Christmas Pea Soup

Christmas, of course, because of the abundant green color of this hearty, fiber-full soup and also because I add roasted red peppers which give the soup nice red flecks.  Its the Christmas wreath of soups!  PLUS peas, like all legumes, are an excellent source of protein, fiber, folate, manganese, etc.

Honestly, this was another one of my dutch oven miracles where I eyeball ingredients and it comes out fabulously!  What luck!

Here are the quantities as far as I can guess- it made an ENTIRE dutch oven full!  I've been eating pea soup for either lunch or dinner everyday for a week and I'm not even sick of it, its so good!

INGREDIENTS:

-2 cups dried split green (or yellow!) peas
-4+ cloves of garlic, minced
-1 small yellow onion, diced
-2/3 cup roasted red pepper strips, chopped

-2T sea salt (more or less to taste)
-1T ground black pepper
-1T curry powder
-Dash of cayenne
-1t garlic powder

-4c or more of chicken stock
-1/4c plain fat free Greek yogurt (more if you want a creamier soup)

DIRECTIONS:

~~Heat large dutch oven over low heat, add 2T olive oil when pot is warm
~~Add minced garlic, sliced onion, and roasted red peppers separately, allowing each to warm and be stirred before moving onto the next
~~Add spices

~~When veggies are warm and translucent (not the peppers, obviously) add 1c stock and deglaze (use a wooden spoon to scrape up the cooked veggie bits off the bottom of the pot

~~Add the peas, followed by the remaining stock and bring to a boil
~~Cover with lid, turn heat to low, and allow to simmer for about 15 or 20 minutes or until peas are tender and have lost their shape

~~If you want, use an immersion blender for only about 30 seconds to further liquify the soup.  Replace lid and allow to simmer on low for another 10-20 minutes 

~~Add more liquid if necessary, turn off heat and stir in Greek yogurt


*I topped mine with a little Parmesan cheese


Merry Christmas and Happy, Healthy Eating!

Curry Lentil Butternut Squash Soup

A perfect one-pot fall dinner!

My mom is the master of butternut squash soup.  I tried to be like her and added my own flair while I was at it!

High protein with the lentils, high fiber with the squash, oodles of Vitamin A + friends, a gorgeous color, and a lovely Middle Eastern flavor profile- this is one that I make again and again.  This is a filling vegetarian dish that can also be easily made a *vegan dish if desired.

INGREDIENTS:

·      2 medium sized butternut squash, I got mine at the farmer’s market, which is even better!

·      2 cups low sodium, fat free chicken stock

·      2 cups water

·      1 cup dried lentils

·      4-8 fresh garlic cloves

·      ½ large (or 1 small) red onion

·      ½ t sea salt

·      1 t crushed black pepper (and/or pink pepper if you have it) 

·      1 T curry powder                                                                                  

·      ¼ t cumin                                                                                              

·      ¼ t cayenne powder

·      3T plain fat free Greek yogurt (optional)

·      3T chopped fresh herbs, like parsley or cilantro- I used parsley (optional)

·      ½ ounce plain goat cheese per serving (optional)

DIRECTIONS:

·      Cut 2 butternut squashes length-wise and bake in the oven at about 350 until very soft inside, probably around 30 minutes or so

·      Allow squash to cool enough so you can hold them without blistering your fingertips off

·      Use a spoon and scoop out the squash flesh into a bowl- this should be fairly easy if its cooked enough

MEANWHILE, as the squash was baking, you should have done this:

·      Heat a generous amount of olive oil in the bottom of a very large, heavy pan like a Dutch oven to MEDIUM heat

·      Chop garlic & onion and add to heated pan- cook until onions are translucent and put heat on LOW

·      Add salt, pepper, and other spices

·      Deglaze the pan with 2 cups of chicken stock (ie, pour in the stock and then use a wooden spoon to scrape the cooked bits off the bottom of the pan

·      Add water and turn heat to HIGH

·      When water is simmering rapidly, add the dried lentils and bring to a boil for several minutes

And now FINALLY…

·      Add the cooked squash

·      Stir well, put a lid on it, and simmer- stir occasionally

·      I simmered & stirred mine for about 30 minutes and –BAM- it was finished.  Lentils should be tender and most of the squash should be broken down

·      If you’re fancy, you can use an immersion blender to slightly puree the soup

·      If you’re kinda fancy, you can use a muddler to break down large squash pieces in the pot

·      If you’re not fancy at all, use a fork to break up larger squash pieces

The soup will be thick, regardless of how you choose to eliminate the squash chunks.  You can thin it out if you want by adding more water or stock.

