So can chocolate really be considered a healthy food? Well if you are eating a homemade chocolate bar made of cacao powder and not a commercially produced chocolate bar made of cocoa powder then YES! This deliciously decadent chocolate fudge recipe made with cacao is so quick and easy to make and packed with antioxidants, good fats, fibre, vitamins and minerals and a fantastic way to kick the supermarket chocolate bar habit by satisfying your chocolate cravings naturally! Gluten free, dairy free and refined sugar free this chocolate is also great for those who need or want to avoid such things!
So just what is the difference between cacao and cocoa? Well its kind of a moot point and sparks many differences of opinion, as both cacao and cocoa powders are produced by grinding cocoa nibs to a paste or liquor and then removing the cocoa butter (the fat component of the cocoa). The difference between them and the resulting health benefits lies in how this is grinding is done.
To make cocoa powder the cocoa paste or liquor is hydraulically pressed to remove the cocoa butter, and this process generates lots of heat, frequently in excess of 150 degrees C. There are two types of cocoa powder; natural and Dutch-processed. Natural cocoa powder is reddish-brown in colour, very bitter to taste and has an acidic pH. The second type, Dutch-processed cocoa powder, undergoes an extra step at the beginning of production whereby the beans are soaked in potassium carbonate to alkalize the pH to a more neutral one. Dutch-processed cocoa powder is darker in colour and less bitter.
The difference between the Dutch and the natural cocoa powders and raw cacao powder is that during the production of raw cacao powder, the cocoa butter is removed by cold-pressing. The temperature should be constantly monitored to ensure it does not exceed about 40 degrees C (there have been some big cacao supplies caught up in scandals of this not happening however). This processing at lower temperature is fundamental to the additional health claims of cacao as it means that the nutrients contained, in particular antioxidants, flavonoids and vitamins, have not been decreased through the heat processing and changes in pH that causes as they have in cocoa. In fact, cacao powder contains nearly 4 times the antioxidants of cocoa powder. Antioxidants prohibit (and in some cases even prevent), the oxidation of other molecules in the body. The benefits of antioxidants are very important to good health, because if free radicals are left unchallenged, they can cause a wide range of illnesses and chronic diseases.
Interesting, the addition of dairy has been found in some studies to further inhibit the absorption of the antioxidants. Therefore the antioxidants in milk chocolate are far less available to our bodies than those in raw cacao, cocoa or dark chocolate. So if you are choosing to eat processed chocolate the best choice for your health is dark chocolate rather than milk, plus dark chocolate usually contains less added sugar then milk chocolate.
So on with the recipe. You will need a super powerful blender for this one and as ever use organic ingredients if possible.
- Firstly line a rectangular baking tin with baking paper
- In your blender add 1 cup of almonds and 1/2 cup of cashews and blend until fine, then remove and set aside
- Next add 2 cups of pitted dates (soak if very hard to soften), 1 cup of desiccated coconut, 2 tbsps of cacao powder, a pinch of good quality salt and 1 tbsp of honey/maple syrup/coconut sugar/rapadura and blitz in your blender until well chopped
- Put the nut mixture back into the blender, add 4 tbsps of coconut oil and mix until the mixture is shiny and well mixed together
- Put mixture into lined tin, press down with the back of a spoon until flat and score into pieces with a knife
- Pop in the fridge for a couple of hours until firmed, it is then ready to serve!
Remember this is still a treat food due to the amount of dates contained, dates are not refined sugar and release slower into the bloodstream than refined sugar due to their fibre content, but they are still a form of sugar so just have a piece or two of this per day- I only write this to warn you as it’s so more-ish!
I hope you really enjoy this, my family loves it,
In good health, Victoria xoxox
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