Naturally Sweet – FoodWatcher

Healthy Chocolate Snack

Need a chocolate fix? This chocolate snack tastes rich and chocolaty, but it’s just Greek yogurt, cocoa powder and maple syrup. And it’s made in 2 minutes! Want a chocolate fix? Have we got one for you! This one I invented by chance, and it’s not really even a recipe! I stir it together when I get a chocolate craving in the evenings, and I don’t even measure. Here’s the great part: it tastes just like dark chocolate pudding! But it’s only Greek yogurt, dark cocoa powder, and maple syrup. So, you weirdly get the protein and probiotics of yogurt while getting your chocolate fix. Even better, you can make it in 2 minutes! My mom tried it recently and said, “You HAVE to share this!” If you’re a dark chocolate lover like we are, keep reading. Let’s clear some things up. What’s a healthy chocolate snack? First of all: what does the term healthy even mean? We used it to modify this “chocolate snack” because it’s healthier than most chocolate treats. But healthy is a hard word to define. If you really want something healthy, eat a salad! But if you need your chocolate fix, this chocolate pudding is […]

A Couple Cooks – Healthy, Whole Food, & Vegetarian Recipes

Need a chocolate fix? This chocolate snack tastes rich and chocolaty, but it’s just Greek yogurt, cocoa powder and maple syrup. And it’s made in 2 minutes!

Want a chocolate fix? Have we got one for you! This one I invented by chance, and it’s not really even a recipe! I stir it together when I get a chocolate craving in the evenings, and I don’t even measure. Here’s the great part: it tastes just like dark chocolate pudding! But it’s only Greek yogurt, dark cocoa powder, and maple syrup. So, you weirdly get the protein and probiotics of yogurt while getting your chocolate fix. Even better, you can make it in 2 minutes! My mom tried it recently and said, “You HAVE to share this!” If you’re a dark chocolate lover like we are, keep reading.

Let’s clear some things up. What’s a healthy chocolate snack?

First of all: what does the term healthy even mean? We used it to modify this “chocolate snack” because it’s healthier than most chocolate treats. But healthy is a hard word to define. If you really want something healthy, eat a salad! But if you need your chocolate fix, this chocolate pudding is indeed a healthier option than most. Here’s why:

It’s got lots of protein (8 grams). Here’s why I prefer this snack to eating a bar of chocolate or chocolate cake. It has lots of protein: 8 grams in a serving! Alex and I have been working out more and protein is helpful for building muscle and staying strong.
You can enjoy the probiotics of yogurt. The probiotics in yogurt are helpful for gut health. You don’t get that from a cupcake!
It’s only 175 calories. I like that this chocolate snack is a reasonable amount of calories! Alex and I don’t count or restrict calories. But I wanted to make sure my “healthy” chocolate snack wasn’t loading on 500 calories in the evenings.
It’s naturally sweet, but it does contain sugar! While maple syrup is not refined sugar, guess what? It still contains sugar! This chocolate snack is not sugar free.

Use Dutch processed / dark cocoa powder!

Here’s the most important thing about this chocolate snack recipe. YOU MUST USE DARK COCOA POWDER! Please tell us you read that? I’ll say it again in normal case now. That’s right, please use dark cocoa powder, also known as Dutch process cocoa powder or Dutched cocoa. The package may also say “100% cocoa”.

What is it? Dutch process cocoa powder is essentially like a dark chocolate version of cocoa powder. It’s been treated with an alkali to make it pH neutral, which gives it a darker color and milder flavor. The dark cocoa powder is what gives this snack its dark chocolate flavor. I’ve tried it with regular cocoa powder and it’s not nearly the same flavor: it almost tastes fruity. The dark cocoa is what combines with the maple syrup to taste like chocolate. Please heed this advice!

Dutch process vs regular cocoa powder — Here’s the color difference between Dutch process and regular cocoa powder.

Where to buy Dutch process or dark cocoa powder?

