Most everyone loves chocolate. Not just for the taste, but for the ‘feel good’ hormones it seems to posses! Unfortunately, most of the chocolate that people eat is not chocolate at all – it’s just candy. Overly sweetened, processed ‘chocolate’ bears little resemblance to the product that the ancient Incas prized so much that they used it as a currency!
We’ve all heard that chocolate can be good for us – especially dark chocolate. As a response, most of the mass chocolate producers like Hershey’s are making dark chocolate bars to try and satisfy the demand, although most of these are still fairly sweet. Other producers like Lindt have been selling bars with 70% cacao and 85% cacao on the labels. A bar with 85% minimum cacao solids is a much better nutritional source for it’s antioxidant properties, although even these bars contain refined sugar.
If you’re used to eating milk chocolate, and find the darker varieties just too bitter, try eating a square or two with a date. Raisins and almonds are another natural accompaniment. You’ll find that over time, you will adjust to the taste – and you’ll being to enjoy the dark chocolate more and will find the sweeter stuff too cloying.
If you’re ready to experience ‘real’ chocolate, you must absolutely give raw chocolate a try. I regularly purchase raw organic cacao nibs and cacao powder from Navita Naturals, but there are plenty of good sources available in health shops and on the internet. Cacao nibs are fairly bitter and nutty when eaten by themselves (kind of like eating an espresso bean), but they can be combined with other foods easily – sprinkled on yogurt and fruit, added to oatmeal and protein powder, combined with nuts and raisins for a trial mix, etc.
Cacao beans are produced from the fruit on a tree that grows in Central and South American, and these beans are the source for all cocoa and chocolate products. But raw cacao has all the healthy benefits of cacao butter that contains all the essential fatty acids found in the bean, as well as the original taste. Organic raw cacao is fast gaining popularity as a nutritious raw superfood. Cacao contains a fantastic supply of vitamins and minerals, including beta carotene, zinc and magnesium. The beans also contain more antioxidant properties that blueberries, red wine and green tea! (Naked Chocolate”, David Wolfe and Shazzie.)
How to enjoy raw cacao nibs? – Add them to nut-based smoothies and protein shakes. – Try eating them plain with a date, raisins or raw honey. – Mash a banana, add some almond butter and raw cacao nibs for a better Peanut Butter Cup! – Make a trail mix with nibs, raisins or goji berries, pumpkin seeds and assorted nuts – Sprinkle them on yogurt with fruit and nuts There are lots of ‘recipes’ for raw chocolate on the net that are a bit more elaborate. Try doing a search and see what you come up with!
Tags: antioxidants, chocolate, food