How To Lose Weight By Eating Chocolate!

The world of dieting and diets is full of some really strange and wacky ideas! It seems that almost every month some celebrity or another is coming out endorsing yet another spin on the diet theme! Well, I'm no celebrity, but here is one you might not expect - The Chocolate Diet!

I can almost see you falling off your chair in fits of giggles - here comes another of those wacky fad diets from yet another self-proclaimed expert! I'm always very aware of that old definition of an "expert" - "X" is an unknown quantity, and a "spurt" is a drip under pressure!

The Chocolate Diet? Haven't we've been told since we were young that chocolate is BAD for us - a moment on the lips, a life time on the hips! Certainly, if you are talking about highly refined milk chocolate then I would agree with you. But, what if we were talking about something very different?

We might be in need of a quick history lesson. Hernan Cortes was the Conquistador who led the "conquest" of the Aztecs. Writing in 1519 he observed:

"The divine drink builds up resistance and fights fatigue. A cup of this precious drink permits a man to walk for a whole day without food"!

And the drink he was talking about was .... Chocolate! Remember, he was a soldier not known for making rash, unsubstantiated, judgments. Clearly, something is going on here that we need to pay attention to.

But before you go rushing off to the local supermarket, and hit the sweet counters, this is not any old chocolate we are talking about! Certainly, it is not your average confectionery chocolate. What if we were talking about one of the most natural and nutritious foods known to humanity - the original Healthy Dark Chocolate?

Most of our "sweet" chocolate is so highly processed that all the natural goodness has been stripped from it. The very processes we use to make chocolate more "palatable" destroy nearly all its nutritional value. In the same way that overcooking a dish of vegetables turns it into a nutritional wasteland, so it is with chocolate.

This article is all about how healthy chocolate can genuinely help you to lose weight. It is not a joke or another diet scam. It is a serious and accurate claim that can work as well for you as it has for us.

Let's think about dieting for a moment. Most people equate "going on a diet" with some sort of fiendish punishment for past sins! They believe that everything that makes eating fun and enjoyable has to be stopped - no more treats, just boring, boring, rabbit food!

That is precisely why I love the idea of "The Chocolate Diet". Imagine being able to have regular portions of healthy chocolate that will actually help you to lose weight. Suddenly being on a diet doesn't seem such a bad proposition after all!

Surprisingly, there is a great deal of solid scientific evidence to suggest that eating healthy dark chocolate can actually reduce your body fat levels! It seems that eating real chocolate regulates the genes that are involved with the metabolism of fats. It actually helps our body to digest the fats we consume.

Not only that, but healthy chocolate also seems to act as a major appetite suppressant too. A small square or nugget fills you in a way that seems unbelievable considering its size!

Much of our desire to eat comes from the poor nutritional content of so much of our food stuffs. Our body craves certain nutrients and will encourage us to eat to supply its needs. If it recognises that it is getting the nutrition it needs it ceases its craving for "junk" foods with their high sugar and dubious nutritional content.

Our family has certainly found this to be the case, and our desire for "quick fix" snacks has all but vanished since we have been taking our healthy chocolate. Regular doses of good, nutritious, food seem to naturally regulate our weight - without all the painful side effects and cravings of conventional dieting.

Does it mean that you can still eat lots of other rubbish and magically lose weight? Of course not! You have to look at your total diet. The good news is that the chocolate seems to help you! A common experience is that people no longer crave unhealthy snacks - the need for instant sugar fixes are gone, and with it goes all those extra calories that pile on during the day.

Remember, the most effective way to lose weight is to control what you eat. And an effective way to control what you eat is to let healthy dark chocolate do the work for you. You definitely won't feel like you're "on a diet" then!

One of the definitions of madness is doing the same thing but expecting different results! Until you do something different you will not lose weight - it really is that simple. Sometimes people just need a gentle nudge to make empowering changes. That nudge can come from eating healthy chocolate - it will simply do the work for you.

If you have a few too many wobbly bits where there use to be firm curves then here is something that should definitely get you interested. A new approach to lose weight that will help you to get the body you always wanted, without all the heartache of a conventional diet!

7 Ways That Dark Chocolate Will Benefit Your Child

Does your child just love vegetables?

Honestly?