You should be able to find dark chocolate or Dutch process cocoa powder for this chocolate snack at your local grocery store, next to the regular cocoa powder. Here are the two brands I’ve used and liked:

Hershey’s Special Dark Cocoa Powder: This is the one that’s easiest to find at groceries, but here’s a link for it online. (I may have stocked up on 4 containers.)
Ghiradelli Dutch Process Cocoa Powder: This one is much more expensive, but we tried it when I ran out of Hershey’s once. WOW is the flavor rich and delicious! If you have the budget, use this one for the highest quality chocolate snack experience. (Ha!)

My chocolate snack obsession

This post is oddly personal, because I eat this a lot as my “secret” late night snack. So now the cat’s out of the bag! I was absolutely not going to share it here, on my professional recipe website. However: my mom was visiting and saw me whipping this up. We’re both dark chocolate fiends. She eats dark chocolate every single day. And when she tried this, she could not stop talking about it.

You have to share the recipe! she urged me. People are going to love this! So though it’s more of an idea than a recipe, and I never measure it, I unveil my secrets to getting your dark chocolate fix. In a healthy-ish manner. If you’re a dark chocolate lover, let us know if you try our healthy chocolate pudding and what you think. (If not, I’ll just be eating it between 9 and 10 pm watching Netflix.)

Wait, did you want real chocolate?

We’ve got that too. Here are a few favorite chocolate recipes that could count as a chocolate snack:

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups These homemade peanut butter cups are truly perfect! They’ve got a glossy sheen and make a mouthwatering peanut butter filling.
Favorite Gluten Free Chocolate Cake Super rich and chocolaty, it’s filled with zucchini to make it moist and chocolate chips.
Easy Chocolate Banana Bread This easy chocolate banana bread recipe is moist and rich. Perfect for brunch, a snack, or even dessert! Add dark chocolate chips for an even richer experience.

This chocolate snack recipe is…

Vegetarian, gluten-free, naturally sweet and refined sugar free. While we make a lot of plant based recipes around here, we don’t recommend trying it with vegan yogurt (sorry!).

Healthy Chocolate Snack

(6 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)

5 from 6 reviews

Author: Sonja Overhiser
Prep Time: 2 minutes
Cook Time: 0 minutes
Total Time: 2 minutes
Yield: 1 serving

Print Recipe

Description

Need a chocolate fix? This chocolate snack tastes rich and chocolaty, but it’s just Greek yogurt, cocoa powder and maple syrup. And it’s made in 2 minutes!

Ingredients

2 tablespoons Dutch process or dark cocoa powder (not regular cocoa powder)*
1/2 cup full-fat plain Greek yogurt
1 1/2 tablespoons maple syrup

Instructions

Mix everything together in a bowl. It will be very thick at first, but it will smooth out once the cocoa powder incorporates. If your yogurt is very thick, you can add 1/2 to 1 tablespoon water to get a bit lighter texture, but all yogurts vary. (Also, you can always add a little more cocoa powder or maple to adjust to your own taste.)

Notes

*The secret to this recipe is the dark cocoa powder! It is also called Dutch process cocoa powder and can be found at most grocery stores. Don’t buy the regular kind! See the section above for more about what it is and where to find it.

Category: Snack
Method: Stirred
Cuisine: Healthy

Keywords: Chocolate Snack, Yogurt Recipe, Yogurt Pudding, Healthy Chocolate Pudding

A Couple Cooks - Healthy, Whole Food, & Vegetarian Recipes

Poinsettia Drink (Cranberry Champagne Cocktail)

A Poinsettia drink is a cranberry champagne cocktail that’s vibrant and refreshing. Great for entertaining, it’s a perfect winter or holiday drink! Ready for the most vibrant, stunning cocktail for cool weather entertaining? Enter the Poinsettia, a cranberry champagne cocktail! Its brilliant color and cozy vibe makes it the perfect holiday, fall or winter drink. It makes any fall or winter occasion more fun, from Thanksgiving to holiday parties to Christmas to New Year’s Eve. Of course, you can serve it any time of the year too! It uses only a few simple ingredients. Let’s get started! Want more champagne cocktails? Here’s our favorite. What’s in a Poinsettia drink? The Poinsettia drink is festive, perfect for entertaining, and even better: uses only a few ingredients. It’s a cranberry champagne cocktail: so you can call it that if you prefer. Here’s what’s in this cranberry champagne cocktail: Cointreau (or other orange liqueur) Cranberry juice Champagne That’s it! Of course, the garnish is what takes it over the top. All you’ll need is a few rosemary branches and some fresh cranberries. You can use the leftovers for holiday decorations like a table centerpiece. Or, we’re working on a cranberry bread recipe for […]

