Oh Wow - Cacao!

Although we are on our way to summer, we’re still experiencing some cold weather. During these chillier days we love making a healthy Hot Chilli “Chocolate” to warm and nourish our bodies. One of the reasons for this is that cold weather constricts the arteries causing us to feel cold, eating foods with chilli dilates (widens) the arteries thus warming us up.

Cacao is rich in magnesium and full of antioxidants, we like to add chilli to cacao dishes as it enhances the flavour and gives it a full bodied taste with an extra bit of zing. Chilli is excellent for  speeding up your metabolism, which is great during these winter months. Cacao is not to be confused with cocoa, it may seem like their spelling is the only difference, however it’s the process in which they’re made that sets them apart.

Cacao is the bean that comes from the cacao tree, scientifically known as Theobroma cacao. This bean is harvested, fermented and then dried. This is where cacao and cocoa go their separate ways. Cocoa is roasted at a high temperature and cacao is either cold pressed or roasted at a very low temperature. This is the reason for their difference in flavour and nutritional value. Cacao has remained ‘raw’ which means that it’s enzymes, vitamins and minerals are all still intact as they haven’t been damaged by extreme heat.

This is the recipe for our delicious Hot Cacao -

4 cups warm water

1 cup Cashew Nuts

1Tbl Sp. Honey pp (we generally go with 1 Tablespoon Honey per cup of water)

1 Tbl Sp. Cacao Powder per cup of water

1 small knob of Cacao Butter or Coconut Oil

1 Pinch of Salt

*Chilli to taste

Method: Blend everything together on high for about 1 minute and serve in warmed mugs. You can add more Cacao if you would like it to be stronger or more honey if you’d prefer for it to be sweeter. Let us know how you use Cacao powder- we’d love to share recipes with you!