Or do you find yourself looking for creative ways to hide vegetables in their meals, like pureeing and mixing spinach into brownies?

Did you know that if your child eats dark chocolate on a daily basis that they can actually experience many of the health benefits associated with eating 10 servings of vegetables?

That's right!

Your children can eat dark chocolate any day of the week with their breakfast, lunch and dinner and feel great.

And you will feel great knowing that the dark chocolate is helping your child with these seven health benefits:

1. Improved Mood
2. Increased Energy
3. Consuming Multiple Nutrients and Minerals
4. Memory and Concentration
5. Replacing Bad Treats with Good Treats
6. Adding More Fiber to Their Diet
7. Promoting Good Dental health

Who wouldn't want their child to feel happier while also being able to focus on school and their studies more effectively?

While the health benefits outlined above may be found in some of the dark chocolate products available in the supermarket, the dark chocolate I am writing about is known as Healthy Chocolate.

Healthy Chocolate contains a premium blend of cacao, acai berry and blueberry. These ingredients deliver many of the nutrients that your child requires on a daily basis, including omega 3 fatty acids, vitamins, minerals, flavanols, and other antioxidants.

Instead of supplementing your child's diet with vitamin pills or pureed spinach, you can have fun adding dark chocolate to your child's daily diet by replacing some of the chocolate that they already eat, with healthy chocolate.

Some yummy suggestions are:

• Break up the chocolate squares and mix them into homemade chocolate chip cookies
• Melt down the chocolate nuggets and make gooey brownies
• Make dark chocolate dipped strawberries
• Whip up some healthy hot chocolate

Certainly dark chocolate may not be the miracle cure to all of our ailments. However it is definitely a tasty way to be proactive in regards to our health and our family's health.

For that reason, when it comes to your child's health, be proactive and lead by example. Show your children how to choose food that is good for them, both in your home and at restaurants.

Have a simplified and fun discussion about the health benefits listed above and begin to help your children understand how their decisions about food and the habits they create now will affect their health as they grow older. It will be one of the most important talks you ever have.

Chocolate, the Healthy Turth

I'm always leery about preaching the healthy word on chocolate. It has been believed for so long that this tasty treat could not possibly be good for you. Many also say the only reason we "chocolate lovers" preach at all is to justify our consumption and/or sell more chocolate. However, studies over the years have proven different and yet there are still many who doubt.

Chocolate is a natural, plant based product. Therefore it contains many valuable ingredients. Polyphenols believed to counteract free radicals in addition to B-complex, D and E vitamins. Consumed in moderation, it has its place in a balanced diet. It is believed that an ounce of dark chocolate per day will provide the most benefits and not increase your waistline. And while chocolate may be high in calories it compensates for energy loss due to physical exertion. The main reason it is a favorite with athletes and students alike.

Chocolate also does not harm teeth. Milk and white chocolate are rich in vitamins A and B12 which, among other things, contribute to the growth of healthy teeth and bones. These vitamins also aid the absorption of calcium and phosphorous needed for the creation of red blood cells and the growth of muscles and tissues. Cocoa butter also helps sticky, sugary foods from sticking to your teeth helping to prevent tooth decay.

While chocolate may contain sugar it is absorbed slowly into the blood stream. This is in part thanks to the natural fat, cocoa butter. The caffeine-like substance, theobromine is also in such small amounts that many of us will feel no affect from it at all.

More and more information becomes available about chocolate and good health. Studies are being done by some very credited instituions on the benefits chocolate. Maybe one day we will adopt the saying "A chocolate a day will keep the doctor away" but until then we chocolate lovers will just have to keep preaching.

Chocolate - How It's Made

It all starts from the fruit bearing tree (cocoa tree) and gathering its large oval pods wich contain the seeds. Discovered first in the United States this tree is now grown in many countries near the Equator.

Pods are emptied from their seeds which are then dried in the sun. After the drying process the seeds undergo roasting. When the roasting phase is completed the seeds are crushed resultin in cocoa powder. The powder is kept as is or gets squeezed resulting in cocoa butter.