A Couple Cooks – Healthy, Whole Food, & Vegetarian Recipes

A Poinsettia drink is a cranberry champagne cocktail that’s vibrant and refreshing. Great for entertaining, it’s a perfect winter or holiday drink!

Ready for the most vibrant, stunning cocktail for cool weather entertaining? Enter the Poinsettia, a cranberry champagne cocktail! Its brilliant color and cozy vibe makes it the perfect holiday, fall or winter drink. It makes any fall or winter occasion more fun, from Thanksgiving to holiday parties to Christmas to New Year’s Eve. Of course, you can serve it any time of the year too! It uses only a few simple ingredients. Let’s get started!

Want more champagne cocktails? Here’s our favorite.

What’s in a Poinsettia drink?

The Poinsettia drink is festive, perfect for entertaining, and even better: uses only a few ingredients. It’s a cranberry champagne cocktail: so you can call it that if you prefer. Here’s what’s in this cranberry champagne cocktail:

Cointreau (or other orange liqueur)
Cranberry juice
Champagne

That’s it! Of course, the garnish is what takes it over the top. All you’ll need is a few rosemary branches and some fresh cranberries. You can use the leftovers for holiday decorations like a table centerpiece. Or, we’re working on a cranberry bread recipe for using up the fresh cranberries…

Make sure to find 100% cranberry juice!

The most important thing to note with the Poinsettia drink is this: make sure to find 100% cranberry juice! There are lots of variations of cranberry juice on the shelf, and many of them have added sugar. If you find bottles labeled cranberry juice cocktail: stay away! It has added sugars or high-fructose corn syrup for extra sweetness.

Alex accidentally bought the sweet stuff when making this cranberry champagne cocktail recipe. Sadly, it turned out tasted overly sweet and “fake” tasting. When we looked at the bottle: it wasn’t 100% juice! I dashed off to the store and we remade it with 100% cranberry juice. It tasted perfectly crisp and tart: exactly what we wanted! All that to say: make sure to check the label and find 100% cranberry juice for this Poinsettia!

Poinsettia drink (Cranberry champagne cocktail)

Can you make a non-alcoholic Poinsettia drink?

You absolutely can make this Poinsettia drink without alcohol! All you have to do is substitute non-alcoholic sparkling cider, grape juice, or wine for the champagne. These days there are some great non-alcoholic sparkling wine options on the market. Check your local grocery to see what is available!

Making mocktails or 0 proof cocktails is perfect for including people who don’t drink alcohol, pregnant women, or kids. Our son Larson always wants to drink what we’re drinking…so you could make up some kiddie cranberry champagne cocktails for the young ones!

The Poinsettia (Cranberry champagne cocktail)

Do I need a cocktail shaker?

Cocktail shakers are inexpensive and if you make cocktails often, worth buying for ease of use. A cocktail shaker quickly chills cocktails by shaking them against ice. It has a perforated lid so you can easily strain out the cocktail. Here’s the cocktail shaker we use: 24-Ounce Cocktail Shaker | Amazon

What’s a substitute for a cocktail shaker? If you want to make this Poinsettia drink without one, use a glass mason jar! Place the cocktail in the jar and fill it with ice. Then screw on the top and shake! When you pour out the cocktail, use a mesh strainer to keep the ice inside the mason jar.

When to serve this Poinsettia drink (cranberry champagne cocktail)

The Poinsettia is perfect for winter and fall when cranberries are in season. With its vibrant color, it’s fantastic for the holidays. This cranberry champagne cocktail works well as a:

Thanksgiving drink
Holiday party drink
Christmas drink
New Year’s Eve drink