a chocoholic's diet

I can't say I've been perfect not eating "bad" carbs or sugar for the past three weeks, but I've been pretty close. I'm pretty sure I've used more {chocolate} will power in the past two weeks that in my entire life. I think it's good for me to learn this month that I CAN do it. Most people who are like me (like eat sweets for breakfast and lunch) have been telling me "I could NEVER do that!" and I smile at them, but I know it's not true- they don't WANT to do it. Of course they could do it, if I can do it anyone could do it- it has been incredibly hard. It's not like I don't want to eat sweets and yummy baked goods everyday- but I wanted a jump start to getting back to my pre-pregnancy weight, and the family biggest loser has been good motivation. I figure if I can survive the extreme this month it won't be so hard in the future to make and eat all the sweets I'm used to, but to issue a little more self control in the amounts and how often I binge on my beloved chocolate.
I've come up with a few healthy versions of sweet treats that have really helped me get through this so I thought I'd share a few of them here.

After some trial and error this is my favorite {yummy!} cookie dough that has no butter, sugar, or flour. I haven't tried a baked version yet, but  I will soon! I doubled this for my Sunday treat this week and it completely satisfied my sweet tooth.
measurements are estimates-adjust to taste

PERFECT FAUX COOKIE DOUGH
1 spoonful peanut butter (can also use "better n' peanut butter"- low cal, low fat)
2 spoonfuls sugar-free fat-free instant vanilla pudding mix
2-3 spoonfuls skim milk
2-3 spoonfuls oats
1 small spoonful cocoa (optional, omit for a more traditional cookie dough)
a few chocolate chips (optional if you add cocoa- I bought some sugar free ones that I add)
Just add all the ingredients in a little cup, stir with a spoon and eat up!
{It holds up well in the fridge, and remember because of the pudding and especially if you use instant oats it thickens up a lot so don't skimp on the milk. You can also add a little splenda in place of some of the pudding if you want}

HEALTHY CHOCOLATE SHAKE
skim milk- fill blender 1/2 way
1/2 pkg sugar free fat free chocolate pudding
1 tsp vanilla
1 spoonful splenda
1 spoonful cocoa
Add ingredients to the blender and blend for a minute or so till it's nice and frothy. Taste and add more ingredients to taste if you'd like it more chocolatey/sweet etc. The key is to blend it good- it increases in volume, gives it a lovely texture and makes it taste yummy. I keep a blender of this in the fridge at all times so that when I need a treat I can just re-blend and pour a glass of yummy chocolate milk. This has been my breakfast most mornings and sometimes in the afternoon or evening a little swig of this helps me get through the day.





This chocolate mousse pudding is what I've always used when I make trifle, regardless of health and I've discovered it is very versatile- this week I made a non-chocolate version to top some healthy-ish cupcakes I made for a shower, I've also used it to fill mock eclairs etc.  This weekend I made this sort of chocolate mousse pie to take to a lunch with friends-

CHOCOLATE MOUSSE PUDDING
1 large pkg sugar free fat free chocolate pudding mix
1 1/2 C milk
1 container sugar free cool whip, thawed
Whisk together pudding and milk, stir in cool whip. Store in the fridge.  It is yummy on it's own or it can make a great topping/filling etc- the options are endless and you can do it with any of the pudding flavors- white chocolate and vanilla both work great!

Noticing a trend yet? Lol, I guess my saving grace for this diet is sugar free fat free pudding mixes. There's so much you can do with them- they are so easy to use and add very little calories for the flavor and sweetness that they add. Although they contain corn starch, there are only a few Tbs of pudding mix in each box so when you make a little snack with a portion of it I think it's fairly insignificant compared to all the high-calorie alternatives that I'm replacing it with (think butter, flour, sugar, chocolate etc).

Keep calm & eat {sugar free} chocolate! :)