Raw Cacao Recipes.
Organic chocolate square:
1 cup of organic brown flour
4 tablespoons organic raw cacao powder
4-6 tblspoons of organic raw palm sugar (still high in minerals)
2 tblspoons of raw organic grass fed butter
4 organic free range eggs
Organic grass fed, non homogenised or pasteurised milk
Love
mix into batter and lay on a tin, cook until fork comes out clean, or 20 minutes.
Cut into squares and eat whenever you like, yummy and healthy
ALL Raw version
1 Cup of Almonds
1 Cup of Dates
2 tblspoons raw cacao powder
2 tblspoons palm sugar or agave nectar
1 tblspoon raw coconut oil
Handful of raisins
Love
few drops of vanilla essence, or scraped out seeds from 1 pod
put everything in a blender or mixer, roll into balls, and then roll into shredded coconut or almond powder.
WHY EAT RAW CACAO RATHER THAN ORDINARY CHOCOLATE??
I am Raw Chocolate, my Scientific name is Theobroma Cacao.However, you may know me as "milk-chocolate". I am usually processed into a commercial & artificial chocolate bar. But I am much more than that!
In my natural state, I am actually a health-food!!! I come from a large pod that contains a fleshy sweet fruit, and I am the seed. I get dried out, peeled, fermented, roasted and separated into solids and powder before being emulsified with lecithin, milk, refined sugar, fats and other naughty things into a sweet bar.
I want people to know what I really am underneith all the additives that harm people. I'm a magical, delightful, psychedelic, mystical health bean!
I am meant to be eaten the way I am, RAW!
It's a fact most people enjoy chocolate, but have never tried me raw!
I consist of 400 distinct flavour compounds – that’s 200% more than any other food!
I have a wopping anti-oxidant (ORAC) score of 95,500!!!! To put that into perspective, that’s 14 times more antioxidant flavonoids than red wine, 21 times more than green tea, and 7 times more than even dark chocolate! Wow!!
I nourish the HEART... by offering medicinal doses of Magnesium. Magnesium is the most common deficient major mineral even following a balanced diet – it is estimated that over 80% of Australians are chronically lacking. The Heart requires magnesium to be healthy, and to avoid heart attacks and heart disease!!!
As you can see I heal HEARTS... no wonder chocolate is a romantic, love-food!
That's not all... my magnesium levels can be helpful for women suffering menstrual cramps because it helps muscles relax, easing discomfort. Now you know why you crave chocolate at that time of the month!!!!
I also contain Phenylethylamine (PEA), which is an adrenal-related chemical that is created within the brain and released when we fall in love, and also help increase focus and alertness. I am a FEEL-GOOD food!!! No wonder you crave me when you're feeling down!!!
Yes, and the benefits keep going, I also help you LOSE WEIGHT! My complex compounds diminish appetite – likely as a result of my unusual MAO inhibitors that allow more serotonin and other neurotransmittors like anandamide (the bliss chemical) to circulate in the brain, precipitating a rejuvenating effect. I make you feel full of life again, like a just like a kid! More energy means that you can keep fit and active!
Don't worry, all these *wonderful* side-affects DON'T come with a catch, I'm 100% healthy and can only cause you to have the best day ever!!! I don't contain sugar, and my fat content is lower than most nuts.
TERMS:
Cacao: The seed from the Theobroma Cacao plant, in its raw natural state.
Cocoa: Usually a powder, which has been roasted and ground up from the Cacao bean.
Chocolate: A bar made from the bean that has been roasted, with added sugar, lecithin, milk, vanilla ect...
F.A.Q
What do I taste like, raw?
I am quite bitter, but not unpleasant. I taste very similar to a good quality dark chocolate (because I am chocolate!lol)My flavor can be enhanced using a little food alchemy...such as a natural sweetener like honey, or agave nectar!
I love being used in healthy recipes, like being mixed up with nuts and dried fruit, or even in a smoothie with coconut and berries!
What's wrong with roasted cacao?
Processing and roasting chocolate changes it's chemical structure and most of the health benefits are lost.
How do you pronounce, cacao?
ca·cao. Pronounced [ka-kow]. Rhymes with "cow."
What is Theobromine?
Theobromine makes up between 1-2% of the cacao bean. Theobromine stimulates the central nervous system, relaxes smooth muscles, and dilates blood vessels. Theobromine has about 1/4 of the stimulating power of its sister molecule caffeine.
So does chocolate contain caffiene, isn't that bad?
(QUOTE: Estimates of how much caffeine is present in cacao differ, depending on the source. However, it generally agreed that chocolate is a poor source of caffeine.
Consider the following estimates we came across in our research:
* A 1.4 ounce-piece of chocolate (40 grams) contains the same amount of caffeine as one cup of decaffeinated coffee.
* A cup of hot chocolate usually contains about 4 or 5 milligrams of caffeine, which is about 1/20 that of a cup of regular coffee.
* According to the Chocolate Information Center, a 50-gram piece of dark chocolate - about the size of your average chocolate bar - will yield between 10 and 60 milligrams of caffeine, while an average 5-ounce cup of coffee can yield up to 175 milligrams.
* 800 grams of milk chocolate (that's a lot of chocolate!) contains the equivalent amount of caffeine present in a cup of coffee.
* A cup of coffee may contain 50 to 175 milligrams of caffeine, a cup of tea contains 25 to 100 milligrams, and a cup of cocoa beverage contains 25 milligrams to none.
Interesting research on caffeine in the field of homeopathy (a branch of medical science) indicates caffeine's stimulating effect when cooked, but not when eaten raw. One experiment conducted with a decoction of roasted ground cacao beans in boiling water produced an excitement of the nervous system similar to that caused by black coffee and an excited state of circulation, demonstrated by an accelerated pulse. Notably, when the same decoction was made with raw, unroasted cacao beans neither effect was noticeable.)
~ SunChild
And an orange for dessert like an hour later.
Actually the only sugar I had was a small pack of spring colored M&M's. YUM!
I'm 5'7" but still that's ridiculous. So obviously I need to go back to tracking my food. Blah. I worked so hard to lose 80 pounds a few years ago and I've gained nearly all of it back. It's depressing.
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