How to make healthy choices every day

5-Ingredient Magical Fudgesicles

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Fudgesicles were a mainstay in the freezer of my childhood, and my go-to sugar fix if the cookie jar was empty. Since we’ve been blessed here in Copenhagen with a warm spring and early start to the summer season, day after day of blue skies and sundresses has jumpstarted my summer food fantasies. I felt like revisiting the frosty, chocolate-y pops that were such a relief in the sweltering heat, but this time, with a healthy plan of attack.

In my cookbook, I made a killer ice cream from avocados and cashews. Knowing how creamy and delicious this combination was, I wanted to recreate a similar base, with dates as the sweetener and raw cacao powder as the chocolate element.

So, I made a couple versions of these fudgesicles, since I wanted to eat more be thorough. The first experiment was with just cashews and avocado. The results were pretty delicious but pretty expensive, and a few of my taste-testers found the ice cream bars a little dry in the mouth. For the second version I scaled way back on the cashews and used coconut milk to enhance juiciness while maintaining creaminess. I also upped the cacao. Because chocolate. It was a perfectly balanced combination, and the version I am presenting you with today. The magical version.

These are so lusciously creamy, sinfully rich-tasting – the kind of thing you put in your mouth and kind of can’t believe what’s happening. Vegan, almost raw, and full of whole food ingredients, they are also downright filling! They make a fabulous mid-morning or afternoon pick-me-up, especially with the raw cacao component, a deliciously effective, energy-boosting food. Dress them up with your favourite add-ins, or keep it simple and enjoy them as the five-ingredient bliss bars that they are.

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Cashew News!
I was snacking on some cashews the other day (as one does) and offered some to a friend of mine, who declined. Her reason? Cashews are “so fattening”. Wait a minute, what? who started this ugly rumour?!

Maybe this is news to you too, but cashews are actually one of the lowest-fat nuts out there. Weighing in at only 67% fat, next to almonds at 76%, hazelnuts at 86%, and macadamia nuts at 93%, cashews rank pretty low on the scale – and let’s keep in mind that 66% of the fat in cashews is the heart-healthy, monounsaturated variety. Rejoice!

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And while we are clearing up misconceptions, cashews are not technically nuts, but seeds that adhere to the bottom of the cashew apple, an edible fruit native to South America. Cashew trees are in the same botanical family as mango and pistachio. The multi-step process to make cashews edible is quite involved, and typically includes steaming the whole seed pod, removing the outer shell, drying, and skinning. The inner shell layer of the cashew nut contains a caustic resin that can cause significant skin rashes, and is toxic if ingested.

The “raw” cashews that you purchase at a grocery store health food shop are not typically raw, just not roasted. Because of the steaming step in conventional cashew processing, cashews cannot be considered a “truly raw” product. “Truly raw” cashews are available on specialty websites and in some health food stores, but at a premium since separating the cashews from their shell without the nut coming into contact with the resin is time consuming and must be done by hand.

Cashews are an excellent source of the mineral copper. Copper helps our body utilize iron, eliminate free radicals, and build bone and connective tissue. It is also an essential component of a wide range of enzymes, such as superoxide dismutase (SOD) which aids energy production and antioxidant defence. One-third of a cup of cashews delivers over 100% of your recommended daily intake of copper.

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A high-speed blender is recommended for this recipe, but if you don’t have one make sure you blend until the mixture is as smooth as possible. You can add water to thin the mixture if it is too thick to blend, but keep in mind the more water you add, the less creamy the bars will be – more crystalline. No matter what, they will taste amazing. Because they’re magic.

The fudgesicle recipe below is unreasonably delicious as-is, but it can act also as a base for you to flavour as you like! You can add toppings after removing the fudgesicles from their mold too. This involves melted raw or regular chocolate and your creative spirit! Dip or drizzle the chocolate over the frozen bar, and sprinkle away. MAGIC WANDS. This would make a very popular activity at a kid’s birthday party. Or my birthday party. Stop looking at me like that.

I’ve included some options for both flavourings and toppings to inspire you, but these are merely suggestions. I know all of you super enthusiastic foodies out there will come up with some stellar combos. Let me know in the comments if you do!

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In other very magical news, my latest Cody app video series is now online! This one is all about my favourite subject: SNACKS!!! Super-Charged Snacks to be exact. And every recipe is brand-new, incredibly delicious, and of course über healthy. If you haven’t seen the Protein-Rich Cacao Brownie video on my Facebook page yet, go have a look! You can preview all of the recipes here and purchase the plan too (it’s on sale!).

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Thank you so much for your ongoing support of My New Roots!

Big love and gratitude,
Sarah B.



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