A Chocolate Fix.

Last week my two oldest came home from school lugging two boxes full of chocolate candy bars. Their latest Beta Club fundraiser. The boxes are full of peanut butter, almond, crispy, and caramel filled chocolate bars. My first instinct was to take the chocolate and run far away to a place where I could enjoy some "alone time" with the bars. Then I came to my senses and gave the girls $1 a piece and put my two bars of chocolate in a safe place to be enjoyed a little each day for the next two weeks. Well, long story short, both bars were gone before bedtime that very night. In a sheer act of desperation, I looked for a healthier alternative that I could enjoy without guilt. That's when I discovered skinnytaste.com and I haven't looked back. If you are familiar with the Weight Watchers program, then you will appreciate this site. It gives healthier alternatives to favorite recipes and includes the nutritional and Weight Watchers points value of each recipe, in addition to providing a beautiful photo of the recipe. I found many things on there that I want to try, but first I had to find a way to combat the chocolate cravings that were getting the best of me. And thus, Chocolate Chips Clouds were discovered and seriously, they are just what I needed to help me through this recent influx of chocolate in my house. Basically, they are baked meringues. Not hard at all. I hope you will try them soon. I'm thinking a nice cup of coffee and a few of these would make an excellent chocolate "fix". Here's the recipe: 9 T. egg whites, 1/8 t. cream of tartar, 1/2 cup sugar, 1 t. vanilla, 2 T. cocoa, and 1 cup chocolate chips. Heat oven to 300˙F and line a cookie sheet with a silpat or nonstick silicone pad. Using a mixer, beat egg whites and cream of tartar together in a large bowl at a high speed until soft peaks form. Gradually add sugar a little at a time, then vanilla, beating well after each addition until you get stiff peaks, the sugar is dissolved, & the mixture is glossy. Sift cocoa onto egg white mixture and fold in until combine. Next, carefully fold in chocolate chips. Drop mixture by tablespoons onto cookie sheet. You should have approximately 30 cookies.  Bake 35-45 minutes or until just dry. Cool slightly, Remove to cool completely on a wire rack. You can store, covered, at room temperature. Each cookie has only 46 calories and is worth 1 Weight Watcher point. Maybe now my waistline can survive this chocolate fundraiser ordeal. A girl can hope. Can't she?-------Recipe and Photo Credit: skinnytaste.com.