This week I thought we’d look at making easy desserts for healthy weight gain.

I know, people are busy and would like to have some simple go-to calorific desserts with that don’t need tons of ingredients or take lots of time to prepare.

Although we enjoy watching those reality cooking contests where people are tempering chocolate from scratch, we wouldn’t necessarily want that hassles ourselves.

We’d rather eat the chocolate than temper it, right?

In reality, I think many of us are all about tasty, easy to prepare desserts in a short amount of time.

I mean have you ever watched Chopped re-runs? I really wouldn’t want to be in the contestants’ place.

For those who don’t know, Chopped is a show where they have 4 chefs competing for $10,000 with limited time to make meals out of basket ingredients that are bizarre.

Just think: having to make a delicious dessert out of fried chicken, blueberries and pureed baby food.

Naturally, we just want simple, tasty, fruity desserts with easy to find ingredients that pack healthy calories.

And of course prep time is kept to a bare minimum.

To illustrate one of these “recipes” is simply putting 3 or 4 ingredients in a bowl. Really, you wouldn’t even call that “prep” time!

You may want to take a look at this article for ideas on easily increasing your daily intake.

And now, let’s get started.

Healthy Weight Gain Desserts

1. Baked bananas with nuts

Did you know baking bananas in the oven for a short time brings out this natural gooey caramel-like sweetness?

For the most basic recipe, all you need is 2 small bananas and a few nuts.

* I like cashews, macadamias and brazil nuts. Just 4 brazil nuts or 5 macadamias give over 100 calories.

How To:

Peel and slice the bananas lengthwise and place on some baking paper on a baking tray.

Bake bananas in the oven for 10-12 minutes on 200 degrees C.

Meanwhile, place nuts in a resealable zip lock bag and go over them with a rolling pin until they are broken up into little bits.

Remove the bananas from the oven, place on a plate then sprinkle with nuts.

There are lots of variations to this, and you can increase the calories by adding other healthy toppings.

For instance, perhaps sprinkle desiccated or toasted coconut flakes, grated dark chocolate, and/or spices like cinnamon, cardamom or nutmeg on top.  

                2. Fruit, chocolate and fondue

Fruit and chocolate is an incredible combination.

It looks fancy, adds a lil’ somethin’, somethin’ to plain fruit, tastes amazing and is easy breezy to put together.

Simply melt some good quality dark chocolate on a double boiler on the stove or even in a microwave for a couple of minutes.  

Dip your fruit pieces in it and leave to cool on some baking paper, then into the fridge for 35-40 minutes to set.

*Certainly, make sure the fruit pieces are dry and not wet from just being rinsed.

Roll in some chopped up nuts after dipping in chocolate for more texture and flavour (and calories!) Leave to set on some baking paper.

Finally, why not consider a fondue.

If you have family around or friends over and have time to savour your dessert, fondues are awesome. Try either a chocolate fondue or cheese fondue.

Seriously, who knew fruit could go so naturally with melted cheese? Try pears, grapes, apples and figs for starters. Yum!

3. Whipped ricotta cheese with berries

This simple “recipe” takes just a few minutes to whip up.

All you need is 125gms of full-fat ricotta cheese and 2-3 tablespoons of maple syrup or honey. Beat till smooth using a hand mixer, processor or stick blender.

Let this set in the fridge for 1hr-1.5 hours. Enjoy on its own or stir in any berries you like. Grate or melt some chocolate over it and/or sprinkle finely ground nuts for a decadent feel.

Naturally, if you’d like some more for later, you could double the cheese amount.

4. Coconut cream berry popsicles

Who’s up for healthy creamy ice-cream popsicles?

This frozen dessert is delicious, nutritious and above all, easy to prepare.

All you need to make these is a can of full cream coconut cream (or milk), 200gms of frozen berries (whatever floats your boat and is in season) and 1.5 tablespoons of honey or maple syrup.

*On the whole strawberries have a blander flavour so double the amount if using them for this recipe.

Just add all ingredients to a blender and blend to a really smooth consistency. Remember, some berries have seeds on the outside.

Taste and add more honey/maple syrup as required. This makes 8-10 popsicles.

Pour or spoon into popsicle molds and with sticks in the centre and place in the freezer for 6-8 hours.

After, simply take out, run some hot water on the popsicle mould for a few seconds, and pull out your healthy tasty treat.

Trust me one won’t be enough.

There is no end to the amazing flavours you can create with different fruit.

5. Yogurt and fruit:

This literally involves just putting fruit in a bowl, adding plain or Greek yogurt on top and finishing off with a tablespoon of honey or maple syrup. You can top it with nuts if you like for more flavour and calories.

Use the fruit you like including chopped bananas, peaches, apples, papaya, berries etc.

Be generous with your servings for your weight gain goals. Depending on your serve, it could contain upwards of 350 calories just for this dessert.

How good is that!

Overall, one thing that I found really helped with my weight gain was enjoying a smoothie mid-morning, followed by a healthy dessert after lunch or dinner.

See this article for more tips.

I hope you enjoy making these 5 easy desserts to help with your healthy weight gain journey.