com and it will analyze the recipe for you. It will give you more information per serving than you can possibly digest!

Karen

Egg replacer can be used instead of eggs. It's vegan product, but most *normal* stores should have it. It's mainly corn starch and potato starch, but serves the same function as eggs.

Oil can be reduced and replaced with apple sauce. There should be tips for how much online.

Use whole grain flours, or at least part whole grain. Usually you need a bit more liquid if you do this, and might need something to add more fluff, if its a cake (like yeast or baking powder).

Agave nectar is a sweetner, that has a lower glycemic index than white sugar. Honey does as well. I personally think artificial sweetners and white sugar are the tool of the devil, but I won't get into that rant. These two options add liquid so you've have to reduce the liquid you add.

Water or soy/almond milk can be used instead of cream or cows milk.

Hope some of this helps and doesn't sound too crazy :) Using ingredients like these can also reduce the chances you'll get cravings or energy crashes from having it.

I would make the desert full strength and have a small serving.

Good thing I have a +80km ride planned for tomorrow...:o

I made the chocolate pear tart thing for dessert after a nice chicken on a spit lunch today...(Just one small plate for me!)

I'm sure there were a gazillion calories in the chocolate tart as i couldn't decide what type of triple chocolate cookies/biscuits to buy. So..I used tim tams..:D One piece was enough!

I think it would be something you make for someone if they've done thier IM/1/2 IM/ 1/2 Marathon/ XC event etc & want to celebrate a few days later.

I'd replace the margarine with butter; butter is a natural product, margarine is hydrogenated oils + all sorts of other stuff. and eat smaller servings!

Just stick to your original recipe and eat less. Why compromise on the taste?

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Originally Posted by papaver

Just stick to your original recipe and eat less. Why compromise on the taste?

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Ok... got lured here by the thread title...

And I have to agree with papaver... NEVER compromise on the taste (or how much you eat - just ride more :p )

I got lured by the title too. I thought it was going to be a thread about belgian chocolate. :D



I'm almost certainly the only belgian female who isn't addicted to chocolate. :D

Quote:

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Ok... got lured here by the thread title...

And I have to agree with papaver... NEVER compromise on the taste (or how much you eat - just ride more )

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Here, here! This is how to live life! :p
I like how you think.... and, er... eat!

i made chocolate pudding the other day...and bike 10 miles so that i could finish it off :D

Make your chocolate super decadent and super rich.

slowly enjoy your confection. take time, savor the taste and the smell. Feel the creamy-ness in your mouth. Indulge slowly and enjoy your chocolate. You'll find that quality beats quantity all the time. Portion control it this way. and enjoy something really good instead of trying to make up for it in bulk.