Mixing the powder with butter, milk powder and sugar ends up as chocolate. Proportions of each component in the mixture will determine whether the end result will be dark, milk or white chocolate. Dark chocolate can be made with up to ninety percent of cocoa in the mixture giving a bitter tasting chocolate; milk chocolate has usually seventy percent of cocoa along with more milk powder. White chocolate on the other hand is made of cocoa butter only mixed with milk powder and sugar.

Trivia

• Did you know that if not most, all the pralines during the pre 1950's were hand made?
• Presently chocolates are considered as an energy giving food because of its very high content of sugar and calorie
• Another fact about chocolate is that it is also considered as one of the many sexual stimulant foods. In fact, aside from being an exceptional energy booster, one of the Aztec emperors drank chocolate to seduce women
• It is also known to be use as an anti-depressant. It is known to contain a substance called "pheryletylanine" that has a positive effect in the event of a nervous depression but not only that, there is something in chocolates that gives anyone a lighter mood every time it is drank
• Aztec emperor Montezuma drank 50 golden goblets of hot chocolate every day. It was thick, dyed red and flavored with chilli peppers. (Now that’s Hot Chocolate!)
• Columbus brought cacao (chocolate) beans back to Spain on his fourth voyage in 1502.
• Milton Stavely Hershey first became rich selling caramels. He sold his caramel business in 1900 for $1 million and started making milk chocolate.

3 Healthy and Delish Chocolate Smoothies Recipes

You see smoothies everywhere, so much that you finally decide that you’ll make some for yourself and your family (or friends, if you’re single). You have the fruits and vegetables you need, but there is one particular ingredient that makes the smoothie craving go on a different level, yet you hesitate to put it in. Yes, the everlasting question remains: How to make smoothies healthy but flavored with the guilt-ingredient called Chocolate?

One only has to look at chocolate ads to know that there is a tempting yet forbidden aura to it. To us not endowed with the perfect body, to even smell it is a sin, a crime worthy of capital punishment. But did you know that chocolates have health benefits too?

Cocoa, most especially dark chocolate, contains antioxidants – surprisingly 8 times more than found in strawberries. The flavonoids also help lower blood pressure and lowers blood cholesterol. If you’re depressed you are allowed to eat chocolate because it contains serotonin, the happy neurotransmitter that makes you a little happier. Plus, it tastes good – correction, very, very, very good – and keeps you awake. So this is good news.

That said, here are some recipes that are sure to tickle your taste buds:

Cocoa-Banana Smoothie (finally, a recipe that doesn’t need a blender)

Ingredients: 2 tablespoons cocoa mix, 1 cup of frozen whipped topping (thawed), 2 ripe bananas, 8 chocolate cookies (crumbled. Note: These are sandwich cookies, not chocolate cips ones.)

Procedure: Stir cocoa and whipped topping. Fold in the banana and half of the crumbled cookies. Divide into 4 glasses and top with remaining cookie crumbs. Refrigerate.

Choco Protein Smoothie

Ingredients: 2 cups of milk, 2 tablespoons of chocolate milk syrup, 1 frozen banana (or half a teaspoon of dry chocolate pudding mix), one-fourth cup of peanut butter, 1 cup of ice, 1 to 2 tablespoons of whey powder (optional).

Procedure: Blend and process for about 30 seconds. Serve while cold.

Chocolate mint Smoothies

Ingredients: half a cup of instant cocoa drink (made with a heated half cup of milk and one-fourth cup of instant cocoa mix), half a teaspoon of vanilla extract, one-eighth teaspoon of peppermint extract, 1 pint of vanilla ice cream, 1 and a half cups of milk.

Procedure: Blend almost all the ingredients (except for the ice cream) until smooth, for about 30 seconds. Add ice cream and blend until smooth. Serve immediately.

Chocolate Lava Cake

This is a simple way to delight all of the chocolate lovers in your life. It is a wonderful way to take that normal cake and make it a treasure that, will make your want more, and need the recipe for yourself.

Ingredients:

1 Box of chocolate cake mix any brand dark chocolate, or German chocolate is best
1 large package of chocolate instant pudding
3 large eggs
½ cup oil or what cake mix calls for
1 pan for baking cake. Any cake pan that is large enough to hold entire cake mix when prepared. It must be Ungreased.

