Chloe zoomed off to school today with a tray of freshly made cinnamon rolls under the seat of her bike. It’s a little cruel to make the house smell like a delicious bakery and then remove all traces, but also … probably for the best! None of us have ever been very good at just having one of anything she makes. And just as I guide my clients, we try to have a supportive environment at home.

This means, if we don’t want to be eating it, we tend not to have it in the house. After all, it’s awfully hard not to eat the ice cream if it’s calling your name from the freezer!

That doesn’t mean we don’t have sweet things and chips in the house. We do. Just not all of the things, all of the time.

We also have tons of healthy options at our fingertips.

For the teens, this means cheese sticks, healthy chips and guac, lots and lots of fruit, Banza pasta, crunchy chick peas and everything they could possibly need to make yoghurt bowls and smoothies! It certainly makes it easier to make a healthy choice.

When the girls bake, they do tend to be good about sharing it and taking it out of the house. That’s an easy way to keep things healthier at home and an easy way to make friends … everyone loves a baker!

That’s something I learnt at school too … everyone loves the person who walks in with chocolate.

In my instance, I used to make an absolute deathtrap of a dessert where I would layer slices of (bought) chocolate swiss roll, with chocolate mousse and crushed up Maltesers … and then I would drizzle it all with melted Mars Bars.

If you had told my school friends then that I would end up as a Nutritionist, absolutely none of them would have believed you. And rightly so. What was I thinking?!

So, things have changed a little … but while I absolutely love healthy eating and how it makes me feel, I do have cheat days. That’s where this little recipe comes from!

In the name of balance, when we put our Healthy Kickstart together at work, we wanted to make sure we included a couple of clean-eating treats.

I call these Cheat-Day brownies because I like the concept of a cheat-day. I find it easy to stay healthy, when I know that on Saturday I am making brownies.

Some people don’t like calling treats “cheats” and I hear you. You do you!

While I have a habit of completing cleaning up recipes so that they are totally free from refined sugars, this recipe does include real sugar.

I just couldn’t get that squidgy-in-the-middle, crunchy-on-the-top brownie without it.

However, I diluted the caster sugar with coconut sugar and used almond flour and walnuts to amp up the protein.

Both steps make these brownies a better choice ― and boy are they delicious. This weekend, try making a batch and then share them with friends. Yum!

Gluten & dairy free cheat-day brownies

You’ll need an 11-inch rectangular plan, lined with baking paper or lightly greased.

Ingredients:

1/3 cup dairy free margarine (eg, Earth Balance)

½ cup dairy free chocolate chips (eg, Guittard Semi Sweet Allergen Free from Miles Market)

½ cup caster sugar

¼ cup coconut sugar

2 large eggs

½ cup almond flour

1 tsp baking powder

¼ tsp salt

½ tsp vanilla extract

¾ cup chopped walnuts

Method:

1. Preheat your oven to 350F.

2. In a completely dry medium saucepan, melt the margarine over a low heat. Add the chocolate chips and continue to melt.

Once melted take the pan off the heat and allow to cool a little. (You want to make sure there is no water in the pan, eg, from a freshly washed pan otherwise it will cause the chocolate to curdle.)

3. Use a balloon whisk to stir in the sugars and eggs to the chocolate in the saucepan.

4. Then add the almond flour, baking powder, salt and vanilla extract. Whisk in completely but lightly.

5. Stir in the chopped walnuts. Pour the mixture into your baking tray and bake for 20 minutes. Cool in the pan.

6. Cut into squares using a knife dipped in water, which helps to keep the edges reasonably tidy!

7. If you like a crispy top and chewy edge, refrigerate before cutting/serving.

• The advice given in this article is not intended to replace medical advice, but to complement it. Always consult your GP if you have any health concerns. Catherine Burns BA Hons, Dip ION is the Managing Director of Natural Ltd and a fully qualified Nutritional Therapist trained by the Institute for Optimum Nutrition in Britain. Please note that she is not a Registered Dietitian. For details, please go to www.natural.bm or call 236-7511. Join Catherine on Facebook: www.facebook.com/nutrifitandnaturalnutritionbermuda