Part IV of "So, What Does SHE Do?": Dessert

How a health coach beats a sugar craving.

NUTRITION

pafenutritionandfitness

7/9/20212 min read

So, full disclaimer: Desserts are my complete kryptonite. Especially if they are baked goods. I absolutely love cookies, cake, brownies, pie, cupcakes, and yeah.... anything like that.

So battling with the idea of desserts has been an ongoing issue since forever. On the day of this writing, my husband's birthday was yesterday, and on account of our trip, we may not have had cake yet, so I may re-nig on this knowledge today, but at least for the normal, everyday struggle, this is the knowledge I'm happy to share.

Dessert. The best but absolute worst for me. I fussed a lot about how to do it right. When I was on keto, I figured out how to make cheesecake, cinnamon rolls, cookies and flan, all while staying under 20 carbs. Since this is no longer a thing, I had to reconfigure the dessert plan.

One ounce of dark chocolate sometimes does the trick. I will grab one ounce, put it back in the ziplock, carry it out to the couch and be good. But what if I want something different?

One cookie won't put me over. I'll take one, put it back in the ziplock, carry it to the couch and be perfectly satisfied.

Small pieces of cake, or homemade cheesecake where I give more away than keep works also. For the record, when I did that for Father's Day (homemade chocolate cheesecake at my Dad's request), I didn't gain an ounce and only had two total pieces from it, because I gave more away because it was technically a "gift." That worked.

More often than not, I go the chocolate chip route.

So in my pantry, I have a half dozen bags of open chocolate chips, all twist-tied shut. I have semi-sweet, caramel, espresso, dark, peanut butter and the best, confetti, all ready to serve. 33 of them is 80 or so calories. I pick my flavors, count out 33 of them and put them into a dip cup. I'll snack on them in the evening and know exactly how much I'm having and tracking. It's a multitude of different flavors, satisfying, takes awhile to eat since I'm snacking, and I'm not going to get up to eat more, since it's too much trouble. It's perfect. Best idea ever. I highly recommend.

I look forward to it, I plan for those 80 calories, and I feel guilt-free, yet got the sugar and chocolate fix. It's also, $2 a bag for each and they last for a few months. There is no better bargain.

Also, for an extra bonus, it fits into the psych-out that I stated above. If I grab a portion and sit down on the couch, I'm done. Craving is satisfied. Try this method. It absolutely works, even if you're not ready for 33 chocolate chips.