Nutritious Desserts!
Do you have one or more picky eaters at home? Do you struggle with kids who like candy too much? Do you like providing your munchkins with healthy dessert options? Are you a parent with limited meal prep time?
If you answer yes to any of the above questions, I recommend giving this blog a good read, because I’ve compiled some of the best dessert recipes and info on healthy dining that I’ve come across over my last few years of being a Mom!
First Thing’s First, The Basics of Nutrition
Good food provides our children with nutrients and energy. Nutrients, both macro and micronutrients, support the reactions cells have in our bodies and provide us with energy. Energy allows our bodies to function. The two together make for one healthy individual.
Macronutrients are the calories needed for energy. The term “burning calories” is very real as our bodies live off of this “fuel.” Macronutrients come in the form of fats, carbohydrates, and proteins. Most foods contain high amounts of these macronutrients, so I won’t dive too deep into their importance.
Micronutrients are composed of vitamins and minerals. We need a smaller amount of micronutrients than macronutrients, but they are still essential to healthy living as they help support our cells in their ability to regenerate. Cells make up our entire being, organs and all. Click here to learn more!
So children, with organs and tissues still developing, and more energy than we can sometimes handle, need the perfect mix of these vitamins, minerals, and fuel. As a Mom with children who live for chocolate‑themed holidays, how do I put the health back into our desserts? A little help from our new Canada Food Guide has given me some clues.
The Canada Food Guide
You may have noticed that the new Canada Food Guide has done away with portion sizes and redirected its information towards the importance of certain foods. This is a wonderful adoption as no person is the same and we don’t all require the same amount of food. Children going through growth spurts eat a lot, as do athletes, as they are really active.
My toddlers are exceptionally active. More active than me as I sit at my computer desk telling you this. 😊
Vegetables and Fruit
Vegetables are a mix and match when it comes to what they provide us. Starchy vegetables, like corn and potatoes, have carbohydrates and vitamins. Dark green veggies pack plenty of protein and minerals.
Fruit contains a perfect blend of carbohydrates, vitamins (like Vitamin C and Vitamin B-9 (folate)), and minerals (like potassium). They also have plenty of fiber, which is indigestible, helping to clear our bodies of waste.
According to the Canada Food Guide, healthy living suggests half of our diets should consist of vegetables and fruit.
Protein Foods
Protein foods, such as plant-based foods, provide vitamins and minerals in addition to proteins.
Plant-based protein food, like nuts, seeds, beans, peas, and lentils, provide more fiber and less saturated fats. Try to choose these types over animal-based ones.
According to the Canada Food Guide, healthy living suggests one quarter of our diets should consist of protein foods.
Whole Grains
Known for their high-fiber content, whole grain foods, such as quinoa, pasta, rice, and oatmeal, also provide us with vitamins and minerals.
Foods with high-fiber content help rid our bodies of waste, preventing diseases associated with digestion. Fiber also helps slow the rate that sugar is absorbed, helping regulate our sugar levels.
According to the Canada Food Guide, healthy living suggests one quarter of our diets should consist of whole grain foods.
So it’s clear that vitamins, minerals, and fiber are just as important as those high fuel foods we enjoy so much! How do we get them into desserts that usually don’t include them? Luckily, I have a few recipes up my sleeve that are packed with these micronutrients and still taste delicious!
Chocolate Pudding
Yes, you read that right. I have a very fast, very healthy chocolate pudding recipe that my kids (and I) love!
All you need:
A big container and lid, like a tupperwear
Chocolate flavoured almond milk
Chia seeds
What you do:
Mix the almond milk and chia seeds together with a 1:1 ratio in the container. Place the lid on and shake vigorously. Place the pudding in the fridge for 24 hours. Serve cold.
What it gives you:
Apart from it’s wonderful nutty flavor, almond milk also has Vitamin D and calcium added to it, just like regular milk (both are enriched, meaning we added it after pasteurization). Almond milk has less proteins and carbs than cow’s milk but more Vitamin E. Chia seeds have a lot of everything, including fiber, protein, nutrients, minerals, and even antioxidants. What is particularly impressive about them, however, is their ability to bind to toxins and carry them out of our bodies!
Coconut Cookie Dough Balls
Get ready for this one, it’s a no-bake cookie recipe!
All you need:
A food processor or blender
2 cups of pitted dates
1 ½ tbsp. of coconut butter
What you do:
Blend everything together in your food processor and scoop out with a spoon. Roll 1 to 2 inch balls with your hands and place in the fridge. FYI – my younger son loves these as is, but my older one typically won’t eat them unless there’s mini M&M’s in them. You win some, you lose some. Place in the fridge and serve cold.
What it gives you:
Dates are packed with fiber. For anyone that has eaten too many of these at one time, you don’t need me to go into details. Coconut butter though, this one is worth explaining. It’s packed with healthy fats that provide us with clean fuel, but it also has lauric acid (which is a really powerful antibiotic if you didn’t catch my breastmilk blog), one of the very few foods that do.
Purchasing tip: Coconut butter runs at high prices in grocery stores since its health benefits hit the newspapers, but it is still very reasonably priced at Asian food markets.
Acorn Squash Custard
This one is an old family secret, although many families seem to have co-authored it online, which must mean it’s a good one! It takes a bit longer but has little actual work time.
All you need:
A sharp knife
A spoon
A baking sheet
1 acorn squash
½ cup of brown sugar
¼ cup of butter
What you do:
Preheat your oven to 350°F. Cut the squash in half and scoop out the seeds. Place both halves face down on the baking sheet and bake for 1 hour. Once baked, it should be tender enough for a fork to pass through, like butter. Turn the halves over, face up, and add the brown sugar and butter to one of the halves. Put the two halves together (place one on top of the other) and put them back in the oven for 20 minutes. Remove them from the oven, peel off the skins, and blend with a fork or blender. Serve warm.
What it gives you:
Squash is the healthy ingredient here, so I will elaborate on it. It packs vitamins, folate, minerals, and fiber! The mineral manganese, which it is rich in, helps boost bone strength and your body’s ability to process carbohydrates and fats (which is good since these are this custard’s other ingredients)!
Added bonus: acorn squash seeds are just like pumpkin seeds! Roast them up in your already preheated oven with some salt and you have a fiber-y snack for the next day!
Peanut Butter Banana Ice Cream
I always buy too many bananas. We used to do our best to buy the right amount, but their brown, spotted bodies always seemed to stare me down at the end of each week. I had to come up with an alternative to watching them deteriorate. Luckily, this recipe came to the rescue and no ice cream maker was required!
All you need:
A blender or food processor
A baking sheet
Baking parchment paper
4 spotty bananas
2 tbsp. of peanut butter
What you do:
Cut up your bananas into slices and lay them on your parchment papered tray. Put them in the freezer until frozen, about 2 hours. Pulverize them in your blender a few times, using a spoon to scrape the sides when needed. Once a creamy texture, add the peanut butter and blend one more time. Serve cold.
What it gives you:
Peanut butter is a plant-based protein food, containing mono-unsaturated fats. This means they are easily digestible and give you healthy, clean fuel. It’s also very rich in vitamins and minerals. Bananas are a powerhouse when it comes to nutrients. They are packed with vitamins and minerals, most famously, potassium, which helps regulate muscle control like your breathing and heartbeat. Their also easy to digest since their rich in fiber. The combo is simply delicious – and no more spotty bananas!
More Information
If you like these healthy, low cost recipes, I know you’ll enjoy KARA’s Collective Kitchen program, which also packs in the nutritional information and easy how-to creations! Call KARA to register for this one as soon as possible because it can fill up quick!