What’s the deal with chocolate and what are the best options?
“Food of the Gods”
Benefits:
• Highest antioxidant food in the world, 15x blueberries, 20x green tea, 30x red wine
• #1 food for your heart
• Flavanoids – antioxidants which protect from damage to the arteries, function like a low dose aspirin preventing clumping platelets
• Plant sterols which lower cholesterol by inhibiting uptake of dietary cholesterol
• Arginine- makes nitric oxide which causes blood vessels to dilate, decreases inflammation and blood pressure
• Best source of Magnesium- #1 mineral deficiency in the world, relaxes and decreases blood pressure
• Good source of iron
• Manganese and chromium- balance blood sugar
• Phosphorous for bones
• 7 chemicals that your body uses for bliss and love- but are destroyed by heat
Butternut Squash Pudding
¾ cup roasted butternut squash ( must let cool before blending)
2-3 tbsps cacao powder
2 tbsp maple syrup or honey
2 large tbsps of nut butter ( peanut, almond, or tahini nut allergy)
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
¼ tsp sea salt
¼ cup water or coconut milk
A small amount of coconut oil
Directions
To make a puree take a sharp knife and slice the butternut squash in half long ways and de-seed. Then take a small amount of coconut oil and distribute it evening place it face down (place the squash peel side down) on parchment paper. Set the oven to 400 F or 424 F for 25 minutes. Ensure you flip the squash carefully with a fork and knife ( it will be very hot) now facing up and roast for another 20 to 25 minutes. Once you can poke a hole all the way through with a knife, your squash is done!
Now scoop out the insides and put in ceramic or glass bowl and let cook for at least an hour.
You can place in the freezer to speed up the process.
Then gather you cacao powder, maple syrup or honey, nut butter or tahini, vanilla extract, sea salt, coconut milk or water and place all in a good quality blender or food processor and BLEND! Taste to see if it is to your liking. If so place in a container in the fridge and let cool. I find the longer you let it sit the more delicious .
Making Chocolate from Scratch
¼ raw cacao powder (We love Giddy Yoyo)
4 Tbs coconut oil
3 tsp of honey or 2 tiny pinches of stevia
½ tsp vanilla extract
Put these ingredients into a pot on low heat and melt, you can stir slowly. Take off the heat once it is melted so it does not burn.
Line a mini muffin tin with tiny muffin liners. If you chocolate has solidified in the pot just reheat again slightly. Once it is liquid, spoon a little of the chocolate into the bottom of each tin. You just need to cover the bottom of the liner with a little chocolate. Put these in the freezer for 10 to 15 minutes.
Fillings:
Raspberry Coconut
Ingredients
10 Raspberries
1 tsp of coconut
Mash the raspberries and coconut together. Place on top of bottom layer of chocolate and cover in chocolate and freeze for 10 to 15 minutes and enjoy! Omit raspberries if you like.
Hemp Seeds
Ingredients
½ tsp of hemp seeds
Place is middle layer, freeze and then place more chocolate over and garnish with hemp seeds.
And freeze again.
Rainforest Butter, Cashew Butter or other nut butters
Ingredients
1 heaping Tbsp of nut butter
1 tsp or tapioca flour or arrowroot flour or coconut flour
1 tsp sea salt to sprinkle on top
1 tsp vanilla extract
tiny sprinkling of cacao powder
1/2 tsp maca powder (We used Giddy Yoyo)
Mix together the nut butter, maca powder, vanilla, arrowroot flour or tapioca flour and cacao powder. Mix until it you are able to form balls. If needed add more vanilla extract, nut butter or flour.Make little balls and put them on top of the chocolate layer on the bottom pressing them down. Use the chocolate from the pot and cover you middle layer!
You can sprinkle sea salt on the top if you like!
Put them back in the freezer for 10 to 15 minutes and enjoy!
Not from Scratch
Ingredients
1 to 2 bars of Giddy Yoyo 70% (or more) Dark Chocolate
Directions:
Melt slowly in a pot, freeze bottom layer and follow the directions for fillings and then cover with chocolate and freeze again.
Hot Cocoa Elixir
Serving Size: 2
Preparation Time: 10 minutes
3 Tbsps Raw Cacao Powder
1 tsp Maca Powder
2 Tbsps Raw Honey (or vegan: Coconut Sugar or Maple Syrup)
1/8 – ¼ tsp Sea Salt
¼ tsp ground Cinnamon
1/8 tsp Cayenne Pepper
¼ tsp ground Ginger
Half of a Vanilla Bean, scraped (or 1/4 tsp Vanilla Extract ensure it is pure for best flavour)
3 Cups Almond, Hemp, or Coconut Milk or use another plant based milk.
Directions:
In a small-medium sauce pan, warm your milk and let it cool a little and turn off the burner . Then add in all ingredients and whisk, then turn heat back up to medium. Garnish with a sprinkle of cinnamon, and consume immediately! Depending on your stove be can heat quickly so ensure to whisk often.
Chocolate Mousse
1 can coconut milk
7 tbsps of coconut sugar or date sugar
½ cup cacao powder
¼ melted coconut oil
2 tbsps pure vanilla
1 pinch salt
Blender the coconut milk, coconut sugar, cacao powder, coconut oil, and vanilla and salt. Put into cups. Refrig for 30 mins to 60 minutes.AND BAM! Garnish with berries or orange curls.
Here is a link to chocolate avocado pudding: YUM
Catch the segment here! http://ottawa.ctvnews.ca/video?clipId=734995
