cashew hemp banana bites

I’m startin’ to notice a trend in my recipes and that would be the term “super simple.” Hey, if I had a dollar for every time I said, “This is the easiest thing you’re ever gonna make!” 😉

Somethin’ else I’m noticing is how much bananas have been popping up in my snacks lately.

And I mean a *lot.*

I guess I’m feelin’ a little bit guilty ’bout this since I had a friend who looked to me for healthy eating advice who was eating bananas *constantly* and we talked about cutting down on them due to the sugar. I feel like I owe an explanation ’bout this one!

Here it is …

Honestly I’ve been to extremes.

There was a time when I’d drink a huge glass of carrot juice every single day (not the fresh kind but the one that you get in a bottle in the refrigerator section.)

Then Dr. Diamond pointed out to me how much sugar I was consuming. He said to avoid bananas and carrots for this reason.

I proceeded to go through this phase of not eating them at *all.* I mean literally my diet was pristine and I didn’t even have one bite of anything else. Not one.

These days it’s a balance. I look at my choices in terms of levels and frequency.

Levels

To make it simple, there are usually three levels, when you’re lookin’ at how healthy a food is.

1. Healthy staples: Organic, fresh and pure, low sugar, nothing added or processed. Examples: low to moderate sugar organic fresh fruits and veggies like berries, avocado, broccoli, sweet potatoes …
2. Healthi-ER treats: Still organic, maybe it’s got sugar but the sugars are either naturally occurring or a natural sugar which has been added. Naturally occurring sugars are often balanced out by the fiber that’s also already in the food, meaning you won’t spike your blood glucose levels as you would if the fiber were not present. Example: organic bananas, carrot smoothie, oatmeal muffins sweetened with raw honey.
3. Crappola: Processed foods, white sugar added, white flour (which converts to sugar within the body), artificial colors or flavors. Examples: Packaged foods like Pop Tarts, Coke, ice cream.

Frequency

Do I eat this every single day? If I’m keeping the added sugar natural and under 2 tbsp per day I’m fine with that. I’ll choose most of my foods for the day from category 1 with maybe one thing from category 2.

With that said, let me share with you yet another banana recipe. Bananas have a great natural sweetness to them along with about 3 or 4 grams of fiber to balance it out a bit. I wouldn’t eat them with every meal but if you’re absolutely craving a sweet snack, I’d choose a banana over ice cream and feel really good about it.

. . . . . . . . .

Cashew Hemp Banana Bites Recipe

• 1 banana
• 2 tbsp cashew butter
• 2 tbsp hemp hearts

Slice banana into chunky coins. Cover with a thick layer of cashew butter, roll in hemp hearts and pop into the freezer overnight. Enjoy!