[CHANGES] Chocolate Fix

[Sandra K. Ahten]

Mid-Summer Greetings

A big thank you to all the readers who responded to my request for favorite
chocolate fixes that won't send the scale flying. To any of you who have
decided to forego chocolate entirely, my hat goes off to you and my heart
goes out. For me, chocolate has medicinal purposes and is somehow woven in
with my spiritual life and my sanity. But I have to admit that my dependence
on it does send up warning flags. Given my history, any substance that is
too good to be true, probably will one day be found too good to be true. But
for now I'm reveling in the fact that I am able to eat chocolate without
negative consequences.

Remember to eat your chocolate s-l-o-w. Give the serotonin time to send
those pleasure signals to your brain. Savor. Enjoy the experience. I'm
reminded of the author Geneen Roth, who in her "Breaking Free" workshops has
participants suck on one Hershey's kiss. A man responds that he has eaten a
whole bag of Kisses before but never tasted one kiss. Enjoy your kisses.

Many of the suggestions below contain brand-name items, all of which can be
found somewhere in the Champaign- Urbana area.

Words To The Wise from Susan, a Lifetime member of Weight Watchers:
I find that for me I really need the chocolate itself rather than a
substitute. I go for the Dove dark chocolate pieces that are about 1 point
per piece and allow myself up to 4 points per day for chocolate. If I try
and substitute I seem to end up eating the substitute and then the chocolate
anyway.

**CHOCOLATE COFFEE - 0 points
1 package of Diet Swiss Miss hot chocolate mix (0 points)
1 tsp. of instant coffee
1 C. hot water

Mix together and enjoy.

**SKINNY FRAPPUCINO - 3 points
2 1-point fudgsicles (WW, Dairy Queen, Blue Bunny, Healthy Choice, etc.)
4 Tbsp. fat-free whipped topping (Cool Whip, etc.)
2 oz. brewed espresso or strong coffee (optional)

Blend fudge bars in blender for 30 seconds. Add whipped topping and
espresso. Blend again until smooth.

**CHOCOLATE SORBET SHAKE - 5 points
1/2 C. Haagen-Daz chocolate sorbet (2 points)
1 C. skim milk (2 points)
2 Tbsp. chocolate malt powder (1 point)

Mix milk and malt powder in a blender; add sorbet and blend until combined.

**COFFEE PLUS - 2 points (and 1 milk!)

Start with a tall glass of coffee and mix in 1/8 cup skim milk and a WW
Chocolate Smoothie -- good warm or iced.

**SIMPLE CHOCOLATE STRAWBERRIES - 2 points
1 C. strawberries (1 point)
1 Tbsp. chocolate syrup (1 point)
2 Tbsp. fat-free whipped topping (0 points)

Drizzle syrup over the top of strawberries. Top with topping.

**CHOCOLATE BANANA FREEZE - 1.5 points
1 small banana (1.5 point)
1 pkg. Diet Swiss Miss Hot Chocolate Mix (0 points)

Roll banana in the mix and freeze.

** CHOCOLATE GRAHAM CRACKER SANDWICHES - 1 point
2 Tbsp. fat-free whipped topping
2 chocolate graham cracker squares (not the squares that are covered in
chocolate)

Sandwich the topping between the crackers and freeze.

**HI-FIBER BROWNIE MUFFINS - 24 muffins at 1 point each
1 pkg. Sweet Rewards Brownie Mix
1-1/2 tsp. baking powder
3 C. All Bran cereal
2-1/2 C. water

Soak the cereal in the water. Stir in the baking powder and brownie mix
(dry). Distribute among 24 muffin cups, and bake at 350 degrees for 25 to 30
minutes.

**CRUSTLESS CHOCOLATE CINNAMON PIE (with chef comments) - 8 servings at 1
point each
1 C. cold skim milk, divided
1 envelope plain gelatin
3/4 C. boiling water
4 or 5 ice cubes
8 oz. fat-free cottage cheese
1 pkg. (4 serving) sugar-free instant chocolate pudding mix
1 tsp. vanilla extract
optional: 2 to 3 packets artificial sweetener
optional: 1/2 tsp. cinnamon

Put 3-4 tablespoons of milk into a blender or food processor and sprinkle
with gelatin. Wait 1 minute until gelatin is soft, then add boiling water.
Process until gelatin is completely dissolved (scrape sides of blender with
a rubber scraper). Add ice cubes and process until they are melted. Add
cottage cheese; process until mixture is completely smooth and creamy. Add
remaining ingredients (don't forget the rest of the milk!); process until
smooth (add sweetener if desired -- I recommend this...). Spoon mixture into
a glass pie dish. Chill until set.

This pie is great -- it slices like a pie, to serve with a little fat-free
cool whip. Cut into 8 slices, it is only 1 point per slice. I take this to
family gatherings and it disappears. If you lost control and ate the whole
thing (hasn't happened to me yet!), it would only be 8 points. My kids also
love it. I'm not a cinnamon fan, so I omit that ingredient. Enjoy!

**CHOCOLATE MILK - 2 points
1 tsp. cocoa
2 packets Equal or other sweetener
1 tsp. vanilla
1 cup 1 % or fat free milk

Mix the first three ingredients in a glass until a paste forms. Add milk and
stir.

