Secret "Fudge Brownie" Bars

Did you know bananas get jealous?  Mine do.  Really jealous.  "Why does the avocado get to hang out with the cocoa powder all the time?  I want a black coat like the avocado's and I need to meet the cocoa powder.  Why can't I go over to the cocoa powder's side of the kitchen?  I always have to play with the apples.  It's just not fair!"

Really banana, get over yourself and be grateful.  Your side of the kitchen looks just like the avocado's.  Also, he's kind of a shady fellow, with that black coat and all.  Why don't you like your yellow coat?  It's so bright and sunny!  Can't you just be grateful for what you've got?

So, I, being the good kitchen overseer that I am, let the banana hang out with the cocoa powder.  And the dates.  And the almonds.  And it was a party!  A party in my mouth.

These are delicious.  The bottom layer is dense and slightly chewy while the top layer is super smooth and fudgy.  The nuts add a nice crunch in contrast to the frosting like top layer, combining to create a sweet treat with no flour or sugar.  Truly, if brownies could be healthy, these would be the ones.

Secret "Fudge Brownie" Bars
Adapted from FitSugar.  These are more like chocolate frosted Larabars, which is still really good, but these and these are true brownies.

6 oz pitted dates
1/2 cup almonds
1/4 cup walnuts
1/4 cup cocoa powder
2 tsp.. vanilla

2 ripe bananas
1/4 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1 tsp instant coffee

Soak dates in warm water for 30 minutes.  Grind nuts until fine in food processor.  Drain dates and add to nuts.  Blend.  Gradually add cocoa powder and vanilla until mixture pulls together and is well blended.  Press into 9x9 pan.  Clean food processor.  Now, blend bananas, peanut butter and honey until smooth.  Add cocoa powder and coffee and blend again until smooth.  Pour over date mixture and freeze until firm (6+ hours for me.)  Cut into squares and freeze leftovers.

Note:  My bananas were really big, so you could taste a little of the banana.  If your bananas are bigger, I would use less banana or add more cocoa powder and peanut butter.  Once frozen though, the banana flavor mellows out, tasting a lot like this "ice cream."

Okay, the scene about Mr. Banana wanting to hang out with the avocado and his black coat  is fictional.  But the concept is not.

I believe as girls, one of the things we are most discontent with is how we look. We are often jealous of other’s appearances.  But there is a deeper issue.  Jealousy is saying we don’t believe God’s promises are enough. He says "Mary Frances, you are fearfully and wonderfully made," but we choose to let the magazines define our worth, saying "God, I’m not wonderful unless I look like her." Harsh? Yes. True? Sadly yes. I sometimes wonder why God offers us grace after we’ve shoved it back in His face. "No, I want to do it my way. You say beauty is in my heart, but I want my beauty to be in my face, body, or attitude . . . not my heart. That’s not important in our culture."  Jealousy is lack of trust in God.

So what do we do with jealousy?  I wish it was as easy as saying, "Mary Frances, you're just not going to be jealous today."  It doesn't quite work that way.  In order to overcome jealousy, I think we have to look at our priorities.  Why am I jealous?  Is it because I'm ungrateful?  Is it because I place a lot of emphasis on looks?  And then look at things that make you feel jealous.  I'm going specifically off of looks, but if pictures spark jealousy, step away from the pictures.  Turn away, move on.

And at the core, it is a mental battle.  In order to overcome jealousy, you must look for things to be grateful for instead of focusing on what you don't have.  I touched a little on this in

this post about thankfulness and I really should do it more often.  Instead of focusing on what we don't have, we must look at we do.  Even if it means being grateful for the sunshine instead of wishing I had that donut pan.  I've got to choose to be grateful for my yellow coat and apples.