hi, i'm liesse and i am addicted to chocolate. as many of you know, there are certain foods that can cause acne seeds to form and/or inflame existing seeds. those of us who have acne have to be hyper aware of what we eat and how it effects our skin. although i seriously love cheese and coffee i was willing to cut these things out of my diet for the sake of clear skin. chocolate is a whole different story. thankfully there are a plethora of acne safe cocoa treats for you to try at home, from the store, or even in a lovely cafe setting. here are a few of my favorites: hot out of your own oven: chocolate avocado cookies by the smoothie lover are melt in your mouth delicious and take less than 15 minutes to whip up.

for a cool summer treat try kim's creamy chocolate pudding (via sS'er KH, who adapted it from "the recipe for radiance, by alexis wolfer"):

• 2 medium-sized ripe avocados, pitted
• 2 cups whole coconut milk (though a whole can, which is a little short of 2 cups, works just fine)
• 12 dried pitted dates (kim finds 6 large dates are enough)
• 2 tbs vanilla extract
• 4 tbs maple syrup or agave nectar (try 1:1 coconut sugar and water, dissolved, to keep the glycemic index low)
• 4 tbs raw cacao powder

combine all ingredients in a high-speed blender or food processor until creamy. or, if you have an immersion blender, use that! kim usually puts the the ingredients into a quart-sized mason jar and blends it right into the jar. you can eat it as is, or chill it - you can also divide into 4 bowls and chill for 30 minutes to 1 hour. serves 4. tip to whip faster: chill the bowl, cream and beaters then add a few drops of lemon juice. p.s. raw cacao nibs or roasted pumpkin seeds on top are divine! hot off the shelf at your local supermarket: moonstruck chocolate bars are the pretties darn bars i have ever seen. their bark chocolate bars come in varieties like, dark chocolate strawberry and basil bark, and can be found at chocolate retailers and grocery stores throughout the us. in san francisco you can find them at andronico's, bristol farms, pharmaca, and mollie stone's.

RAW 100% + NIBS from antidote is totally raw an amazing. we haven't found another chocolate bar that contains 0 sugar and tastes so heavenly.

hot out of someone else's oven: if you live in the east bay check out bittersweet chocolate cafe in rockridge or downtown oakland. they will make you a vegan (and acne safe) hot cocoa using almond milk and bittersweet chocolate that could put nestle out of business. if you live in san francisco check out dandelion chocolate in the mission. their chocolate bars have two ingredients, cocoa and sugar. while you wait in line you can sample their different bars and decide which one you like best. my parents have me send dandelion chocolate to their farm in new mexico all the time. they eat it with fresh peaches and berries right off the tree for an amazing summer desert.

what treats do you miss most on the acne safe diet? comment below and i'll try to find an alternative that you can indulge in while maintaining beautiful skin! xo, liesse