·      Stir in fresh herbs of your choice at the last minute

·      Stir in Greek yogurt if desired

·      Serve immediately!

I topped mine with goat cheese and gave it a swirl- it was awesome!

When it comes to spices, I say go big or go home.  So feel free to tone down the cayenne, etc. if that’s not your style.

**Can easily be made VEGAN by using vegetable stock instead of chicken stock and using pureed silken tofu or vegan yogurt instead of Greek yogurt and goat cheese.

Pan-Fried Soft-Shelled Crabs

Cuz I'm fancy like that.

One of the perks of living in the Mid-Atlantic Region is FRESH, WILD-CAUGHT, LOCAL SEAFOOD!  Not farm-raised in Chile, not shipped over from Sweden, not frozen and carted around in cargo planes.  So whenever I'm at the fancy market and see the words LOCAL and WILD in big orange letters, I take my chances.

I asked my local fishmonger (cuz I have one now, and its amazing- he's from Canada & just became a citizen and this is his first US election!) how one might properly prepare a fresh, local, wild soft-shelled crab and he recommended deep frying and adding some fancy soft cheese. 

I said, "Frying..?"  And he sighed and said, "Or I supposed a sauté will work if you want to be healthier or whatever," obviously peeved that I second-guessed him, but still glad that I asked.

So that's what I did!  Sauteed (or basically pan-fried) breaded soft-shelled crab!

It was really so easy and looks UBER impressive, plus no shell-cracking required- you just eat EVERYTHING!  Kinda weird at first, but you'll get over it; promise.

DIRECTIONS:

• Rinse off crabs under cold, running water & pat dry with paper towels
• Soak crabs in buttermilk (or whatever, I even used vanilla almond milk once and it was fine!) for at least 5 minutes
• Dredge through a pan or large plate of whole wheat flour, whole wheat Panko crumbs, sea salt, crushed black pepper, and a generous sprinkling of Old Bay (I'm still a Maryland girl at heart!).
• Shake off excess flour and transfer immediately into a large pan heated to a MEDIUM temperature with enough oil to almost cover the bottom of the pan
• Sprinkle crabs with Parmesan cheese as its closer to being done and allow it to caramelize slightly
• Flip when golden brown
• Allow to drain on paper towels
• Squeeze some fresh lemon juice over the top
• Serve with goat cheese, homemade tartar sauce, ranch dressing, or whatever you prefer (Mine are shown with roasted beets & rutabagas!)

Seriously VERY impressive!  And delicious!  And fast!

Gluten Free Lemon Coconut Tofu Squares (ie, fancy Lemon Bars)

 I adapted this recipe from the Whole Living issue with my doppelganger on the cover:

My version is gluten free & sugar free PLUS has like triple the amount of lemon-protein goodness on top!  This is less of a traditional lemon bar, and more of a coconut shortbread bar with super lemony custard on top.  WARNING: you may need to eat with a spoon...or just be prepared to get it all over your face & fingers

FOR CRUST:
-1/2 cup coconut oil
-1/4 cup Splenda
-1 tsp vanilla extract
-1/4 tsp coarse salt
-1 1/2 cup white rice flour (Bob's Red Mill)

FOR FILLING:
-1/2 cup silken tofu
-1/4 cup Truvia
-3 Tbs grated lemon zest
-1 cup fresh-squeezed lemon juice
-1/4 tsp baking powder
-2 Tbs white rice flour

DIRECTIONS:
-Heat oven to 350

-Brush an 8inch square baking dish with oil or butter, line with parchment so that there is an overhang over the sides of the dish, brush parchment with more oil

-Make crust: stir together oil, sugar, vanilla & salt. Add flour and stir until just combined
-Press dough into prepared dish and bake for 20-30 minutes
-The crust will only lightly brown on the edges

-Meanwhile, make filling: place ALL filling ingredients in a food processor until smooth and there are NO visible tofu bits

-Pour filling onto baked crust and bake until set, 50-70 minutes

(you can see my fingerprints from where I touched it to check its doneness^ oops)

-Let cool completely

-You can of course dust with powdered sugar, but I find it superfluous to top a dessert with even more sugar.  But that’s just me :)

It cooks for A LOT longer than you would expect.  I actually took mine out, tried a piece and ended up putting it back in the over for like 20 MORE minutes.  But then it got this gorgeous yellow color:

The bars have a great tropical flavor thanks to the coconut oil- delish!

