It’s true. While most people stash drinks in the consoles of their cars, I’ve got an empty mug… and my Benylin.
I actually haven’t taken cough syrup since I was a kid (I’ve sure never *bought* any); as an asthmatic, if I get a cough, I just accept it.
But this is stupid—I mentioned to you a WEEK ago that I had a cold. Well, in most respects, I feel fine right now… except for a croupy, hacking, fear-of-god-or-at-least-the-plague-inducing cough. People are afraid to be around me (and I don’t really blame them), but neither can I afford not to be running my errands and getting work done.
Hence, the Benylin. The pharmacist assured me that there was evidence that supports that it really does help suppress coughing… I’m still not sure. And I’m slightly choked that this might eat into my attempt to get abs of diamond from coughing so hard, but one must remain polite society, mustn’t one? 
My little malaise knocked me out too much to blog earlier this week (is it “feed a cold, starve a fever”? Oops.), so at long last, here’s my story.
I don’t like to lose. I like a fair fight, and I’ll lose graciously if I must, but I don’t like it.
I sometimes sign up for blog giveaways and think, “shur. Whatev.” But there was this one a while back, when I thought, “oh! Pick ME! YES, please!! ME ME ME!”
I didn’t win.
Well, so be it, but this time I wasn’t going to take defeat lying down… I took to my kitchen and began trying to cobble together my own version of the prize I had been teased with. All it took was a little internet searching and I was off to the races!
I’ve made this 4 times now. The first and third were absolutely the best—the second was bland and the last is too nutty, but I would have to say that this is like sex or chocolate (depending on who you are): even when it’s “bad”, it’s not BAD! In fact, it’s quite good! Yay!
I’d like to take credit for this… but the idea is from someone else, the ingredients are from someone else’s idea, and all I did was mix well and serve. I still play around with proportions, but, ladies, may I introduce you to a better (nut) butter spread?
hey look! It’s my first photo from my new camera!
Chocolate Almond Butter Spread
*Note: Depending on how sweet or how much you want to taste the almond butter, you might want to increase the sweetener or nut butter—those have turned out to be the biggest variables so far. Also, using the darkest, most decadent (yet unsweetened) cocoa powder is key. I like Bernard Callebaut, but whatever makes our heart sing works.
You need:
∞ 1 cup almond butter
∞ 1 cup plus 3 Tbsp pumpkin purée
∞ 1/2 cup cocoa powder
∞ 2 Tbsp maple syrup (I’ve also used honey… maple is better!)
∞ 1 tsp vegetable oil
∞ 70 g finely chopped dark chocolate
You must:
≈ put almond butter and 1 cup of pumpkin purée in a stand mixer and combine well.
≈ in another bowl, mix cocoa, maple syrup, pumpkin purée and oil, stirring to make a nice paste. If it’s a bit crumbly still, add another tablespoon of pumpkin to get a good, pasty consistency.
≈ add cocoa mixture to the stand mixer, and give it another good beating to incorporate all the ingredients well. I don’t think you can beat too long, and the more you beat, the smoother the end result.
≈ add chocolate bits to the mixer and mix to distribute evenly.
I portion this out into 3 containers, pop one in the fridge for immediate use and the others go in the freezer until it’s time. I think that’s just best, since I don’t seal them hermetically…
Why I love this spread: I have pumpkin protein pancakes for breakfast most days… and I like a little chocolate spread on top for some healthy fat to keep me full for, oh, five hours? 
Remember my cupboard full of Peanut Butter & Co products? Dark Chocolate Dreams is my fave, but at almost $6 per, I wasn’t loving the price. And it’s a bit more sugar than I wanted… my recipe lets me lower the caloric density (not that I’m counting, but I’ve also upped the fibre by adding the pumpkin: whee!) AND the sugar, AND the cost. So: win, win, WIN! I tried it side-by-side with the last bit of a Dark Chocolate Dreams jar this morning:
I only made it through about 1/3 of this (stupid cold!), but the one at 9 o’clock is the Peanut Butter & Co, and the others are my nut butter spread. I like the PB & chocolate combo taste of the PB&Co, when trying them side by side… but I think if I used PB instead of AB, I’d have that nailed.
So: try it, and let me know what you think!
PS: my oldest friend in the world is racing in her first Half Ironman tomorrow—the Ochsner Ironman in New Orleans. I’m SO EXCITED for her, so if you want to stream it (like I am!) and cheer her on remotely, she’s bib 603, she’s Tara, she’s AWESOME, and look for her to come out of the water fast… she’s also a former national swimmer. Go, T!
April 16th, 2011 at 19:34
sorry you are still coughing – that’s generally what lingers for me too. hey, LOOK, there’s the cup I have a matching mate to!
pumpkin protein pancakes sound delicious right now, and this spread? fantastic. I don’t make my own nut butters nearly enough, I really need to get on that.
go Tara! I’ll cheer for her from here!
