RECIPE: Chocolate Fudge

Okay, so today is obviously Valentine’s Day—which isn’t really something I care all that much about. I mean, yes, I’m all for love and romance but I think most of us know it’s basically a fake holiday designed to boost consumer spending more than anything else. It’s also a day when a lot of people, particularly kids, consume excessive quantities of sugar. (My friend Stacy Whitman over at School Bites has been trying to do something about this by creating a Candy-Free School Valentine Pledge. I guess it may be a little too late to sign, but check it out anyway!)

Personally, I like to indulge in a bit of chocolate—not just today but most days. (I know, I’m such a female cliché that way. But dark chocolate/cacao is good for you. Study after study confirms it.) I was even thinking about getting my favorite—See’s Candy—and sacrificing a point or two on the Whole Life Challenge as part of a Valentine’s Day treat tonight. But then my 8-year-old son, of all people, asked if there was a way for us to have a chocolaty dessert while still sticking to the Whole Life Challenge rules.

RECIPE: Chocolate Berry Super Smoothie

I know a lot of people who are extremely into green juices and smoothies. I also know plenty of people who are seriously skeeved out by them. I fall somewhere in between the two: While I appreciate that they’re good for you and an effective way to boost your intake of healthy produce (especially green, leafy vegetables), I don’t find them particularly tasty or satisfying. However, I’m still interested in the idea of blending up a drink that packs in at least a serving of leafy greens—because, honestly, I have a tough time getting enough of them in my diet. I think it has something to do with the fact that they usually need to be chopped and/or cooked or mixed up with other stuff in a salad, which often sounds like too much work.

Anyway, a friend recently forwarded this Choclate-Covered Cherry Smoothie recipe to me and I thought it looked…interesting. I wasn’t really expecting it to taste like chocolate-covered cherries, let alone good, but I had the ingredients handy and it was most definitely Whole Life Challenge compliant. So I figured I’d give it a go and, surprise! It was really, really good! It was so good, in fact, that I made another the next day. Then, the next day, when I ran out of frozen cherries, I decided to make it with frozen blueberries instead—and I liked that even more!

RECIPE: Cauliflower Soup

Have you noticed that health-conscious foodies are going kind of crazy for cauliflower lately? Especially if they're trying to avoid starchy white foods like potatoes, rice and flour tortillas, it's like cauliflower is the second coming. "OMG," they'll exclaim, "you can whip it up like mashed potatoes! You can rice it!" Some say you can even transform it into tortillas (with mixed results, based on the reports I've received).

But I've always been a fan of the cauliflower. Growing up, my mom—who was a gourmet chef (okay, not professionally, but she did study at Le Cordon Bleu)—used to make cauliflower cheese for us on a semi-weekly basis. Of course, she would drench the hell out of it—coating the otherwise healthy vegetable in buttery cheese sauce and crispy breadcrumbs. Yes, it was delicious. But here's a healthy newsflash: You really don't have to douse cauliflower in dairy to achieve a creamy consistency. Even when pureed with nothing but water, the texture is decadent enough that you might think it’s got cream in it.

Of course if you want to make this recipe even richer, you can certainly use butter in place of the olive oil, or even add a bit of coconut milk (it will still be completely Whole Life Challenge, Advanced Rx compliant). But this version is super simple and a great vegan soup to boot. It’s also high in vitamin C and fiber, which makes it a perfect dish when you’re feeling under the weather (as my son and I were today). I won't say it's quite as indulgent as my mom's cauliflower cheese, but it's definitely a tasty dairy-free alternative.

RECIPE: Chicken Lentil Coconut Curry

My family loves Indian food (yes, even my 8-year-old son!), and especially chicken coconut curry. I’ve been working on ways to recreate, perhaps even improve upon, the curry we get from our local restaurants—and last night I think I finally did it! This is one hundred percent Whole Life Challenge advanced Rx compliant, and can be modified a variety of ways depending on your dietary preferences.

For instance, you can use ghee or coconut oil in place of the olive oil to make it even richer. Or, you can swap in garbanzo beans or another meatless option of your choice for the chicken to make it vegan. If you don’t like coconut, you can of course leave the coconut milk out (I would probably replace it with a compliant vegetable broth or more diced tomatoes to ensure enough liquid), but it’s worth noting that there really isn’t an overpowering taste of coconut once all the flavors blend together. You can also serve this over brown rice (intermediate level compliant if you’re doing the Whole Life Challenge). I recommend letting this simmer for at least an hour—but the longer you leave it, the more delicious it gets. It’s the perfect meal for a cold winter’s night. If you love curry like I do, give it a try and let me know what you think!