** A BROWNIE JUST FOR YOU - 2 points
1 Tbsp. fat-free brownie mix (dry)
1 Tbsp. plain yogurt (or 1 Tbsp. water)

Mix ingredients and place in a small glass container. Cook on high in
microwave for one minute. Making this great individual size treat is a real
help with portion control.

(Note from Sandra regarding fat-free brownie mixes: No Pudge Fudge can be
found in the C-U area at Natural Gourmet in Shoppes of Knollwood, Strawberry
Fields, or Jerry's IGA on Philo. Please let me know if you can find the
Krusteaze fat-free brand or any other.)

**CANDY
Mini York peppermint patties: 1 = 1 point
Mini Tootsie Rolls: 3 = 1 point
Tootsie Pops: 1 = 1 point
Viactiv chews (these are actually calcium supplements but taste like candy):
3 = 1 point
Hershey's dark chocolate kiss: 1 = 1/2 point

**BARS
Weight Watcher Just 2 Point Bars (Chocolate Mint and Brownie are the big
sellers locally)
Slim Fast snack bars - 2 points
Quaker Low-fat Chocolate Chunk granola bars- 2 points
Quaker Low-fat S'mores granola bars - 2 points
Kudos M&M's or Snickers bars - 2 points
Rice Krispies Double Chocolate Chunk bars - 2 points

**MORE IDEAS
-- Skinny Cow Ice Cream Sandwiches - 2 points each (Look in the "novelty"
area of the ice cream section in most grocery stores)
-- Edy's No-Sugar Fat-Free Triple Chocolate Ice Cream - 2 points per 1/2 cup
-- Sugar-free chocolate pudding (2 points) with fat-free whipped topping (2
Tbsp. = 0 points)
-- Soy Dream Bars - 1 point (available at Natural Gourmet or Strawberry
Fields)
-- Stonyfield Farm YoSelf Yogurt, Chocolate; snack-pack sizes - 2 points
(counts as a milk!)
-- Miss Meringue Triple Chocolate Meringue Cookie - 1/2 point each (Try one
of these crushed over 1/2 C. nonfat frozen yogurt - 2 points. The cookies
are available at World Harvest Foods on University between 5th and 6th
Streets in Champaign and at County Market. Or go to
http://www.missmeringue.com for other locations.)
-- Baker's Breakfast Cookies, Mocha or Double Chocolate Chip - 5 points
(These are available at Osco, at some IGAs, or from
http://www.bakersbox.com/BreakfastCookie.)
-- Low-fat Chocolate Nilla Wafers - 8 cookies for 2 points (Reader Krista
says these are great plain, but also recommends dipping them in Yoplait
Light Boston Cream Pie yogurt (with the blue lid).
-- Nestle's Chocolate Mousse Mix - 1 point per serving

**GRILLED CHOCOLATE CHIP SANDWICHES - 4 points (Sandra's personal favorite)
2 slices Natural Ovens Happiness Bread (2 points; this is a
raisin/cinnamon/pecan bread)
1 Tbsp. chocolate chips (2 points)
12 sprays of I Can't Believe It's Not Butter (0 points)
Spray one piece of bread 6 times with ICBINB. Lay the sprayed side down in a
hot skillet. Sprinkle with chocolate chips. Spray the other piece of bread
and lay, sprayed side up, on top of the chips. Flip once.

**SNICKERS PIE - 8 servings at 2 points each
1 pint fat-free chocolate frozen yogurt, softened
8 oz. fat-free whipped topping
1 pkg. sugar-free, fat-free chocolate pudding
1/3 C. crunchy peanut butter
1/3 C. Grapenuts cereal

Mix all ingredients together. Put in an 8- or 9-inch pie plate and freeze
for several hours.

Words to the Wise from Robbie:
I love chocolate (who doesn't?) and it's one of those foods that I can
really binge on. Because of this, I don't keep any at home. That way when I
have one of those uncontrollable cravings I have to hunt some down.
Pre-program I would often satisfy this with the closest fix I could find --
raw brownie batter or a can of chocolate frosting were a couple of
favorites!!! But since beginning the program I've limited myself to only the
very best, something I try to do with all my "dangerous" foods; if I'm going
to splurge only splurge on the highest quality that way I get the most
satisfaction out of it. Now my favorite place go for a chocolate fix is Art
Mart. They have a great variety; truffles, wonderful chocolate bars or even
one of their fantastic chocolate chip cookies will do it for me!!

I never know when to anticipate my chocolate cravings, but I've gotten
pretty good at being able to separate the general urges from the true "I've
GOT to have chocolate" needs so I can usually limit myself to one every
couple of months.

**A WW member recommends the mini-chocolate cheesecakes that are on the
E-tools recipe cards that are being given out free in the Weight Watcher
meeting room in Champaign. She says they are her "life saver." Stop by to
pick up these free recipe cards and to say hello. I am there half an hour
before each meeting. We are much less busy this time of year, so I would
have a chance to talk to you if you came by. I would love to see you and
chat if you are an e-mail reader of mine, whether you are a Weight Watcher
member or not.

Hugs and chocolate kisses,
Sandra
Current WW schedule - Tuesday 5:15; Wednesday 9:30, Noon, 5:15; Friday
10:00, Noon, 5:15.


© 2002 by Sandra Ahten
Although I am an employee of Weight Watchers, this message has no
affiliation with Weight Watchers International. I am solely responsible for
the content. Neither Weight Watchers nor I officially endorse any of the
above products, nor do we guarantee accuracy of "points."