Superfood highlight-Cacao

read my IG post you will now that I loooove sweets. So the one thing that I have been trying to do for the past couple of years since my digestion issues and me finding out that I am sensitive to sugar, which would explain the bloating, pain and just awful feeling days after I ate sugar, is finding ways to curb my sweet tooth. That meant cutting out the middleman, or in this case, all the extra junk that they put into processed chocolate.

We all know that sugar is bad for us yet it is also not the easiest addiction to kick, yes I am using the word addiction because it is true. Studies have been done that shows that sugar is if just as addicting as cocaine. So the fact that these were in my house for 3 whole days and I still have some leftover and only ate 3 myself, I gotta say I’m pretty happy. How did I curb my sweet tooth, that will be for another post.

But I do want to talk about the benefits of cacao and why I use it. Along with digestive issues, I also am anemic. Which means I have low iron.  It’s no fun if left undiagnosed but if you are aware it can be managed. Symptoms such as fatigue, always being cold, loss of appetite and nausea to just name a few. So now I am always looking for ways to get more iron into my diet and the fact that I can do that and have chocolate, I am like count me in :). I do follow a whole foods plant-based lifestyle. So what does this have to do with cacao? Some benefits of cacao are that it is high in Iron. Not to mention, magnesium, zinc, and fiber. So these sweet little treats not only taste good but are good for you and if you are like me and suffer from anemia these babies have got your back 

So what exactly is cacao (pronounced ca-kow)? It is the bean which chocolate is made from. Although when you look at it it is white and when you taste it, well let’s say it doesn’t taste like that chocolate bar you bought at the grocery store. This is because cacao is the non-processed form of chocolate. As I follow a mainly whole foods plant-based lifestyle my goal is to eat in the true form (a majority of the time). You want to make sure that you get cold-pressed cacao so that the nutrients are still intact and of course no other ingredients except cacao.

Fun Facts about Cacao:
– High in antioxidants- hello beautiful skin. Fun Fact: make a face mask with some honey (thank me later!)
– Immune Boosting- bye bye colds and flu
– Happiness helper- with cacao high in amino acid that acts like precursors for dopamine, our feel-good neurotransmitter

The fact as mentioned cacao is slightly bitter I would recommend that you do use a sweetener, in this case, maple syrup, local honey or coconut sugar. There are so many ways to use cacao hot cocoa, chocolate bark, sub into your smoothie for an added.

Have you tried cacao before, what is your favorite way to use it?

xx,

Sade