We love a sweet treat, however any sugar-loaded bowl of anything will make us feel like crap and TOTALLY derail us from every single one of our goals. It’s a battle that we fought a long time ago, until one day we decided to give it up completely…for a short while. Then reintroduce it again to see what would happen.
WOW, was that a wakeup call.
Not only did our bodies and energy feel different, but our tastebuds did too. Normal desserts were extraordinarily sweet, dried fruit made our mouths shrivel, juice gave us headaches, and sometimes plain ol’ fruit was too much to handle.
The experience in and of itself gave us KNOWLEDGE on how we wanted to move forward with sugar choices. The cheap-eat-sweets (like free cookies and cupcakes) don’t do it for us and are quite easy to pass up. On the other hand, when we’re out with friends and want dessert, we hit up high quality gelato, ice cream, or yogurt joints, because if we are going to eat it, it better be GOOD! Same goes for homemade treats. Both of our sisters are THE BEST bakers in the world. We know their ingredients and enjoying a holiday treat is something we look forward to.
So do we eat sweets throughout the week?
Absolutely. I love me my dark, bitter chocolate. Graham is into his Mint Chip Ice Cream (with kale) — from our “Kale. All Day. Err Day.” digi book. With very little refined sugar, I think my personal chocolate craving is more for the cacao than the sweet. At the same time, I LOVE to experiment with quick and healthy treats for busy nights. With apples being one of the most inexpensive, most delicious fruits to get your hands on right now, I was inspired to throw together a quick, personal bowl of healthy apple crisp (in under 10 minutes). Now this isn’t as buttery and sweet as your traditional versions, but if you are looking for a warm, healthy, apple, crunch to finish off your meal…this will do just fine! Enjoy!
Ingredients
1 organic apple
1 ½ teaspoons cinnamon
2 tablespoons rolled oats
3 tablespoons chopped nuts and/or seeds
1 teaspoon honey, melted
1 teaspoon butter or coconut oil, melted (optional ingredient)
2 tablespoons lemon juice
3-5 tablespoons water
pinch of sea salt
Steps
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F with a rack towards the top of the oven (OR if you have a toaster oven, use that instead).
- Wash, core and slice the apple (skin on for extra fiber). Toss with lemon juice and 1 teaspoon of cinnamon. Set aside.
- In a small bowl mix rolled oats, chopped nuts, ½ teaspoon cinnamon, and melted honey until well combined. Spread in a thin layer on a piece of tin foil and bake for ~5 minutes. Watch carefully to avoid burning.
- In a small saucepan over medium heat, begin to cook the apples. Every time the pan starts to dry up, add a tablespoon of water. Cook for about 6 minutes until desired doneness.
- Throw the cooked apples in a bowl and sprinkle with the oat and nut crumble. Enjoy!
Serves 1
Kale. All Day. Err Day.