Fancy Pinecone Dip!

I hosted a Fall dinner party this week (SO fun; I have the coolest friends!) and the hit of the party was the gorgeous pinecone dip.

Looks impressive, but WAY easier than it seems!

Here's how it turned out:

Here's the how-to:

Ingredients
1 1/4 cups whole natural almonds
1 (8-ounce) package of cream cheese
1/2 cup real mayonnaise
3 crispy cooked bacon slices (or chopped prosciutto, which is what I used), crumbled
1/2 teaspoon dill weed
Salt and pepper
1 tablespoon chopped green onion
Fresh rosemary sprigs, for garnish

Directions
Mix together the cream cheese and the mayonnaise. Add the bacon, salt and pepper, dill, and onion. Chill overnight.
On a serving platter, make 2 pine cone shapes with the cheese. Begin to press the almonds at a slight angle into the cheese, starting at the narrow end of the pine cone shape.
Add the sprigs & voila!

I served it with crackers and it was a hit.

Personally...I HATE mayo and so honestly, I didn't like it much...but my roomie was CRAZY about it and everyone else seemed to like it too.

(The recipe came from Amy Sedaris on FoodNetwork.com)

Honey Cake- the food of the gods

First, a little lesson on honey- one of my most favorite things and, for me, a kitchen staple.

I have become a honey connoisseur as of late and my new favorite is PEPPER HONEY! :D

My old favorite was Avocado Honey, if you must know.

Lesson: honey is, in fact, bee vomit.  Its flavor, colors, and other properties are heavily influenced by the type of plants the bees have been pollinating.

I have the great opportunity to have local bee keepers in PA and NJ (I live in Philly) who can supply me with awesome local raw honey.  My favorite, however, are The Bee Folks in Maryland because they have SO MANY different varieties and, yes, they DO taste subtly different and ALL are delicious :)

Yum, yum, yum!

So the relevance is that made a Honey Cake and I used Buckwheat Honey, which is a thick, dark, almost molasses-y honey and so the cake tasted a little reminiscent of gingerbread cake, which I loved.

Usually I tweak a recipe to add a little healthiness, or at least subtract a little badness, but when it is a special occasion, I go ALL out!  For real, I had to buy tons of butter to do this, since I didn't have any cuz I'm not really down with butter...

So this is a recipe that my mom used and even though I am absolutely a chocolate woman, this is my FAVORITE cake recipe.  I believe it originated from Martha Stewart.

RECIPE:

INGREDIENTS:
(cake)
3/4 cup butter

3 1/4 cups + 2 T sifted flour

1 T baking powder

3/4 tsp. baking soda

3/4 tsp. salt

2 1/4 tsp. cinnamon

pinch of cloves

1 1/4 cups brown sugar

2/3 cup honey

2 tsp. vanilla

1 1/2 cups milk

6 large egg whites

1/4 tsp. cream of tartar

(Honey caramel glaze)

2/3 cup honey

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/3 cup (5 1/2 T) butter, melted

1 tsp. vanilla

DIRECTIONS:

-Heat oven to 350'

-Grease the daylights out of a bundt pan because they are fancy

-Sift together the ingredients from flour through cloves into a bowl

-Cream together butter and sugar. Gradually add in honey and continue to beat until very light and fluffy.  Add the vanilla. Alternately add the flour mixture with the milk, beginning and ending with the flour mixture. Transfer to a large mixing bowl.

-Whip egg whites and cream of tartar to stiff, glossy peaks.  Fold egg whites into cake batter.  This may take a little while, so don't lose hope and get rough with it.  Your cake WILL be dense, but this will help so its not a honey pound cake.

-Pour batter into pans. Bake 40 minutes.  Cover with aluminum foil and continue baking for 15-20 more minutes.  Test until cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean. Allow to cool 15 minutes.

-Turn out cakes and cool on a wire rack. Once cool wrap in plastic wrap and chill for at least one hour.

-In a small saucepan, bring honey, sugar and butter to a boil; stir until sugar dissolves.  Add vanilla; remove from heat. Cool 1 minute. Use immediately.

-Spoon warm glaze over the entire cake until it's completely covered.

DROOOOOOLLL...check out that honey-caramelly goodness...

I had some for every meal today.

I wish that^ was a joke.

Bonus: I had leftover caramel sauce which I put in a little bowl and dipped apple slices in!

Pumpkin Strikes Back!

