Good Morning from my little Carolina home to yours. I am currently having my breakfast – at the shameful hour of noon because aside from everything else, the Coronavirus has robbed me of my ability to sleep like a normal human. I am counting my blessings though because even in this time of uncertainty I still have my family (a safe distance of 400 miles away), this cozy little house to isolate in, and SO much love. That’s one thing in life that can never be taken from you ladies and gents… Love will always make the world go round’ So make sure you spread a little bit this week because now is a time where people really need it.
I don’t know about you all, but I have always been a major contradiction: I LOVE FOOD, but I also want to live a healthy lifestyle. But those Cookies though… always be callin’ my name. I try to run, I try to hide, but Mr. Chocolate Chip always finds a WAY. Normally, I would just say screw it, “gimme the cookie, I will do an extra fitness class,” but now…. we currently live in a world where the closest thing I have to an elliptical is my old pair of Sketcher’s Shape-Ups. Y’all know I am not putting those things on. I about bust all my teeth out the last time I tried those shoes. Not TODAY satan. Not today.
I have honest-to-goodness been doing my best to stay active and healthy: I have been running on the trails near my house – which they just closed last week (add 10lbs to waistline), I have been doing Zumba on my television at home – where all the food is (add 5lbs to waistline), and I have been trying to cut the sweets (aside from the box of contraband Ghirardelli single-serve mug brownies that I hid from my roommate behind the carrots in my pantry) (add 8lbs to waistline). As you can clearly see – IT – IS – A – STRUGGLE – When all I want to do is sit on my couch and eat my feelings (add 20lbs to waistline).
I have a nagging feeling that many of us are in the same boat, you know the one that seems to be sinking around us? 😉 So I have decided that we all need to band together against Mr. EAT-your-feelings Chocolate Chip. “I am breaking up with you Sir. It’s you. It’s not me.” Therefore, in light of this tragic breakup, I am going to be sharing with you on the blog some of my favorite healthy recipes, starting with one that I have been making for nearly a decade: Creamy Guilt-Free Fruit Salad, a recipe that will help you curb those sweet cravings with a little bit of Amore ❤︎ and a whole “lotta” fruit.
A little background on this Recipe. My sister was the first one to ever make this. It came from a Hungry-Girl Newsletter back in 2010 and by GOLLY, it should have gone viral. It’s so good, that I have to measure out how much I eat in a single sitting. Otherwise, ya’ girl would be through the whole bowl during one episode of The Office. A health food, I have learned, stops being a health food when you eat the whole family-sized bowl in one sitting. I learned that lesson the hard way… If I can find the original link to this recipe I will add it at the bottom of this post. For now… Let’s get cookin’ good lookin.’
Ingredients:
1 cup Cool Whip Sugar-Free, thawed out for about half an hour
1 tbsp. Jell-O Sugar-Free Vanilla Instant pudding mix
2 Granny Smith apples, Chopped into bite-size pieces
3 cups seedless red grapes, cut in half
2 cups chopped strawberries
2 tbsp. mini semi-sweet chocolate chips
Optional: Nuts, you may add 1/4 cup of nuts if you so desire. Slivered almonds or whole pecans would be nice. I am not a nut gal so I normally leave this out.
Directions:
1: Gather all of your ingredients and wash your fruits. ALWAYS wash your fruits. I use a fruit wash called Rebel Green. You spritz a bit on your fruit then rinse.
2: Chop all of your fruit. This is honestly the most tedious part of the whole process. Get this done and the rest is all uphill baby.
3: Place one cup of Cool Whip SF in a LARGE bowl (the largest bowl you have, this makes more fruit salad than you would imagine and you don’t want it to slosh over the sides).
4: Stir in instant pudding mix until slightly thickened and combined.
5: Add fruit and mini chocolate chips (add nuts here if you choose) to cool whip/pudding mixture and toss to coat.
6: Refrigerate for a few hours/ overnight for best taste, but I ALWAYS eat some right away. Guilty as charged.
So there you have it. The easiest, guilt-free, fruit salad to add to your own “healthy-eating” arsenal. I will add a recipe card below so you can easily Pin or Print for later.
Stay safe out there Loves, and remember that every storm runs out of rain eventually. This too shall pass, and we will all be a little stronger, a little wiser, and hopefully a little more liberal with the love we have to give. Because unlike toilet paper… and this ridiculously tasty fruit salad, Love never runs out.
Until next time,
XOXO
Megan Marie