A few weeks ago, when I was debating how I was going to balance my lifestyle and eating habits with baking [see previous post], another pressing issue was: What am I going to do with my Easter chocolate?
For those who celebrate Easter, the traditions can vary significantly. My family always did Easter on the small-scale, with a secular focus on the Easter bunny. We would get a film and a chocolate bunny, in addition to some foil eggs hidden around the house. I don’t think my parents or brother bothered with chocolate this year, as they aren’t huge fans of it like I am [it baffles me how we’re related].
I’ve seen American YouTube families opting for the Easter basket filled mainly with toys and, as I mentioned in my hot cross buns post, there is the prominent tradition of giving Easter eggs in the UK as a symbol of rebirth. For my partner’s family, there is a custom of exchanging eggs between family members. For example, we bought eggs for both parents, sibling and spouse, aunt, and a non-chocolate gift for the one-year-old niece. Bearing this in mind, I received several chocolate gifts which I’m so thankful for!
Okay, now you see my dilemma. I love that I received all this chocolate and I certainly want to eat it, but I don’t think sitting on the sofa gnawing my way through my Easter haul in one session will contribute to balancing my lifestyle. What Lucy and I ended up doing was spreading it all out, breaking the eggs, and separating out the haul in 50g. portions using snack bags. It took a tonne of will power, but I didn’t eat any of the chocolate while I was doing this preparation.
I’m happy to report that it is now the end of the month and I have stuck to my one treat bag per day policy. I prefer to eat my treat as dessert because I always crave something sweet after dinner. The 50g. portion works out to approximately 12-15g. fat, which is roughly the amount of fat in one individually-wrapped chocolate bar. Do I need this every night? Certainly not. But it makes me happy, and I get to enjoy and savour my Easter gifts one day at a time.
P.S. I don’t judge anyone who ate all their chocolate in one sitting, this is just what I felt I needed to do.
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