FIRST PUMPKIN RECIPE OF THE SEASON!

I had a cool man friend over last night and to celebrate the impending autumnal equinox, the vote was to go with a pumpkin recipe.  That's when Grandma came to the rescue with her super famous big, soft pumpkin cookies!

RECIPE (with minor tweaks, cuz I do that)

Place the following ingredients in a mixing bowl:

• 1/3 cup Canola Oil
• 1 cup sugar (or Splenda/Truvia equivalents)
• 1 egg
• 1 t vanilla
• 2 t baking powder
• 1/2 t sea salt
• 1 t baking soda
• 1 t ground nutmeg
• 1-1/2 t ground cinnamon
• 1/2 t ground ginger 

Gently mix them just until combined.  If using a standing mixer, mix on low for several seconds.

Then alternate adding in pumpkin and flour in the following quantities:

• 1 can of organic pureed pumpkin
• 2-3/4 cups 100% white whole wheat flour (you may need a little extra if its too runny)

When all that^ is just mixed together and the consistency is thinner than cookie dough, but thicker than cake batter, you can gently add the best part:

• 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
  
   (Usually I don't mess around with pansy and head straight for the Ghiradelli 60% Cacao Bittersweet Dark Chocolate Chips because -let's be real, here- they're clearly the best.  But some somebody on Food Network recently ranted about how semi-sweet goes better with pumpkin, so I went on his word here.)
   
  Grandma suggests baking at 375 for 10 min; I baked mine for about 20 minutes.  Cookies will be firm in the center to the touch when finished.
  
  
  
  
  These cookies are more like pumpkin bread- super fluffy and substantial-feeling!  Everyone LOVES them!!  AND they are whole grain, include a VEGETABLE(!), and really have very little fat in the entire recipe, none of which is animal-based fat (not including the chocolate chips).  
  
  
  So eat away!  I've already had 5 1/2 today and its only 3pm- so I'm not kidding when I say they are DELICIOUS!
  
  
  Thanks, Grandma <3 
  
  
  

Summer Oats

Oats are a great breakfast food- whole grain, all natural, gluten-free, and they even have some protein!  But on steamy summer mornings when its already 80 degrees at 8am :/ a piping hot bowl of oatmeal is somewhat less than appetizing.

So here’s my recipe for Summer Oats- no cooking required- a tasty, natural, (mostly) raw foods dish that you will make again and again!  Also great for getting all the use you can out of summer's amazing seasonal fruit.

TOOLS

-Glass jar with lid, reuse one that you would have recycled, like from a jar of apple sauce or peach butter (so good!)

-Small food processor, or blender, or the will to chop the daylights out of your fruit du jour

INGREDIENTS

-1/3 c oats, I prefer Bob’s Red Mill old-fashioned oats, but even quick oats work fine

-1/2c plain nonfat Greek yogurt (its got a lot more protein than the regular stuff)

-1/2 large peach or nectarine or 2 small plums or ½ c hulled strawberries or pitted cherries- whatever fresh, local, summer fruit is your favorite!

-1T chia seeds, I also like to add dried hemp seed and ground flaxseed, but the chia plumps up so nicely in the yogurt that it makes it a for sure winner!

-Pinches of SALT & CINNAMON & GINGER & why not add some nutmeg or clove for flair

-1T almond slices

 

-1/4C ALMOND MILK or coconut, rice, or cow’s milk, etc.  I use unsweetened vanilla almond milk

-1 or 2 or 3t AGAVE NECTAR or honey or 100% maple syrup

~~As you can see there’s lots of wiggle room here^.  Make it your own and use up what you have on hand!  If you want a jumpstart on your daily veggie intake, try adding pureed pumpkin to the mix too.  Unsweetened shredded coconut is great as well as other nuts like pecan and walnuts, preferably in pieces or chopped~~

DIRECTIONS

-Spoon yogurt into glass jar

-Top yogurt with oats, seeds, salt & spices {here’s where I add my secret ingredient of Maple Sugar- dehydrated 100% maple syrup from a little shop called Savory, so great!}

-Blend 1/2 peach in food processor and spoon into jar (I usually make 2 batches at once, so I put in the whole peach, obviously)

-Give ingredients a gentle stir with a butter knife, try to not have any visibly dry oats

-All almonds now, or wait until you serve the oats and use them as garnish

-Pour almond milk over any dry spots and give another gentle swirl

-REFRIGERATE OVERNIGHT with lid on, or at least for a few hours

-Top with agave and any reserved nuts

-Enjoy a cool taste of summer, ready as soon as you’re out of bed!

