These bites are great for snacking on the go, with healthy fats from the walnuts and coconut and a slightly sweet flavour from the cacao and figs. Using fig as the sweetener instead of dates means they aren’t too sweet, removing the temptation to overeat so you can enjoy in moderation.
Food as Medicine
✓ Figs
Figs have been used as the sweetener in this recipe instead of dates as they provide a greater amount of fibre and essential minerals. One large fig contains about 1.9g of fibre that is about 7% of your daily fibre intake. The fibre found in figs is important for our digestive health and stabilising blood sugar levels. It is also needed to feed our internal ecosystem of microorganisms – the microbiota – that have a role in supporting immune and mental health. Figs provide a decent amount of B vitamins that are essential for energy production and are also a good source of the minerals calcium, magnesium, iron, potassium and manganese (1).
✓ Cacao
Cacao is used in this recipe as it is higher in antioxidants compared to its relatives cocoa and chocolate. While they all come from the beans of the Theobroma cacao tree, cacao powder is ground using a lower temperature that minimises the loss of nutrients. Cacao is also more intense and bitter tasting compared to chocolate and cocoa making it not as tempting to overeat.
Cacao is a valuable source of polyphenols that have an antioxidant effect and are beneficial for human health. It is also a good source of minerals in particular magnesium for muscle and nerve function and iron for helping to transport oxygenated blood to our body cells and tissue.
Early evidence suggests that cacao may have a role in immune protection and improving mood as it prevents the breakdown of the amino acid tryptophan that we need for regulating our immune system and producing serotonin – our happy hormone (2).
✓ Walnuts
Walnuts are a great source of the healthy polyunsaturated fat alpha-linolenic acid (ALA) – a plant-based omega-3 essential fatty acid that isn’t produced by the body so must be consumed it the diet. Omega-3 fatty acids have an important role in supporting brain development and function, so it is no surprise that they are often found to be deficient in conditions of altered mood and brain function (3).
Walnut consumption may also have a role in supporting healthy mood, as non-depressed men supplementing with 60g (half a cup of walnuts) daily for eight weeks have shown improved mood (4). Additionally, daily intake of 43 g walnuts (about one and a half handfuls of walnuts or 14 walnuts) over eight weeks significantly affects the gut microbiome by enhancing probiotic and butyric acid producing species in healthy individuals (5). Butyric acid and probiotic producing species are valuable in the gut as they can help reduce inflammation that is often elevated in mood disorders such as depression and anxiety (6).
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