Autumn Treats: Healthy Raw Chocolate Brownies

Happy Friday! 

This post has been a loooong time coming. In fact, if I'm brutally honest, I'd forgotten all about it until I discovered it in my draft blog posts. But despite it being 5 months late, I couldn't not share it as these simple, 5 ingredient chocolate brownies are too delicious to keep to myself! 

Ever tried GU's rich chocolate torte? I have. Last weekend. We had friends round for Sunday lunch, things got crazy and I demolished two (rather large) slices of the thing. All 566 calories worth, a sugar particles dream as each and every one now has a cosy new home in the form of my tummy. 

Now keep that rich, indulgent beauty in mind. These brownies have the same decadent chocolatey taste, but there is one vital difference: these brownies are healthy. Every single ingredient will benefit you. Yeeaah, you heard me correctly.

Picture this. Your tummy is the house. Gu chocolate represents a load of crooks and criminals. These raw chocolate brownies represent a lovely little family. 

Now I know which I'd prefer to fill me....

Criminals. Bad vibes. They'll probably wreck the place. The family will fill the house with love and goodness, so it's no longer just bricks and mortar, but a home. 

Our bodies deserve to be filled with love and goodness because we only get one to last us a lifetime! #preach 

Now that the cheese is out the way (mmmm, cheese) let's get on to the recipe...

I've adapted my own recipe inspired by the wonderful Madeleine Shaw. I've tried out a few of her recipes which are all made from whole foods, including her cauliflower pizza (see blog post here). 

You'll need:

100g medjool dates
150g hazelnuts (Madeleine uses walnuts)
50g coconut oil
50g raw cacao powder
A squeeze of sweet freedom's 'natural sweetener' (Madeleine uses a pinch of stevia)

Simply blend the hazelnuts until they resemble small grains of sand. Then add the dates, sweet freedom/natural sweetener of your choice and raw cacao powder. Slowly pour in the coconut oil and continue to blend until you're left with a gooey, nicely blended mixture. 

Grease a tin with coconut oil and add all of the brownie, pressing it down so that it forms a solid, flat dessert and place in the freezer for half an hour to let it set. I didn't have a square tin so I used a round one. I was clearly breaking boundaries that day...who says brownies can't be triangular?! 

...and voila!

I topped mine off with raspberries and a dusting of cacao powder.

Chocolate + health = an extremely happy Nish.

So next time you're craving something sugary...have a go at these. They're quick, easy, healthy and also extremely rich so you probably won't be demolishing a second slice in one sitting! 

I'm definitely going to have to whip some up this weekend. Writing this post has ignited a chocolate craving in me stronger than Russell Brand's sex drive. 

XOXO

OOTD: "Chilled" Friday Night with Laura

Happy Bank Holiday Monday everyone!

Sorry I haven't posted in a while. This is mainly due to the fact that my camera (well, my sister's camera which I have adopted) went for a walkabout and has only just returned to us. But that's a story for another day. 

The words 'chilled' and 'Friday' are rarely used in the same sentence, particularly when it comes to me and Laura! But a few weeks ago we were discussing alcohol, its highs and (mostly) lows, and made a pact to lay off the merry/ toxic substance for a while! So Friday night we put our willpower to the test and decided we'd have a chilled evening at The Ship in Wandsworth.

We set some ground rules: 

1) We'd stick to red wine and vodka.

I've become a bit obsessed with Madeleine Shaw's blog and after reading her most recent post, The Clean Drinking Bible, I realised that I've been very mistaken about the 'healthier' alcoholic beverages to consume. I knew that red wine contains less sugar than white wine, and that spirits generally come with fewer calories and less of a hangover than beer and white wine (my downfall) but I always thought that gin and 'slimline' tonics were the 'healthiest' drink out there. Oh, I was wrong! 

2) We'd be home by 2am. 

One of the reasons we were set on just a few drinks and an earlyish night (for us anyway!) was the dreaded hangover. I don't know if it's just worsened x1000 because I'm now 23? But nowadays, not only do they last the next day, but I'm almost always not back to my perky self two days later. Starting to feel like it's not worth it for a few extra drinks! 

3) We would not end up in Cafe de Sol on Clapham High Street.

Too many times have we ended up in this place, most often after a bar crawl around Clapham. Why? I don't know, but I've come to loathe it. It's crammed, sticky and full of hazy memories. And I always wake up regretting it the next day. 

Here's what I wore: 

I Am Wearing: 

Top - Forever 21 

Jeans - Topshop

Blazer - Primark 

Bag - Primark 

Shoes - River Island 

Nail Varnish - 'Buff' by Topshop

Rings - H&M

Necklace - Primark 

Lipstick - 'Infrared' by Topshop

So how did our night turn out?

Well..... 

1) We got back to mine at 4am. 2 hours late for our curfew (I feel like Cinderella) ...hmm, it could've been 6am I suppose?

2) We stuck to red wine, vodka, and one little sol may have made an appearance towards the end of the night. Not bad! The rule didn't say how much red wine and vodka we were allowed to consume...

3) We didn't end up in Cafe de Sol - yaaaayy! However, after a few drinks at The Ship, we did end up on Clapham High street at The Landor pub to meet some friends, and then went on to The Clapham North instead, as it's open until 3am. Still, we technically stuck to this rule, even if our venture to The Clapham North was just another excuse to parrrrtay. A girl's gotta live a little. 

Hey, progress is progress.

It's alllll about the baby steps...

XOXO

The Madeleine Shaw Post #1: Cauliflower Pizza

I've always been a fan of Madeleine Shaw and her inspiring recipes, but it's not until recently that I have decided to try some out for myself! 

I was intrigued by the 'cauliflower pizza' which she continually swears by, but always thought they'd be quite tricky to make so was pleasantly surprised at how quick and easy these babies are to make from scratch! This was my finished masterpiece: 

To make 2 pizza bases you will need: 

1 cauliflower

2 eggs

1 tbsp oregano

3 tbsp's ground almonds (you can also use buckwheat or quinoa flour) 

Salt & pepper

Coconut oil to brush over the bases before baking 

...As you can see we ran out of baking paper so I oiled up some foil...I do not recommend this as it proved rather tricky to separate the base and foil once cooked! They definitely connected during their quick 20 minute bonding sesh in the oven #bezzies. 

Simply take the bases out of the oven after 20 minutes, add your toppings, and place them back in the oven for a further 5-10 mins, depending on how well done you like your toppings to be.

Toppings I used: 

Pancetta
Mushrooms
Onion
Cherry Tomatoes
Rosemary
Basil
...and of course grated parmesan to top it off!

My sister opted for melted mozzarella, onions, peppers and a biiiig old pile of rocket. 

So there we have it. Dairy and gluten free pizza! 

And for those trying to be a little healthier, or just simply to beat the bloat...it's a great way of still being able to enjoy everybody's favourite! Oh, and I know what you're thinking. Cauliflower base= ew? But it tastes really good! You wouldn't even know it was cauliflower really...

For Madeleine's recipe, click here. (she also very recently made another one with the same cauliflower base but instead topped with prawns and sweet potaaaato here- I will be trying this next!) 

XOXO