Chocolate That's Good for You: All the Flavors and Forms

I once came across a joke that really made me laugh:

Chocolate comes from cocoa beans, which are the seeds of the cacao tree. Since trees are plants, when I eat chocolate, I'm technically eating a salad...

Well, no, chocolate definitely isn’t a salad, but it does have excellent ingredients that are good for us.
The problem lies with all those unnecessary additives that the food industry throws into chocolate.
How do you know if your chocolate is high-quality? It's simple... You read the ingredients.
Imagine the ingredient list as a pie chart. The largest slice represents the first item on the list.
So, if the first ingredient is sugar – then the main component of the chocolate is... sugar.
The second biggest slice is the second ingredient, and so on.
We should look for chocolate where the first ingredient is marked as cocoa mass or cocoa butter, and then we know we've found a quality chocolate.

Packaged chocolate

So, what makes this bean so healthy?

A lot.

Chocolate contains important minerals like magnesium, potassium, phosphorus, zinc, and selenium.

Chocolate is a fantastic source of powerful antioxidants (polyphenols, flavanols, catechins, etc.), which help keep the body young and healthy.

Some studies claim chocolate sharpens cognitive function because it contains a stimulant called theobromine, as well as small amounts of a neurotransmitter called anandamide.
Grandmothers often recommend eating a small square of chocolate before a test, and there seems to be something to it.

Incidentally, theobromine is known to help with persistent coughs, so sometimes, instead of rushing to the pharmacy, a naturally sweetened cocoa drink with a little honey might do the trick.
While theobromine benefits humans, it’s lethal to animals like dogs, horses, and parrots.
Less than 300 grams of chocolate can poison a small dog, so please, don’t spoil man's best friend with chocolate.

There are plenty more benefits to chocolate, but the greatest one of all is it's fun, delicious, and sweet.

So you can head to the store to buy chocolate with healthy ingredients, or enjoy a fun afternoon activity with the kids by making chocolate at home.

White chocolate with the same ingredients minus the cocoa

The ingredients:

• A quarter cup of cocoa butter – this is the base.
  It’s comprised of cream-colored coins that look like white chocolate coins but have no taste or smell.
• A heaping tablespoon of cocoa powder (for white chocolate – the same recipe, without the cocoa).
  In the comments of a previous article, the lovely reader Yael recommended incorporating carob powder. She’s absolutely right. Carob powder is rich in many healthy nutrients, primarily calcium. And as a bonus, it’s naturally sweet.
• A quarter cup of any vegan butter.
  The tastiest is cocoa mass, but you can also use coconut oil, natural almond spread, nut spread, peanut butter, or even tahini.
  The role of the vegan butter is to bind all the ingredients together into a smooth and perfect texture.
• The last component is a sweetener.
  3-4 tablespoons of any naturalliquid sweetener will work: silan, agave syrup, or pure maple syrup.
• You can add upgrades to your taste, such as a hint of natural vanilla extract. For adults, an interesting liqueur could be added; in the United States, I even encountered chocolate with tabasco sauce (a fiery Mexican chili sauce).
  I love adding healthy dried fruits, like cranberries or dark raisins, chia seeds, or chopped nuts for the older kids.
  Even salty chopped peanuts or cashew pieces can add an interesting and contrasting twist to the sweet chocolate.

Melting cocoa butter in a double boiler

Melt the cocoa butter in a double boiler (remember from the previous article?).
Once melted, add all the other ingredients.
Stir well and pour into silicone chocolate molds.
Place in the refrigerator (not the freezer) for two hours.
And there you have it, chocolate.
Easy, right?

Pour into silicone chocolate molds and place in the fridge to set

A few recipes my family loves:

White Chocolate:

• Melt a quarter cup of cocoa butter in a double boiler.
• Add a quarter cup of almond paste, 3 tablespoons of maple syrup, and a little vanilla extract.
• Transfer to chocolate molds and place in the fridge for an hour.

Israeli Twist on "Reese's Pieces:"

• Melt a quarter cup of cocoa butter in a double boiler.
• Add a quarter cup of natural peanut butter with 3 tablespoons of silan and a heaping tablespoon of cocoa powder.
• Transfer to chocolate molds and place in the fridge for an hour.

Halva-Flavored Chocolate:

• Melt a quarter cup of cocoa butter in a double boiler.
• Add a quarter cup of raw tahini with 3 tablespoons of silan and a heaping tablespoon of cocoa powder.
• Transfer to chocolate molds and place in the fridge for an hour.

Nutella-Styled Chocolate:

• Melt a quarter cup of cocoa butter in a double boiler.
• Add a quarter cup of hazelnut spread with 3 tablespoons of natural maple syrup and a heaping tablespoon of cocoa powder.
• Transfer to chocolate molds and place in the fridge for an hour.

Who said dinosaurs are extinct?

As you've noticed, the recipes are quite repetitive.
But each chocolate produced is a unique world of its own, with a special taste.

In the next article, with Hashem's help, we'll continue with more fun snacks and candies for afternoon hours.
Until then, wishing you lots of health,
Chen Tovi