Chocolate is produced from cocoa beans, which grow on the cacao tree. It is most commonly associated with sweet and desserts, but it can be used in savory entrees; it is common in Mexico, particularly in mole and other sauce.
Chocolate is naturally bitter; sugar is typically added to make it palatable. Most chocolate contains varying amounts of cocoa butter, the vegetable fat that occurs naturally in chocolate. Cocoa powder is usually unsweetened. Dutch-process cocoa powder has been treated with an alkali to reduce its acidity.
Chocolate and cocoa powder contain antioxidants, including catechins, the compounds that make tea so beneficial. Dark chocolate has more of these than milk chocolate. Chocolate also supplies minerals such as copper, iron, and zinc.
The health benefits come from the flavonols and antioxidants, and those are found in real cacao-and that is the stuff that makes cocoa kind of bitter. So if you want the benefits of these flavonols in your diet, you've got to get the real chocolate-high-cocoa-content dark chocolate. The best of these bars have labels that say "60 percent cocoa". 70 percent or higher is better, but much harder to find. Milk chocolate and white chocolate have virtually none of these health benefits. Plus, the commercial candy bars are loaded with extra sugar, fat, waxes, and chemicals that are not what you want to be adding to your diet. The more chocolate is processed, the more the beneficial flavonoids are lost.
The fat in chocolate is from cocoa butter and actually contains three different kinds of fat. One of them is oleic acid, which is the same kind fat in olive oil--a very heart-healthy fat. The second is stearic acid, which has a neutral effect on the body. The third kind, palmitic acid, is probably not the best kind of fat to be eating large amounts of, but it really only accounts for a third of the fat in chocolate, and if you keep your portions small, you won't be taking in a lot.
Cocoa butter is expensive. Cheap brands of chocolate replace the good cocoa butter with milk fats and hydrogenated oils, another reason to seek out the best brands if you are interested in getting the health benefits of real cocoa-rich chocolate.
Jonny Bowden recommends that we get the darkest, most delicious kind we can find, with a label that says at least 60 percent cocoa, and enjoy an ounce or two a few times a week.
Chocolate should be stored, well wrapped, in a cool, dry, ventilated area. It should be refrigerated only if it is hot and humid; refrigeration can cause moisture to condense on its surface.
References:Techniques of Healthy Cooking-The Culinary Institute of America
The 150 Healthiest Foods on Earth Jonny Bowder, Ph.D., C.N.S.
Chocolate is naturally bitter; sugar is typically added to make it palatable. Most chocolate contains varying amounts of cocoa butter, the vegetable fat that occurs naturally in chocolate. Cocoa powder is usually unsweetened. Dutch-process cocoa powder has been treated with an alkali to reduce its acidity.
Chocolate and cocoa powder contain antioxidants, including catechins, the compounds that make tea so beneficial. Dark chocolate has more of these than milk chocolate. Chocolate also supplies minerals such as copper, iron, and zinc.
The health benefits come from the flavonols and antioxidants, and those are found in real cacao-and that is the stuff that makes cocoa kind of bitter. So if you want the benefits of these flavonols in your diet, you've got to get the real chocolate-high-cocoa-content dark chocolate. The best of these bars have labels that say "60 percent cocoa". 70 percent or higher is better, but much harder to find. Milk chocolate and white chocolate have virtually none of these health benefits. Plus, the commercial candy bars are loaded with extra sugar, fat, waxes, and chemicals that are not what you want to be adding to your diet. The more chocolate is processed, the more the beneficial flavonoids are lost.
The fat in chocolate is from cocoa butter and actually contains three different kinds of fat. One of them is oleic acid, which is the same kind fat in olive oil--a very heart-healthy fat. The second is stearic acid, which has a neutral effect on the body. The third kind, palmitic acid, is probably not the best kind of fat to be eating large amounts of, but it really only accounts for a third of the fat in chocolate, and if you keep your portions small, you won't be taking in a lot.
Cocoa butter is expensive. Cheap brands of chocolate replace the good cocoa butter with milk fats and hydrogenated oils, another reason to seek out the best brands if you are interested in getting the health benefits of real cocoa-rich chocolate.
Jonny Bowden recommends that we get the darkest, most delicious kind we can find, with a label that says at least 60 percent cocoa, and enjoy an ounce or two a few times a week.
Chocolate should be stored, well wrapped, in a cool, dry, ventilated area. It should be refrigerated only if it is hot and humid; refrigeration can cause moisture to condense on its surface.
References:Techniques of Healthy Cooking-The Culinary Institute of America
The 150 Healthiest Foods on Earth Jonny Bowder, Ph.D., C.N.S.
raw cacao nibs seem bitter at first but i have come to love the taste. the more you chew the sweeter they are. guilt free and full of nutrition!
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