Saturday is Valentine’s Day, which means heart-shaped gifts of pretty much anything sugary-sweet. But with a little planning, we can treat our Valentines to gifts that are not only delicious & decadent, but good for them, too!
LOVE IT!
Heart-shaped eggs or pancakes
- Using a heart-shaped molds like these, serve up eggs and pancakes with an extra dose of love
- Try Kodiak Cakes’ Whole Wheat, Oat & Honey Flapjack & Waffle Mix, or try our Get the Skinny pancake recipe below.
Mexican Chocolate Protein Brownie Hearts
- Try our protein-rich, Swerve-sweetened recipe below to make these adorable heart-shaped brownies.
Heart-Shaped Box of Chocolates Swap-Out
- Fill a heart-shaped box with fresh berries dipped in extra-dark (at least 70%) chocolate
- Made with chocolate with 95% cacao content, plus raw ingredients like nuts, seeds, flaxseeds, raw honey
- Per truffle: ~170 calories and 1-4 grams sugar (compared to 17+ grams sugar in similar-size truffle)
- Raw, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, non-GMO
- 20% Valentine’s discount with code HOLPROMO20 at checkout
LIKE IT!
- Heart-Shaped box of truly-dark chocolate (at least 70% cocoa)
- Dark chocolate bar with at least 70% cocoa, like these by ChocoLove
HATE IT!
Heart-shaped boxes of regular milk chocolate, Skittles, SweeTarts, Stabursts, etc.
- Sugar is first ingredient; many have high fructose corn syrup, artificial colors (red 40, etc), and other not-so-lovely ingredients.
RECIPES – adapted from Protein Pow(d)er: The Ultimate Protein Powder Cookbook by Anna Sward
Supernana Banana Pancakes
Makes 6 servings
2 eggs
¼ cup cottage cheese
1 banana
1 tablespoon coconut flour
Blend all ingredients together to form a smooth batter. Preheat a nonstick pan that has been sprayed with cooking spray. When the pan is hot, pour batter into 3-inch pancakes. Reduce heat to medium. When the tops begin to bubble, flip the pancakes and continue to cook until thoroughly cooked through.
Transfer to a platter and serve warm.
Per serving: 75 calories – 1 gram sat fat – 90 mg sodium – 3 grams carbs – 1 gram fiber – 1.4 grams sugar – 10 grams protein
Mexican Chocolate Protein Brownie Bites
Makes 10 servings
¾ cup egg whites
½ cup pumpkin puree
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
¼ cup chocolate whey protein (e.g. Designer Whey protein powder)
1 cup unsweetened coconut milk
1 teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon red chili powder
½ teaspoon Swerve Sugar Replacer
Cocoa powder for sprinkling on top (optional)
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Using an immersion blender, blend all ingredients together, except for the cocoa powder for sprinkling on top. Pour into a greased or spray 9×9 pan and bake for 35 minutes or until toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean.
Slice into bite-sized squares, and sprinkle with cocoa powder to serve.
Per serving: 40 calories – 0.5 grams saturated fat 45 mg sodium – 4 grams carbs – 2 grams fiber – <1 grams sugar – 5 grams protein