April 17th, 2011 at 05:02
Ah, I can relate to your coughing situation! In my first semester of studies in Heidelberg, I had a bad cold and should have stayed at home and recovered, but we had classes every day from morning until late afternoon, and I didn’t want to miss any so early in my studies (about half of them was statistics), and also I would have failed credits if I had missed more than twice. So I went to uni every day, didn’t miss a single class, and had a bronchitis for about 4 or 5 weeks. I think every body hated me because I was coughing so much, and I often had to do during classes as well. And I was in constant fear of getting pneumonia which I had had a few months before already (*very* bad!) …
I remember a very much beloved coughing syrup from my childhood – honey based, with herbs like thyme and fennel. Mmmmmmmm. I could have eaten spoon after spoon!
Your chocolate almond butter looks fabulous! I’ll try your recipe!
April 17th, 2011 at 11:51
Do you think this will help with my occasional Nutella cravings?
Congratulations to your friend!
April 17th, 2011 at 13:18
That spread looks divine! I love the addition of pumpkin in it. I would have never thought of that. Yum!
I have tried a chocolate nut butter sample before. I knew if I bought a container, I would be in trouble. Soo good!
April 17th, 2011 at 16:19
@ Alina: hard to say. I think when you crave something occasionally… and you don’t give in immediately and keep thinking about it… after a few days, you should just HAVE it. BUT: the question is, if you still want it when you have this. I find that when I get some of this at breakfast, I don’t even think about chocolate for the rest of the day, and I’ve always been a “1 square of 90% dark a day” kind of girl—and sometimes more.
April 17th, 2011 at 16:21
@ Kristen: I KNOW! That’s what’s great about this recipe, I think… when I buy the spread, I’m addicted to the sugar. In this, I can really reduce the sugar so I get some cocoa, I get the good fat, and it feels like a bit of a treat without kicking my sugar addiction into overdrive.
April 17th, 2011 at 16:22
@ Kath: This wasn’t terribly yummy cough syrup, and I’m trying to get through today without. We’ll see! And HOLD THE PHONE: you and I are in agreement about food for the second time in a WEEK?!? Has the earth fallen off its axis?!?
April 17th, 2011 at 16:24
@ Kristina: it WAS the cup—and every time I take it out to a coffee shop, I get compliments.
The pancakes are delicious—and taste like a (healthier) treat, but without BEING a healthy treat. My days are better when they start this way, although… some days I’m not hungry enough, and other days I want just savoury. That’s when the eggs come to play. 
April 17th, 2011 at 19:12
I go for codine, good stuff! But it sure does knock me out.
You know chocolate almond butter is a dangerous addiction in our house. But worth it!
April 17th, 2011 at 21:16
@ Lindsay: need some. Stat. It *is* worth it, and with the way you guys burn calories, it must be an addition to EVERYTHING!
April 17th, 2011 at 22:14
@ S: World axis is still where it is. You know, I’m not a chocolate person, and not so much a sweet eater since savory is more filling for me. Usually, I put my almond butter on a stir fry or chicken and fruit bowl, so I don’t actually know yet what to do with chocolate almond butter … (not a pancake breakfast eater either). But I like the ingredients in there (almond butter, pumpkin puree, etc), and I wanted to make a chocolatey nut butter for a while now. I’ll just try it and tell you.
Little q: Did you use white or brown almond butter? I find the brown very nutty and the white almost sweet (usually I like the brown one better for savory dishes), so I wonder it this recipe would work without any sweetener / get sweeter in a nice non-additional-sugar way if you use the white one … (?)
April 17th, 2011 at 23:14
@ Kath: I eat it with a little fruit if I want a quick snack to fill me up… or, if I’m in a BIG hurry, even just a teaspoonful gives me some mojo.
If you mean by “white” or “brown”, “raw” or “roasted” almond nut butter, so far, I’ve used roasted because that what was open. But I think you’re quite right, and was looking forward to using the raw in my next batch to see how it goes! (are you up already, or have you not gone to sleep!?!)
April 18th, 2011 at 02:05
@ S: Then, I definitely have some use for it!
With white or brown I mean if the almond butter is made from peeled (white) or skin-on (brown) almonds. Roasted is something else I think (from roasted skin-on almonds to intensify the nutty flavor even more).
http://www.aggressivehealthshop.com/media/catalog/product/cache/1/image/9df78eab33525d08d6e5fb8d27136e95/b/i/biona_white_almond_butter.jpg
I was up already because I wanted to my get ready for my Japanese lesson, but my cold has gotten worse since yesterday, and my head feels so burning hot and hurts that I just phoned somebody and said I couldn’t go and then went back to bed, and that’s where I am now.