Imposter Syndrome:  defined as a person’s inability to internalize their accomplishments.  “Despite external evidence of their competence, those with the syndrome remain convinced that they are frauds and do not deserve the success they have achieved. Proof of success is dismissed as luck, timing, or as a result of deceiving others into thinking they are more intelligent and competent than they believe themselves to be.”

I think it’s not all that uncommon.  It’s the knowledge of the randomness that sometimes influences our lives for the better but the failure to acknowledge that often our hard work aligns the world in a way that allow those “random” strokes of luck to occur.  It is insecurity, at its’ heart; an inability to be proud of ourselves when we’re amazing, an inability to bask in the glow of others’ pride for us.

Let’s anthropomorphize food for a minute, shall we?  Because I think this avocado chocolate pudding probably suffers from a little bit of imposter syndrome.

“Oh, avocado chocolate pudding, you are SO GOOD!  You are SURPRISINGLY GOOD!  You make me want to lick the bowl and then sneakily return to the fridge and hide behind the door while I use my fingers to shovel thick, creamy cocoa goodness into my mouth (and hope that no one catches me, hiding in the fridge, hogging all the pudding, wearing a shit-eating grin because it’s got no refined sugar and is gluten-free and full of good fats!).”

“Shhh….don’t exalt my wonders too loudly, loveable food blogger!  Everyone will find out I’M JUST AN AVOCADO!!”

***note:  this scene is an EXAMPLE, and I cannot confirm or deny that this occurred in my kitchen, but only vouch wholeheartedly for this pudding and suggest you make it tonight as a healthier alternative to the real deal.

Here’s what you need:

• 3 avocados
• 1/2 cup maple syrup
• 1/2 cup cocoa powder
• 1 tsp. lemon juice
• 2 tsp. vanilla extract

Here’s what you do:

Scoop the flesh out of the avocado and place it in a food processor.  Add the rest of the ingredients and process until the avocado has been completely incorporated (no green bits left!).  You might need to add a little water if you want a thinner pudding.  Note:  you definitely want to use maple syrup in this recipe – not other sweeteners like honey or agave – the maple syrup goes a long way to ensure your pudding tastes chocolate-y, not “green.”  Feel free to adjust the amount of maple syrup, cocoa, or lemon juice depending on how you like the flavour…keep adding here and there until it tastes perfect to you!

Recipe source unknown, unless you count my purple binder stuffed with recipe printouts a source