Christmas is coming… and although its the time to indulge in all your favourite treats, I love to have some healthy dessert alternatives that I can enjoy without experiencing the mood swings and skin breakouts that excess sugar gives me. See the science behind this here.
When curating the ingredients for my healthy hot chocolate, my goal was to get that rich chocolate flavour whilst avoiding added sugar. The drink is around 50 calories per serving.
The recipe requires pure cacao powder, which is rich in polyphenols providing some key health benefits: reducing inflammation, lowering blood pressure, and lowering blood sugar levels.
You will need:
- 2 tbsp cacao powder
- 1.5 cups unsweetened almond milk
- 1 tsp vanilla essence
- Pinch of cinnamon
- Pinch of nutmeg
- 1 tbsp sugar free maple syrup
- Mint leaves
- Chopped up Double d Sugar Free Marshmallows
Method:
- Add cacao, milk, vanilla essence, cinnamon, nutmeg and maple syrup to a pot and bring to a simmer
- Pinch the mint leaves until limp and throw into the pot
- Stir all ingredients until mixture is warm and powders are well combined (2-3 minutes)
- Take mint leaves out of the top of the drink and discard (or leave in for something extra on top
- Garnish with chopped healthy marshmallows
Let me know if you try it out! Enjoy!
xx
CLARE HOPKINS 