{"id":3700,"date":"2017-03-28T12:59:14","date_gmt":"2017-03-28T16:59:14","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/students.com.miami.edu\/reviewing\/?page_id=3700"},"modified":"2017-03-28T12:59:14","modified_gmt":"2017-03-28T16:59:14","slug":"a-healthy-option-to-satisfy-sweet-tooth","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/students.com.miami.edu\/reviewing\/?page_id=3700","title":{"rendered":"A healthy option to satisfy sweet tooth"},"content":{"rendered":"

Posted March 28, 2017<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

By ETTY GROSSMAN<\/p>\n

You can\u2019t buy happiness, but you can buy ice cream and that\u2019s kind of the same thing \u2026<\/p>\n

Back in 2005, neuroscientists at the Institute of Psychiatry in London found evidence that just one spoonful of a sweet, cold stuff lights up the same pleasure center in the brain as occurs when winning money, listening to favorite music, or simply enjoying something. Therefore, scientifically speaking, ice cream really does make us happy.<\/p>\n

Ice cream has been prescribed by mothers, girlfriends, experts and others for generations. It has become the remedy for anything that hurts, a sore throat or even a broken heart. However, there’s all the fat and sugar and calories to consider before making it more than an occasional treat.<\/p>\n

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CocoWhip original flavor soft serve treat (Photo by Etty Grossman).<\/p><\/div>\n

Fortunately, ice creameries are becoming more conscious of the need of creating healthier options for those who want to indulge in a sweet treat without ruining their diet and South Florida stores are not an exception.<\/p>\n

Today, Miami has a lot of options for those who want to maintain their bikini body and, at the same time, satisfy their sweet cravings. \u00a0Out of the extensive list, so far CocoWhip and D\u2019Lites would be the best and most complete place for a guilt-free ice cream or dessert.<\/p>\n

Located at the heart of Brickell, CocoWhip offers a soft-serve frozen treat and the first of its kind, by using only coconut water, Organic Bio-Fermented Coconut Powder & Vegetable Sourced stabilizers.<\/p>\n

Even though healthy food is though to be tasteless, CocoWhip\u2019s soft serve is very tasty and it happened to have just the right amount of sugar.<\/p>\n

There are five CocoWhip flavors, however, at the store you would only be able to find two of them: Original Coconut and the flavor of the month, which could be any of the following: Cacao Bliss, Super Berry, Minty Matcha and African Mango and Turmeric.<\/p>\n

Original Coconut is customers first choice, Cacao Bliss has also been an acclaimed flavor and that\u2019s why it last for more than three months in the store.<\/p>\n

Since coconut is a rich source of \u201chealthy fat,\u201d it provides the necessary amount of fat to make the soft serve creamy and smooth.<\/p>\n

There are also plenty of toppings that can be added to your ice cream. If you want to go lighter you can pick between strawberries, blueberries, kiwi and pineapple; but if you want something a little bit richer, you could choose to add brownie bites, cookie dough balls, cheesecake bites, carrot cake chunks and a syrup. Don\u2019t be afraid of doing so, remember every thing is vegan, gluten and dairy-free.<\/p>\n

As always, good is expensive. They charge you $6 for the base and $1.50 for each additional topping. The place does not have a great atmosphere. It lacks personality, probably because it is located inside another restaurant \u201c100 Montaditos,\u201d which doesn\u2019t have the same eco-friendly, healthy, green, vegan mentality. So be prepared to go and pick up your order and enjoy it somewhere else.<\/p>\n

From the day it opened, back in 2016, CocoWhip has added other options, both salty and sweet, to its menu. Snicker tarts, key lime tarts, marbled brownies, panacottas, chocolate mousses, healthy arepas (corn pancakes) and toasts, are some of them.<\/p>\n

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Sweet potato, chicken salad healthy arepa. (Photo by Etty Grossman)<\/p><\/div>\n

Without a doubt, CocoWhip is the latest and greatest dessert treat creation from health food innovators.<\/p>\n

The food is not only delicious, it is also packed with a far superior nutritional value to any other dessert on the market. Its ice cream contains only 96 calories per 100 grams\u2019 cup, 7.2 grams of sugar and 3.7 grams of healthy fats.<\/p>\n

However, if coconut is not for you and you want to still traditional, then go and indulge yourself in D\u2019Lites Emporium. Its soft-serve is real ice cream, not yogurt.<\/p>\n

D\u2019Lites has been out there for a while. It started in Plantation, Fla., in 1982 and five years later it opened its first store in Aventura. The place is very simple, it only has some in and out tables, a counter with the different ice cream flavors and some soft serve machines in the back, it is colorful but it doesn\u2019t have much decoration.<\/p>\n

Although the atmosphere is not the best, the product itself is worth it. Its ice cream is simply delicious, it uses delectable, wholesome ingredients to create the creamiest soft-serve ice cream; but the best part is that it starts at just 12.5 calories per ounce.<\/p>\n

No matter what flavor you choose, D\u2019Lites ice cream is is low in sodium, sugar, fat and carbohydrates. It is cholesterol free, and a healthier alternative to regular ice cream. Also, the concept of their dietary products includes every type of diet including allergies, diabetes, reduced carbohydrates, gluten free, low fat, salt free, vegetarian, sugar free, religious reasons and the list goes on and on.<\/p>\n

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D’Lites vanilla soft serve whit some unhealthy toppings. (Photo by Etty Grossman)<\/p><\/div>\n

They have a huge variety of flavors, some of the public\u2019s favorites are mocha, peanut butter, Nutella, blueberry tart, cheesecake and turtle brownie. Flavors change seasonally but chocolate and vanilla are always available. You can also add toppings to your ice cream, but in this case they are not very healthy.<\/p>\n

Prices are very reasonable; you would be charge $3 for the smallest ice cream, which is 4 ounces, $3.99 for a 6-ounces ice cream, $4.99 for 8 ounces and $6.99 for their 16-ounces pint.<\/p>\n

D\u2019Lites ice cream is a delightfully different treat that won\u2019t destroy your waistline, half a cup has only 50 calories, 3 grams of sugar and 1.5 grams of fat and a lot of flavor and texture.<\/p>\n

No matter which place you visit, you will definitely end up with a smile on your face without adding pounds on your waist.<\/p>\n