The last four days have been a blur….
Part of the reason I started this journey was for my health. My mother is diabetic and my father is on dialysis after years of hard living as a traveling salesman and then owning his own international business. My mother has extended her life by years beyond what doctors predicted by changing her lifestyle and becoming a vegan. My father was a little more set in his ways. Because he’s 78, has continued to become more weak and has had several falls in the last 18 months we were making end of life living plans. Comfort for him, some small comfort for us knowing he wouldn’t suffer long. And then it happened.
The phone rang. On Monday, September 5, 2016 my dad called and said “they have a kidney for me”. Who? Where? How? Why? I couldn’t believe it…a kidney? For him? For us? After a very long night waiting for confirmations, tests, and for the slowest driver on the planet to bring it safely from an hour and a half away it happened. He got a new kidney and we got our father back. We go home tomorrow. It won’t be easy, it’s a little scary, but it’s totally worth it. And so is this journey. And so are you.
Amidst the emotions I needed something chocolate. But I’ve already been through this caretaker deal enough times to know I had to tread lightly. Not go bizerk. Not allow our joy under stress to turn into bad decisions. So behold, my new chocolatey comfort food.
PB & Chocolate Zucchini Banana Doughnuts: 2 Weight Watchers Smart Points / 2 Points Plus (4 servings)
Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup Birch Benders 10 gram Protein Pancake & Waffle Mix (Whole Foods or Sprouts. If you can’t find substitute Kodiak Cakes Power Cakes Mix)
- 1/2 cup shredded zucchini
- 1/2 of a very ripe banana
- 1 Tbsp Better ‘N Peanut Butter Chocolate
- 1 Tbsp Ghiradelli Premium Baking Cocoa
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/8 cup (+ or – 1 Tbsp depending on how moist the zucchini is)
- Non stick spray
- Optional: 8 Tbsp lite whipped topping and 2 Tbsp Chocolate Dream Semi Sweet Baking Chips – add 2 SP / 2PP for a total of 4 Smart Points or 4 Points Plus per doughnut
In a medium size mixing bowl with a handle, cream the banana with a fork and blend in the zucchini. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Add dry ingredients and mix with fork. Add water a tablespoon at a time until the mixture is the consistency of thick pancake batter. Spray 4 regular sized doughnut pan holes and then fill each one with 1/4 of the batter. You may need to “encourage” the batter to go evenly into each hole around the little center sticky uppy thing. Bake for 12 minutes and then gently check them. If you press and it springs back you can take them out. If you leave a fingerprint put them back in for another minute or two.
They are the bomb warm with the lite whip and a sprinkle of the baking chips, but still just as good reheated. If you manage to not eat all four (they are only 2 points so even if you do it’s ok!) let them completely cool before you put them in a ziplock bag or container. Completely. Cool. If not they will sweat the bag and freezer burn because they are that moist. If you are not eating the same day I do recommend refrigeration or freezing for later. Let me know how you like them!