Based on my calculations at Livestrong.com, here’s the nutrition profile:

333 Calories

9.6g fat (less than 1g is saturated)

9.5g fiber

21g protein

-WHOA protein and fiber powerhouse!  AND full of Abs Diet superfoods- enjoy!

*Peach photo credit to http://ilfbpartners.com/illinois-fruit-calendar/

SUMMER!

Here's a toast to summer and summer foods!

The warmer months are a great time for abundant produce and the simplicity of eating cold watermelon for dessert instead of heating up the whole house by baking some elaborate dessert.

Isn't this^ a great photo?  Very impressive. (mixingbowlkids.typepad.com)

I've been trying to eat more seasonally and it has been very rewarding.  I load up on all that the farmer's market has to offer me and look around in my local grocery stores for produce from this area and that I know hasn't been sitting in a freezer for 6 months before reaching the shelves.

For real!  If California and Florida orange growers think they are fooling anyone when we peel an orange only to see the membranes are all hard, all the little juice packs are separated and dry, and the flavor is NIL, they ought to think again!  I know that orange has been FROZEN and the cells are damaged!  GROSS!  Not only unpleasant to eat, but it kills the fruit's nutrient profile :(

So after one too many nasty orange (or other foods), I decided to make a concerted effort to eat produce in season.  Odd as it sounds, it kinda feels like the right thing to do when I think about how my pioneer ancestors would not have had peaches in December (unless they were canned), asparagus in October, or oranges in May- so why should I?

[And you didn't think veggies could be cute, did you? They're hugging! From Greenpoint-Williamsburg CSA.]

This winter was my first to focus on winter produce- arguably the scarcest- and I found that the rich, earthy vegetables of winter were just what my body was wanting during those cold months. {Think brussel sprouts, sweet potatoes, cabbage, rutabagas, parsnips, winter squash...}

And here is some of my latest farmer's market pull, full of early summer's bounty:

No more golden beets (my favorite!), but they did have golden raspberries!  You don't see those everyday!

So enjoy the beauty of summer and all it offers, including fresh produce, which I consider to be one of the greatest blessings of the season.  Here's a list of some popular US summer crops to stock up on:

• peaches
• watermelon
• plums
• figs
• blueberries
• corn
• summer squash + zucchini
• tomatoes
• eggplant
• basil

P.S.
In the interest of full disclosure,  I do have a few holdouts: bananas (impossible to get locally) and avocados.  But I don't count these two because, for me, they're more like health supplements than produce- my body NEEDS them and I wouldn't avoid getting medicine just because it wasn't made in a local factory right??  OK, maybe that's a little bit of a week excuse, but I'm working on it... :)

Killer Tofu, except actually just BEETS

Recently I've been really into BEETS!

And not just because I love Doug...

But mostly because I love the farmers market!

I ate it all before I could take a photo (it was that irresistible) but here is the interesting salad I just had for lunch with my (amaaaaazing) grilled cheese sandwich (multigrain + flaxseed bread from the farmers market, whole grain mustard, and extra sharp cheddar cheese from the market, too!)

-Sliced (gorgeous!) yellow market beets
-Chopped market garlic scape (looks like lemongrass but tastes oh, so garlicky)
-Tuna (for protein's sake)
-drizzles of olive oil & maple balsamic + freshly crushed black pepper

Simple, yes.  Healthy, SUPER.  And also delisshhhhhhhh!

I also recently had a different farmer's market-inspired beet salad, as follows:

-Sliced, boiled red beets from the market
-Rinsed garbanzo beans
-Generous dollop of quark from the market (soft white cheese, kinda like a zesty neufchatel)
-Sprinkling of sea salt & crushed pink pepper (my new favorite!)
-Topped with some mixed baby greens from my garden
-Drizzles of olive oil & maple balsamic

***
P.S.
Here's another one I just made and this time I had the sense to photograph before chowing down:

-Sliced golden beets (local farmer's market)
-Spinach (market)
-Avocado
-Marinated artichoke hearts
-Organic pork, made in slow cooker so as not to heat up the house, then refrigerated
-Served with a dollop of Quark (market), pink salt, black pepper, marinade from the chokes, and whole/multigrain bread (market)

The Alice in Wonderland Un-birthday Cake as interpreted by myself

INGREDIENTS:
-3 boxes of white cake mix + whatever they call for (eggs, oil, water, etc.)
-2 jars of lemon curd (at room temperature for easy spreading)
-1 small bottle of Bolthouse Berry Smoothie (blackberry & blueberry juice)
-blue food coloring
-fresh blueberries


