Bounty Bars for Deep Health

Where would we be without the simple pleasures in life right? No but really - where would we be?? Food fuels our SOULS, it's social, cultural and oftentimes linked to our emotions both positive and negative.

So when I talk about healthful eating and a balanced diet I'm not just referring to colourful veg, lean proteins, healthy fats and complex carbs. While those are great starting points for a healthy balanced diet, our health is more than just our physical makeup.

If you've been a client of mine you know that I promote whole, unprocessed foods making up the bulk of your nutritional intake. With that said, you'll also know that I don't promote restriction or deprivation within our overall diets and encourage an intake from across the continuum of nutritional value when it comes to food. This means:

Eat your veg but also eat your cake. Enjoy eating. Not too much, not too little. Mostly what satisfies you.

Here's why: At the core of my belief system is that of Deep Health meaning that our health spans across ALL domains of our wellbeing, yes that's our physical health but it's also our emotional, mental, environmental, social and existential (my fellow millennials will have no trouble understanding the importance of this domain; hello existential crisis!). With this in mind, why wouldn't balance within our diets be part of a wider spectrum too?

What I mean is this: all foods have their place within a healthy balanced diet. Just because a food isn't necessarily ideal for our physical health it may be adding to another area of your health. Coming together with a friend over a good cup of coffee and a slice of cake to get something off your chest fuels both the social and emotional domains of your deeper health. The shared experience of coming together with food to express emotion is beneficial to your health. Does that mean you have to eat cake every time you want to rant about your shitty day? Maybe, maybe not - there's no one size fits all. My point is that our diets aren't stand alone parts of our existence. They exist within the wider realm of what makes up our circumstances, connections, sense of self, beliefs, traditions and environment. Strive for balance in ALL areas of your health. And don't worry if the balance tips from time to time. That's just life. Look after yourselves - your WHOLE selves.

So anyway, here's something to foster those social connections... ;)

Homemade Bounty Bars

200g Bar of Creamed Coconut

6 Tbsp Coconut Oil (melted)

3-6 tbsp Honey or Maple Syrup depending on the sweetness you prefer

Dribble of Vanilla

Pinch of Salt

150g Desicated Coconut

200g 70% or more Dark Chocolate

Pop the unopened creamed coconut in a bowl of hot water and let it melt. Give it a squish so the oil and solids mix together once it's been in there for a while. When it's soft, pour into a bowl and mix with the additional 6 Tbsp coconut oil, honey, vanilla & salt. Add in desiccated coconut to form a dough-ish consistency.

Put the mix into a lined tray (that will fit in your freezer). Flatten it out and freeze for about 15 minutes or until hard. While it's freezing, melt the chocolate either in the microwave or in a bain marie. Let it cool for a bit.

When the coconut mixture is hard, cut it into bar shapes then, dip the bars into the cooled and melted chocolate and roll them around until they're all coated in chocolate. You can double dip if you have enough chocolate.

Keep them in fridge. Now, disclaimer, they are SO GOOD that you may wish to eat the whole batch in one go. They are pretty rich and satiating with all the healthy fats that are packed in from the coconut. So enjoy those healthy fats, they are GREAT brain food and very needed in the body just strive for balance overall.

Tiff xx