I eat tuna salad or salmon salad at least once a week for lunch. Today I had a refreshing tuna salad wrap with broccoli sprouts.  While that may sound healthy, it’s what followed which troubles me.  No matter how I consume either of these fishy salads it never fails: I swallow my last bite of the meal,  drink one  final swig of milk, and almost immediately I crave something sweet and preferably chocolate. This doesn’t happen after a peanut butter and preserves on wheat, or a grilled muenster on rye, only after tuna salad or salmon salad. Just like clockwork, “MUST HAVE CHOCOLATE.” Something has to be done. How can I score the melty taste of chocolate without dipping into the bittersweet baking bar from Trader Joe’s?
Then I had an idea, not a  unique idea by any stretch of the imagination, but one which serves to satisfy my chocolate craving, and add antioxidant-rich fruit, nuts, and dark chocolate, all at the same time. (Berries are all the rage for memory, flavonols in dark chocolate are proving to be good for your heart and blood pressure, and nuts may provide some preventative measures against rising LDL cholesterol levels.) And, this “trail mix”, “G.O.R.P.”, or whatever you want to call it, tastes good with a mug of hot (or iced) green tea before I head back to work. And a bowl of this sitting on our kitchen’s “chop and chat” makes for a nice snack for the family. And I don’t have to dig into the large, pound plus Trader’s Joe’s baking bar. For now all seems right with the world. Incidentally, I once used Toll House Chocolate Chips and the chocolate flavor was not as good, not as dark, and not recommended. For the chocolate bits, Ghirardelli is one of the best ways to go. (Sorry Nestle.)
Make sixteen 1/4 cup servings
1 cup Ghirardelli 60% Cacao Bittersweet Chocolate Chips (formerly Double Chocolate chips)
1 cup salted, roasted soy nuts or pumpkin seeds (pepitas)
1 cup sweetened dried cranberries, dried blueberries, dried cherries or a blend of berries
1 cup walnuts, chopped into bite-sized pieces

Mix all ingredients together and store in an airtight container. Scoop and eat.