Healthy and Very Easy Recipes with Raw Vegan Chocolates
Dark chocolate
Do you look at all those rich chocolate goods strategically placed in areas where you cannot miss them when you go to your supermarket? And do you think you have to be strong and not giving in to temptation because chocolate is not good for you?
I don’t blame you because it is not rare to find articles in health magazines where a doctor advises people, especially women, to concentrate more on walking and to forget about chocolate.
I have nothing against walking, those of you who follow my articles know I am a strong advocate for physical activity, but there is no reason to ignore good quality chocolate, especially vegan chocolates.
I discovered Pamela Vinten’s book as I was doing some research for one of my articles. I immediately identified with her because she is quite passionate about good nutrition.
When I decided to review her book ”Chocolate Recipe Guilt Free” I was expecting a book that basically concentrates on delicious chocolate recipes. But when I began reading it, I was quite surprised at the concept behind it: the recipes are made with raw chocolate. At that point in my reading I got really curious because, I found myself thinking, how anybody can make chocolate cakes, cookies, or chocolate fudge with raw chocolate? Hum!
Raw versus processed cocoa
Well, the mystery got solved pretty fast as Pamela explains what the difference between raw and processed cocoa is. The difference lies in the methods used in the production of chocolate. Certain methods basically keep intact the enzymes and nutrients because they involve low temperatures in the process. Such a process does not destroy the enzymes needed to digest the food neither the antioxidants that make cocoa a healthy food.
On the contrary, producing processed chocolate involves the treatment of cocoa beans at high temperatures. Many of the polyphenols can be lost in this process and in addition, sometimes additives may be added.
What are the benefits of cocoa?
Before going into what ingredients can or cannot be lost through heat and processing, I would like to review the benefits of chocolate, or its main ingredient, cocoa.
Cocoa is high in minerals
Cocoa is probably one of the foods that contains the highest amount of minerals. It is a good source of iron (14 mg in 100 grams of cocoa), potassium, chromium, phosphorous, zinc, copper and manganese, all minerals that our body needs for good functioning. Our bodies can absorbed up to 93% of the iron found in cocoa powder.
Chocolate is also high in chromium, a mineral essential for diabetics since it helps with a correct metabolism of glucose. Dark chocolate has been found to have a higher amount of chromium than many other whole foods.
Cocoa is high in antioxidants
A cup of hot chocolate containing two tablespoons of cocoa has about 145 mg of polyphenols. We know that the fat in chocolate doesn’t become rancid due to the antioxidants contained in cocoa.
Polyphenols are phytonutrients found in different plants that are part of the human diet. They work as antioxidants and are associated to the prevention of chronic diseases. The best known activity of polyphenols is its protection against oxidative stress. They can eliminate free radicals, chemical substances that can damage the inside of our cells.
Cocoa and the glycemic index
Chocolate has a low glycemic index. When the glycemic index of a food is low (below 40%), that food releases glucose to the blood at a pace that the body cells can absorb it and convert it into energy.
Chocolate powder containing 75% or more cocoa and with no sugar has a glycemic index of 25. Chocolate powder containing 85% cocoa, has a glycemic index of just 20. Just remember that chocolate with a high amount of sugar or sweet fillings has a higher glycemic index.
Isn’t the fat in chocolate saturated?
Yes, the fat in chocolate is saturated, but it is stearic acid. Stearic acid has the advantage to become monounsaturated oleic acid during our digestion. Oleic acid is the type of fat in olive oil. Although stearic acid is a saturated fat, studies have shown that it has little effect on blood cholesterol levels, since most of it is converted to oleic acid.
Why is this book different?
This book is different because the recipes are made with raw chocolate, not the processed kind. This makes your final chocolate products healthy treats. No need to feel guilty any more when you indulge in chocolate.
Another advantage of this book is that the recipes are not complicated at all. I am not too good at following cookbooks instructions but I didn’t have a problem following the directions in this one. In fact, most of the recipes in the book have as a base one of the first three recipes. And trust me, if I can do it, you can do it also.
The major topics of the book
Pamela, in a very simple way explains:
- What raw chocolate is
- A detailed comparison of the difference in nutrients between processed chocolate, the one we buy at the market or health food stores for that matter, and raw chocolate
- A background on the different ingredients she uses in her recipes
- An alphabetical list of recipes. Recipes include cakes, truffles, fudge, chocolate sauces, you name it
- Very appealing pictures of the finished recipe
One drawback however could be that you won’t find most of the ingredients you need to prepare the recipes at your regular supermarket. You will have to make a trip to a health food store or you will have to buy them over the Internet.
I do my shopping at a chain of supermarkets called “Whole Foods” and there I found all the ingredients needed for all the recipes included in the book. I don’t know how many of you guys have this chain of supermarkets in your area. I know they are in the West Coast.
The bottom line: Do you need another recipe book?
If you want to eat chocolate because you like it and because you also believe you can derive health benefits from it, then you definitely want this book in your personal library.
Treating yourself with recipes made with healthy ingredients such as raw chocolate, with no animal products added, and produced through healthy methods, will remove the guilt that usually accompanies our indulging in chocolate. After all, not everything we eat in the raw state has to be necessarily vegetables.
You will also feel happy presenting your friends with these exquisite chocolate treats knowing that you are doing something good for them and that they will love you forever. And you will definitely be able to brag about serving them raw chocolate delicatessen.
To obtain this book to start preparing quick healthy recipes with raw vegan chocolates you can go to Chocolate Recipe Guilt Free
To your health!
Emilia Klapp, R.D.,B.S.
www.TheDiabetesClub.com
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