Can I let you guys in on a little secret? I probably eat chocolate every single day. Yup, even as a Holistic Nutritionist! I don't see it as a "guilty pleasure" because I don't attach any guilt to it and we are allowed to experience pleasure from food.

There's also something to be said that if we simply allow ourselves to enjoy that 1 square of chocolate (okay, maybe 2-3 at times), it can help us from overeating or binging later on. Gone are the days when I would be craving a sweet treat like ice-cream and would resort to yogurt instead because it was the healthier option. Because of course, that yogurt wouldn't end at the yogurt – it would turn into cereal, almond butter, chips, crackers, chocolate chips and then finally, ice-cream.

We are better off if we simply listen to our body and honour what it needs, than suppressing those signals it's giving us.

With that said, I do try my best to prioritize foods that both fuel my body on a cellular level and bring me joy, which is how this Quick & Easy Chocolate Almond Butter Bark was born! It's super satisfying and as delicious as it is, I find I only need a square (or triangle, as you can see) because it fulfills my craving and satisfies my palette. I encourage you to do the same when enjoying foods – focus on foods that bring you pleasure and make you feel awesome in your body!

Now I was almost a bit embarrassed to share this recipe because it's almost too easy. But there's nothing wrong with that, right? Especially when that chocolate craving strikes, you want to have something you can turn to in a pinch, right? Okay, maybe not a pinch because there's some waiting time as it freezes but practicing patience will just make you enjoy it even more.

I would have typically made this using cacao powder, coconut oil and pure maple syrup which is another way you can make homemade chocolate, but instead, I used dairy-free chocolate chips (I like the brand Cuisine Camino). That doesn't mean that there is some organic cane sugar in this recipe, but I'm a big fan of picking our evils.

I typically resort to natural sweeteners like raw honey, pure maple syrup or molasses, since they are a source of natural sweetness but provide a wealth of nutritional benefits as well, but if it came down to refined sugar or organic cane sugar, I would still choose organic cane sugar. If anyone knows of a brand of chocolate chips without organic cane sugar, feel free to share in the comments below!

Side note: Not only does the addition of almond butter in this recipe make it taste like Reese's (who doesn't love Reese's?!), but because it's a source of healthy fat, it will slow the release of glucose (sugar) in your bloodstream which will help to prevent any blood sugar spikes and crashes that sweet treats have the tendency to bring. Bonus!

I wanted to bring you this recipe in celebration of Valentine's Day or "Love Day" which is TODAY (at least when I'm writing this). I don't take this holiday too seriously, but I do love the little reminder to show our love to one another. A little hit of oxytocin never hurt anyone, right?!

I had a number of things I wanted to say around the topic of love until I received a newsletter I'm subscribed to (shout out to Mastin Kipp!) that just said everything so perfectly:

"True love is the unconditional acceptance of something or someone ... as it is. You can't love something if you only accept it if it changes."

Did reading that cause any daggers to strike through your chest, or what?! This rings so true for so many things in our lives – the expectations we put on our partners, friends or family, but especially the love we show ourselves. So many of my clients believe that they can only love themselves once they are "X" size or "X" weight. But we can't love something, or ourselves, on the condition that it changes or looks a certain way. We need to love ourselves NOW, exactly in this moment, because if we're constantly waiting on the weight or to look a certain way, we may never actually "love" ourselves.

But if we can find that true, authentic and unconditional love for ourselves, everything starts to take care of itself; we treat ourselves better, we nourish ourselves better and we speak more nicely to ourselves. All of these things are the key ingredients to start paving the path to healing our relationship with food, our body and ourselves. If that's something that you're working on, I have just the thing for you!I hope you enjoy this Quick & Easy Chocolate Almond Butter Bark and if you end up making it, be sure to tag me on social media @rachelmmolenda and use #RealAssFood so I can see it!

Quick & Easy Chocolate Almond Butter Bark

Ingredients

1 bag Cuisine Camino Organic Bittersweet Chocolate Chips
1/2 cup almond butter
2-3 tbsp goji berries (optional)
2 tbsp sesame seeds (optional)

Directions

Prepare a double boiler using a small/medium pot filled halfway with water and a metal/stainless steel on top of it.
Bring water to a boil. Once boiled, add the chocolate chips to the bowl and stir using a spatula until melted thoroughly.
Add in almond butter and mix until fully blended.
Line a small pan or baking sheet with parchment paper and transfer mixture over onto the parchment paper. Use a spatula here to ensure you don't waste any of the delicious chocolate almond butter mixture!
Top with any toppings that you wish (I used goji berries and sesame seeds)
Place in the freezer and freeze for 6 hours or overnight.
Break up chocolate into small pieces and store in a glass container.
Store in freeze (note: they will begin to melt at room temperature) and enjoy when you please!

Hands up if you're a chocolate lover too! What's your favourite chocolate-y treat?