Mmmh …chocolate, I can’t resist it. How about you, can you resist chocolate?
To me chocolate is comforting, creamy, delicious and just makes me happy!
But do I have to actually resist chocolate or is it actually good for me?
Is Chocolate Good for You?
The answer is – it depends or in other words both yes and no.
Do you remember the movie Chocolate (2000), where the main character can guess which chocolate is your favorite and which chocolate will heal you?
Well, it’s just a movie you might say, but chocolate has been used for centuries to heal ailments.
It has been used to treat depression, fatigue, sexual malaise, hangovers, anemia, dementia, high blood pressure, poor eyesight, diabetes and more. It also helps release that feel-good neurotransmitter—serotonin—in the brain.
That sounds great or?
But there are some bad news too.
There is a wrong kind of chocolate that is loaded with sugar, calories and other rubbish ingredient.
The most common chocolate eaten, the milk chocolate is just one example of the wrong type of chocolate which will do more harm than good.
So what chocolate best to eat?
Chocolate comes from the raw cacao bean. The bean is loaded with antioxidants, minerals, vitamins, and plant phenol’s. Cacao is a powerful food. The more processed cacao becomes, however—think commercially produced milk chocolate—the fewer healthy components remain.
So how to get the most out of your chocolate fix?
- Love the dark. The darker the chocolate, the more beneficial cacao it contains.
- Know your percentages: the number on dark chocolate packaging refers to the percentage of cacao bean in chocolate. For maximum health benefit, look for dark chocolate that has 75% to 85% cacao.
- Go raw—or as unprocessed as possible.
- Drink – hot cacao has great health benefits and if you make your own, you decide how much sweetener to use.
Are you getting a bit hungry for chocolate right now? Here is one of my favorite chocolate treats and I’m sure you’ll love this too. Eat with friends and it gets even more delicious.
Ingredients
- 115 gram dark chocolate (70% or higher)
- 3 whole eggs
- 120 ml butter or coconut oil
- 60 ml cocoa powder
- 180 ml honey
Directions
Preheat the oven to 190 Celcius, and grease an 20 cm spring-form generously with coconut oil or butter.
Melt the baking chocolate and butter together, stirring until completely smooth. (You can use a double-boiler for this, but I prefer to simply throw the chocolate into an oven-safe bowl, and melt it in the oven for about 4-5 minutes.)
Combine the melted chocolate/butter with the cocoa powder, honey, and eggs, then whisk well until a smooth batter forms.
Pour the batter into the greased pan, and smooth the top with a spatula.
Bake at 375F for 20-25 minutes, until the center looks firm. Allow to cool in the pan for 15 minutes, then remove the sides (this is why I like using the spring-form pan!) and allow to cool completely before serving.
