Monday, April 25, 2011

make your own chocolate!


i love chocolates! who doesn't? i love them, especially the dark dark variety.

unfortunately commercial chocolates are anything but healthy. too much sugar, too much fillers like soy lecithin, soy protein etc... why all these fillers? to bulk it up! cocoa powder and cocoa butter is expensive. to use more butter is also expensive, hence all the "substitutes".

as the saying goes, if you want something done the right way, you better do it yourself.

natural health strategies' website has this page on making your own healthy chocolate. it's really easy! you could make it in 10 minutes!

key here is to use good ingredients.

for cocoa powder, i used radiant wholefood's unsweetened organic cocoa powder. it's worth getting this, it's cheaper than hershey's! check around organic stores, jaya jusco and cold storage.

i tried searching for coconut oil but it's not easy! the only one i could find is the organic variety. quite costly... i asked our indian friends and was told you could probably find in indian specialty stores. hmm... for centuries, indians have been eating coconut oil and they live fine. no heart disease etc. but nowadays with the advent of cheaper oils like vegetable oils, we have a rise in heart disease! i know i know i'm over simplifying things but there's food for thought.

but coconut oil is high in saturated fat no? it is! but it raises mainly HDL - good cholesterol which has a protective effect on your heart. it is also rich in lauric acid which has anti bacterial properties. lauric acid can't be bad for you since breast milk is also high in lauric acid. since we can't drink breast milk every day... coconut oil will have to do!

raw cocoa is great as it's know to have anti oxidant properties.

so how about combining both super ingredients into one tasty snack?!

from the site's recipe, i modified it somewhat. i didn't put in grated coconut for bulk but put in quite a handful of roasted hazelnuts and roasted cashew nuts. put in some brown sugar as well. you really got to adjust this to taste. if you prefer it sweet, then put in more. i love it bitter! how much sugar is really up to you but go for brown sugar or molasses. do not go for those "sugar free" sweeteners like aspartame, xylitol, malitol etc. remember, use only natural ingredients. if it sounds like some chemical or you have problem pronouncing it, you shouldn't bother with it!

and when i taste it... it's fantastic! the darkest bestest dark chocolate i have ever tested!

 it's super rich, immensely gratifying, brings a huge smile to your face and you know it's very healthy as coconut oil is one of those good fats that we should eat more and eat less those unhealthy fats.

there you go! enjoy!

2 comments:

  1. From breakdown voltages to this?! That quick transition huh. Hehe! Good to see you this afternoon. We should catch up over a batch of your dark chocolate. Hehehe!

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  2. nah, have already scheduled the posts. :)

    good to see you too today! you know my number!

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