DIRECTIONS:
-Prepare the cakes as directed, each box makes 2 cakes
-I used a smaller 8-inch cake pan instead of the standard 9 incher to make the cakes a little taller so I had more room to spare for cutting the tops off of the cakes so they'd be flat and stack better
-For the first cake, I added only about 1tsp of berry juice + a teensy bit of food coloring, keeping the cake mix pretty much white
-For each progressive cake, I would add more juice and more food coloring, with the final and bluest cake having about 1/2 c of juice added to it + a generous amount of food coloring
-Cool cakes completely before trying to stack
-Use a sharp serrated knife to trim the cake, making the tops flat and exposing the colors by cutting off the browned outside of the cakes

-I stacked them in 2 stacks of 3 with lemon curd between each layer and then froze the 2 stacks (it probably won't fit in your freezer if you try to put all 6 cakes on top of each other from the get-go)

-20-30 minutes before serving time, remove cakes from freezer and rinse the blueberries, then pat them dry with a paper towel.  Use another layer of lemon curd to put to 2 stacks on top of each other and use 4 skewers, inserted from the top to the bottom, to hold the cakes stable.

-Add the rest of the lemon curd to the top in a generous layer, layer the blueberries on top in concentric circles

-Trim around the edges to make the cake even, I even added visual interest (perhaps on purpose or perhaps not...) by trimming the cake so it got thinner at the bottom, giving it a whimsical, Alice in Wonderland look ala the Mad Hatter

-A work of art!  Delicious with coconut gelatto and lemon sorbetto :)

Another Winner- BIGGEST LOSER-STYLE OAT PANCAKES :D

Not sure if this is really a legit BL recipe, but its healthy and tasty enough to be!  And almost 19 GRAMS OF PROTEIN for a few little pancakes!  So I'm sold!  Very easy to make too, I'm always a fan of things that just get thrown in a food processor :)

This is the per serving recipe, but it can easily be doubled, tripled, quadrupled...

INGREDIENTS:
-2 egg whites (~1/4 cup of pasteurized egg whites)
-1/3 cup dry quick oats
-1/3 cup fat free cottage cheese
-1/3 teaspoon Truvia
-1/3 teaspoon cinnamon
-1/3 teaspoon vanilla

DIRECTIONS
-Pre heat skilled or flat pan medium-hot and spray with cooking spray
-Throw ALL ingredients into food processor and whirl until smooth
-Put dollops into hot pan and flip when they bubble
-Watch out, they cook quickly!
-Each serving makes ~4 small, moist, satisfying pancakes

NUTRITION (I verified using MyPlate.com)
177 calories
1.67g fat
2.66g fiber
2.66g sugar
18.65g protein

Top with about 3/4cup fresh strawberries, 1 teaspoon of sugar free cool whip, and a drizzle of 100% maple syrup or agave for about 100 calories more and YUM!  Balanced breakfast under 300 calories.

BEST CHOCOLATE PUDDING YOU'LL EVER EAT!

Not to mention the easiest, healthiest, richest chocolate pudding you'll ever eat!  And get this, it's dairy-free, has only FOUR INGREDIENTS, has a super dark chocolatey taste, low glycemic index, no artificial anything, and only takes about 2 minutes from start to finish.  I'm hooked.

Ingredients:
-1 large, ripe avocado
-1 tsp vanilla [I use the good stuff- madagascar bourbon- just like Georgetown Cupcakes ;) ]
-3 Tbs unsweetened cocoa powder
-1/4 cup agave syrup
-[OPTIONAL: pinch of sea salt]

Directions:
-Throw it all in a little food processor
-Blend until smooth and dreamy, a minute or 2, until you don't see green anymore
-Use a rubber scraper to get all the goodness out and divide into 3 little tupperwares
-Refrigerate and eat! nom nom nom

Hints:
I have calculated the calories to be about 180 if you make 3 little servings out of the quantities of ingredients listed above.  It may seem like not a big serving, but its a regular Jell-O pudding cup size and believe me, this stuff is rich.  No, you cannot taste avocado, only rich chocolate goodness.  It feels like your eating something very, VERY naughty, but in fact its very, VERY good!

I eat some right after making it and it is just like eating frosting!  But I think its even better the next day after it has chilled in the fridge for a while.

BON APPETIT!