Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Dip

I’ve often thought I would like to ditch my current career plans to open a flower shop with some sort of social good twist. Obviously I would use social and environmentally responsible  flowers, but I would somehow turn my little, imaginary flower shop into a socent (jargon alert: socent is a hashtag (#) used on twitter to signify social entrepreneurship and innovation). These days I have begun to add and grow my flower shop to include a vegan, healthy bakery/cafe/treat shop of sorts. Now I’m questioning if I’ve become a hippie but I think this is a shop with some potential in a place like Vancouver (please nobody steal my idea, it would make me sad). The reason for the addition probably has to do with my recent foray into vegan experiments in the kitchen.

Like this current work in progress. I’ve noticed cookie dough dips have become popular online and I wanted to try my hand at making a recipe. I got the general idea of what is required through my research and I wanted to make a recipe that could be done with what I currently have in my kitchen, which isn’t a lot. Oh, and it has to be WeightWatchers friendly of course.

I’ve only attempted one batch so far and I know there’s a lot of improvement to be made. And if you have ideas on how to make it better, I wouldn’t turn down any suggestion (except coconut, I despise coconut).

Ingredients: 

• 1 package of silken tofu
• 4 Tbsp light peanut butter
• 2 Tbsp or less sugar
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• pinch of salt
• 1/2-1/4 cup vegan dark chocolate chips

{you’ll need about 10 oz of tofu to make a large enough batch to blend}

Instructions:

In a food processor (or blender) combine all but the chocolate chips. Process/blend until all mixed and smooth, scrape down the sides as much as you can to make it right. Pour into a bowl and add chocolate chips. Mix well. For a chunkier texture, add half a cup of oats to the food processor/blender also.

I foolishly didn’t use silken tofu but just soft regular tofu. It caused a lack of thickness with my dip and I will not make the same mistake twice. Because of this, I used more peanut butter than I would have liked and it’s given my dip a strong flavour. Good for us who love peanut butter but don’t be

afraid to use less than four tablespoons. I’ve also stuck my dip in the freezer to thicken a bit more. Don’t use more than two tablespoons of sugar but if you want it a little healthier snack, this is an area that can be cut back. Be careful on the salt because I started with way too much and it was gross.

Originally, I wanted to make a batch half this size, but as I began to blend I realized there wasn’t enough ingredients to actually mix. I would also love to have a food processor.

Another area for possible improvement is the peanut butter. I would like to try making this with an almond butter. Or chickpeas instead of a tofu.

The dip will go with a variety of foods, from fruits to crackers to a spoon. Good as a snack or a dessert.

{to help prevent eating the whole thing in one sitting, I dished out each serving in a mini mason jar}

This recipe provided six 55g servings which are 4 points each with WeightWatchers.

Tea-sicles

I used to hate tea. It’s more likely I just never found the right type of tea for me until a year ago, but I thought I despised tea and no matter how hard I tried I would never like it. At one point, a co-worker was determined to find a tea I would drink and ended up giving me a bunch of different teas that I never used. A year after this, one of my greatest loves came into my life and I’d never leave David’s Tea . I kept the packets of tea just in case anyone would visit and want them, but they basically collected dust in the three different kitchens I’ve lived in since.

Now summer and its heat have arrived and I wanted a tasty snack to cool down with after work. I couldn’t do Freezies because I just started WeightWatchers and though they’re probably 0 points, the added, sickly-sweet sugars didn’t appeal to me. Then while I was wandering the dollar store, looking for garden supplies, inspiration struck. I spotted some popsicle moulds for a buck and impulse bought them to make ‘tea-sicles’!

Quick, simple steps: boil water, pour hot water into teapot and add tea bag, let steep for a really long time,  make sure the water cools, pour into popsicle moulds, and freeze.

{I made mango passionfruit tea-sicles to start, and steeped them forever!)

The beauty of using tea is there is no added sugar (you can add some if you want to make them sweeter, but I suggest using a honey or agave) and fruitier teas are naturally sweet so kids will love them. The teapot makes it easy to pour into the moulds without spilling like I always did when I froze juice. Tea comes in a variety of flavours and, depending on the type, has added health features such as reducing acne or boosting metabolism. And I was able to get rid of some dust-collecting tea.

{in case you were wondering the health benefits of these popsicles: sleep}

I recommend steeping for a long time. I accidentally left my tea in for hours and my popsicles could have used some more flavour. The downside to this is not being able to really drink the extra tea. Though you could make a delicious iced tea? (Note to self: try this for next time!). And make sure the water has cooled enough before you freeze.

{get out in the sun and enjoy!}

Advice from the Wise

Today I had an excellent talk with a dietitian. Our conversation ranged from good vegetarian options for protein to tips and tricks to ensure a healthy diet. We were even able to talk about my marathon training.

No matter who you are or what your diet is like, I really recommend having at least one meeting with a registered dietitian. It’s a great way to keep your health in mind and find new ways to enjoy eating right. Did you know having healthy meal options prepared as much as possible, sitting on the counter ready has been proven to assist people in making better meal choices? My conversation today also inspired an incredibly healthy grocery trip and I spent almost two hours preparing fruit salads, trail mixes and lunches all pre-portioned.

Depending on where you live, you may be able to call a dietitian free of charge. For the province of B.C. the number is 8-1-1. If your province doesn’t offer a dial-a-dietitian service, your health care may cover the costs of an in-person visit. Put in a little effort and check it out! You’ll be glad you did.