6 HEALTHY CHOCOLATE RECIPES WITH POTENT PLANTS & SUPERFOODS FOR FUNCTIONAL TREATS
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WHY MAKE YOUR OWN CHOCOLATES AT HOME?
Chocolate is a superfood which stimulates feelgood neurochemicals that lift your mood, it boosts your magnesium levels to support your heart, helps your gut microbiome which improves immunity and, due to the theobromine, helps lower blood pressure and amps up energy levels.
This is why you want to only use RAW cacao where all of the nutritional elements are still intact. When cacao is processed with high heat, it loses so much of its natural goodness, and this chocolate, devoid of nutrition, is what goes into commercial, store-bought chocolate. This may not seem like a big deal, but when you start to look at the rest of the ingredients and understand that all of those are driven deeper into the body by chocolate, you may want to put that chocolate bar in it’s pretty wrapper back on the shelf, and rather pick up the ingredients to make your own POTENT CHOCOLATES containing medicinal botanicals that are targeted to your unique needs and add to your health rather than diminish it.
HEALTH BENEFITS OF RAW CACAO
MAKING YOUR OWN POTENT CHOCOLATES
Making chocolates can sound daunting, but that couldn’t be farther from the truth. It’s so simple that you could get the family involved – it’s a playful, creative process for each to come up with their own customised chocolate, no fancy skills need! Adding a potent plant or superfood with a specific purpose in mind upgrades these chocolates to be nutritional and medicinal. Chocolate is a delicious delivery system for functional botanicals – it facilitates getting the nutrients deeper into the body so you can benefit even more.
BASE CHOCOLATE RECIPE
INGREDIENTS:
- 1 C raw cacao butter
- ½ C raw cacao powder
- 3 Tbsp coconut blossom nectar or maple syrup (optional)
In a small saucepan, gently melt the cacao butter over low heat, stirring continuously with a whisk.
Once the cacao butter has melted, turn the heat off and start to mix in the raw cacao powder and sweetener. Use a whisk to get that lovely smooth texture. The chocolate should be velvety and glossy.
Simply use a silicone ice-cube tray for the chocolate mould and set in the fridge for at least 6 hours, especially if you added a sweetener.
You will use this raw melted chocolate as your base for creating your flavoured potent chocolates.
NOW ADD POTENT PLANTS!
TRY THESE:
MUCUNA for countering depressive tendencies and promoting mood upliftment
ASHWAGANDHA for easing stress, countering anxiety and adaptogenic relief
MACA XPRESSO for adaptogenic support, sexual virility and hormonal balance
Sprinkle some potent plant powder into the mould before pouring in the melted chocolate. Fill halfway with the melted chocolate, add the rest of your dose of the potent plant powder and then top up the mould with more chocolate. You could also mix the powder with nut butter and a bit of sweetener, drop this into the chocolate mould with the melted chocolate for a squishy centre.
Since potent medicinal plants are used for their therapeutic value, the taste might not be palatable to some, so by adding them to raw chocolates the taste can be masked and their nutritional value will be enhanced.
SOME FLAVOURS WE LIKE!
Add a dash of one of the following to each chocolate as complementary flavour enhancers:
salt flakes, cinnamon, vanilla powder, mint extract, rose geranium extract, rose water, maple, cacao nibs, peanut butter or coffee extract
POTENT PLANT + FLAVOUR VARIATIONS
Mucuna + salt flakes & vanilla or mint extract
Maca Xpresso + maple & peanut butter or coffee extract & cacao nibs
Ashwagandha + vanilla & cinnamon or rose geranium & maple
