Recipe: Raw Butter Fudge

Before I give the details of this recipe, let me first say that I made this last week as a healthy snack for Jake and I. You might be asking yourself, "How can a dish with the words 'butter' and 'fudge' be healthy?". Well, let me explain:

After World War II butter was villanized in the Western World because it got a lot of bad press for being linked to heart disease. Ironically,  isn't it interesting that even though butter consumption decreased in America (increased consumption of margarine and other butter substitute), the obesity rate continued to rise and the epidemic of heart disease in our country did not let up? 

Butter substitutes are very cheap for manufacturers to produce and are either loaded with factory fats (which are strongly linked to heart disease) or they are made through a very unhealthy process called "interesterification". Margarine is an unhealthy processed food, created chemically through a process called hydrogenation from refined oils. Butter substitutes also contain artificial colors and flavors.

Raw, organic butter (from grassfed animals), on the other hand, has been consumed for centuries and is an excellent source of Vitamin A, Vitamin E, and minerals like Selenium. It contains several fatty acids, like butyric acid which is a known anti-carcinogen. For more information on the health benefits of butter, check out the 20 Health Benefits of Real Butter, and The Untold Story of Butter. Obviously, too much butter is not a good thing, but it's good in moderation.

I emphasized above that your butter should be raw and grass fed. This is because pasteurization destroys nutrients. Try to find a local farm to buy your raw butter from. If you can't find a local farm I would recommend Kerrygold Irish Butter from the grocery store...the milk they use is from grassfed cows. Naturally deep yellow colored butter is the best!

One more thing about butter and then I'll share this delicious recipe...I am passionate about pregnancy health. I am NOT pregnant, but it fascinates me and I think it is soo important for women to to be educated on nutrition because everything the mom eats gets shared with the baby. I mention pregnancy health because healthy fats should be consumed during pregnancy because they are vital for the baby's developing brain, bones, and teeth. Read more about pregnancy and butter here. I share this because I think so many women get wrapped up in the idea that a healthy diet is a low fat diet. Just remember, there are good fats and bad fats. Just do your research!

P.S. - I am focusing on butter in this post, but there are several other sources of healthy fats besides butter - coconut oil, avocado, walnuts, almonds, olive oil, etc. etc.

Raw Butter Fudge

Recipe adapted from The Healthy Home Economist

1 cup softened raw, grassfed butter

1 cup raw, local honey

1/2 cup carob powder

1/2 cup fresh ground creamy peanut butter

1/4 cup fresh ground almond butter

2 tsp chocolate extract (if you have it)

1 tsp vanilla extract (if you don't use chocolate extract, than triple the vanilla...I love vanilla!)

1/2 tsp sea salt

Mix ingredients in a large bowl until smooth. Spread in a 8X8 pan or one of similar size and freeze. Cut the fudge into small squares and store them in the freezer. You can just grab a square out of the freezer when you need to satisfy a sweet tooth (and get some good fats into your body)!