Made with Love
luscious, healthy treats for Valentine's Day
As a firm believer in the BYOV (be your own Valentine) lifestyle, I encourage you to make these special recipes as a symbol of love for yourself, or for someone special in your life. Each is a path to pleasure in a way that is nourishing as well. Pleasure plus nourishment — I can’t think of a better way to celebrate Valentine’s Day. Enjoy!
Double Chocolate Pancakes with Raspberry Sauce
Photo by Deb Lindsey for The Washington Post
These sumptuous double chocolate pancakes are fragrant with cocoa, studded with melted chocolate chips, drizzled with a ruby-red raspberry sauce and dusted with confectioners’ sugar. They are more healthful than you might think. The two kinds of chocolate they contain offer big flavor and antioxidant power with relatively little sugar, and instead of white flour, there is a mix of tender whole-wheat pastry flour and almond meal, which adds texture and extra protein. The sauce adds a colorful, bright-tasting counterpoint to the pancakes and is a less-sweet alternative to syrup.
Cheesy Pizza Dip
What could be more loveable than dipping bread into a bubbling hot dish of savory marinara sauce laden with melted cheese aka Cheesy Pizza Dip? For me, those warm-fuzzies are enhanced knowing it is good for you too. It’s a fun Valentine’s treat— heart-shaped dish not required.
Pecan Mocha Truffles
Photo by Laura Chase de Formigny for The Washington Post
These swoon-worthy treats not only offer pure pleasure, they do so in a better-for-you way, without much added sugar at all. At their center is a finely ground blend of buttery, toasted pecans, dried dates and graham crackers spiked with a bold, warmly fragrant combination of maple syrup, cocoa powder, strong brewed coffee and vanilla extract. That heady mix is rolled into balls and then coated in melted dark chocolate for a truffle-like presentation. Exponentially more than the sum of their parts, the ingredients enhance one another in the most magical, mouthwatering way.