I recently got a panicked email from a friend who had derailed from her seven day New Year’s juice cleanse.

On day four, she caved and ate an entire huge bar of chocolate at her desk – then a brownie – during that 3pm energy slump (you know what I’m talking about). She felt like a total failure, and wasn’t even one month into 2014 yet.

Not the best way to start the year, huh?

Cleanses are often touted as the holy grail of weight loss and mental clarity. They can be great for certain body types and personalities, but they’re not a universal fix.

Instead of defaulting to a near fast because that’s what all your friends are doing, explore your eating patterns, desires, and why you want to cleanse. What’s your goal, and how do you want to feel when you get there?

Ask yourself the following questions before you embark on a cleanse:

1. Do you have an addictive or extreme personality? Do you fluctuate between eating 100% super healthy or super junky – all or nothing?
2. Do you obsess about what you’ve eaten so far on a given day, and what else you’ll eat?
3. Have you ever exhibited disordered eating patterns that you’re aware of?

If the answer to any of these questions is ‘yes,’ you’ll want to avoid extreme cleanses that eliminate any major food group, or restrict you to consuming juice alone.

If the answer is ‘no,’ a brief cleanse might be right for you – think three days.

Most of us, especially women, have experienced one or all of the situations outlined, and are better off following a sensible approach to food and avoiding extremes.

When we restrict our bodies, we enter starvation mode and a lack of mentality.

Physically, this causes us to hold on to every last calorie, since our body doesn’t know when it will get fed next. Extreme caloric reductions slow our metabolisms, causing us to permanently require smaller portions to maintain weight loss – no fun.

Our minds freak out since we’re getting way less food than we’re used to, and we start daydreaming and scheming about all the rich meals we’ll devour after the cleanse, instead of allowing our bodies to fall into a natural pattern of healthy fueling and moderate indulgences.

When desserts become less of a big deal, we give them less emotional weight – and in turn, they cause us less physical weight. When we’re anxious before, during and after a slice of chocolate cake, we produce cortisol, the stress chemical that makes us hold on to weight, especially around the middle of our bodies.

When we enjoy desserts leisurely and slowly, we produce serotonin, the feel-good hormone. Sounds a lot better to me. Plus, when you scarf down dessert all the time, it’s not special and doesn’t taste as good.

In celebration of not cleansing this new year, but rather, tuning in to our bodies and listening to what we need, I bring you this incredibly easy and impressive-looking chocolate fudge recipe. I brought a huge jar to a party and it was devoured in about 15 minutes – I guess it tastes ok.

Cheers to trusting our desires! xo

Caramel Cashew Fudge

Ingredients

1 lb milk chocolate of choice
1 lb dark chocolate of choice
1 cup cashews
¼ cup coconut oil
1 tsp sea salt
vanilla extract
¾ cup coconut milk fat
¾ cup coconut palm sugar
2 T maple syrup
¼ cup butter or substitute, such as Earth Balance
1 tsp sea salt

Technique

Melt chocolate in double boiler, or create your own by filling a large pot ¼ with water and nesting a smaller pot inside. Add coconut oil after chocolate has melted and stir thoroughly.

Turn heat off and add sea salt and vanilla and whisk.

Line a baking sheet or large glass baking dish with wax paper and pour chocolate in evenly, keeping it on the wax paper.

Toast cashews and chop them roughly. Sprinkle over fudge evenly. Sprinkle more sea salt on top if you like. Transfer to freezer and let set for 30 minutes.

For the caramel, refrigerate coconut milk and skim fat off the top. Add the creamy coconut to a pot with the coconut palm sugar and maple syrup and bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer for 10 minutes.

Turn heat off and let caramel sit for 5 minutes.

Stir in butter or substitute and sea salt thoroughly.

Remove fudge from the freezer, drizzle caramel over fudge with a frosting squeeze bag, or simply pour into a zip lock and cut the corner off for the same effect. Transfer pan back to the fridge for another hour.

Store fudge in the fridge and remove 15 minutes prior to serving.

Photo: Elene Damenia