In a large bowl, prepare the cake mix according to the directions.
Pour the mix directly into the Ungreased cake pan. Open the instant pudding.
Sprinkle powder evenly over the cake mix.

Note: Place this filled cake pan on the over rack. Putting cake on rack will keep you from spilling it, after you add water. This way you do not have to carry a full pan. Then take a spoon lay it face up with handle resting on side of pan. To help disperse the water, and keep water from cutting a whole into the cake.

(Instant pudding, recipe calls for Milk. DO NOT USE MILK!)

Pour Water Slowly onto the spoon it will spread out and cover the cake and pudding. Remove the spoon, slide the oven rack in and bake the cake as usual.
Remove cake from oven let cool 5-10 minutes before cutting.

Serving suggestions:

It can be served warm NOT HOT!
Cut a square of cake and flip over like an upside down cake. NO Frosting Needed. You can serve Ice cream with it, or even chocolate syrup.

The Perfect Cup of Hot Chocolate

When the thermometer drops we are forced to hibernate to the our homes.A meer glance out of the window sends shivers up our spines.The whipping of the wind and the gloomy gray skies indicate Winter has made its mark. Summer pool parties and barbecues have been left in the dust and snow will soon cover the ground. Where dad had once burned the burgers ice now hangs down from the tip of the grill handle. The coolers of ice are replaced with the tin thermoces, but what do we put them? Coffee could be the solution, but this is not what most would call the exact drink appropiate for children. The real solution lies in the cocoa bean. The best drink for Winter is the perfect cup if hot chocolate.

The perfect cup of hot chocolate is simple to prepare and only takes Five minutes. All that is needed is milk and a large chocolate bar. The first step in this process is to choose the mug or cup you want to drink from. After selecting the cup fill it with milk. The amount of milk depends on how much hot chocolate you will end up with, so do not over fill the cup. For multiple drinkers match up the number of filled cups to the number of people drinking. Next pour the milk into a pot along with adding half of the chocolate bar of your choice (preferably Cadbury's). Set the stove to medium heat and in five to eight minutes you will have the perfect cup of coco that is great for all ages and those chilly winter days.

For best results use Cadbury Dairy Milk Chocolate along with whip topping or marshmellows.

Chocolate coins make excellent holiday favors

If there is one food that no one can resist, adults and children alike, it’s chocolate! Bitter, sweet, milk, liquorices – whatever the flavor, color or shape, there’s always a reason to celebrate with chocolates. The allure of chocolates cannot really be described but there is something seductive about the way it melts in thick layers around the tongue and settles on the taste buds. As they say, no one can have just one!

Chocolate coins combine the best of both worlds – money as well as taste. Their first recorded history is when Jewish children were given chocolate coins during religious holidays. These formed an important tradition in the celebration of the Hanukkah and were called ‘Gelt’, meaning money. Today, you find multicolored chocolate coins in shops round the year.

Chocolate coins are made to look like currency notes or real coins. Thus, they are a wonderful gift for occasions like weddings, baptism, bachelor parties, graduation parties, anniversaries, holiday parties, corporate events and more.

These coins could be current or they may look like antique coins. The wrappers and the chocolate inside it have the upside and downside of real coins, along with the currency, the shape and the words. Little bags of chocolate coins are found in bakery stores as well as in shops of high end chocolatiers. Therefore, it is quite obvious that the quality of chocolate coins depends on how it is made and what ingredients go into its making.

When choosing chocolate coins, it is important to keep quality in mind. The better the quality, the pricier it is going to be. Quality refers not just to the chocolate but also to the craftsmanship. After all, you don’t want a penny to look like a pound, nor would you want to offer a smudged or badly made chocolate business card to your client.

Chocolate coins have become widely popular in the twentieth century. They find a place of pride among common party favors. They are also quite commonly found in corporate events. Chocolate coins appeal to the child in each of us. Children can even use these chocolate coins to play games.

These days, chocolate coins are a great gift. You can buy readymade chocolate coins or buy custom made coins. Customized coins are a great favorite with many people and are therefore sought after by many companies for their clients.

To cater to the growing demand for customized chocolate coins, many confectioners and stores facilitate free personalization. You can add your own message to any one side of the coin. What a wonderful and delicious way of letting people know you care.

With chocolate coins made from the finest cocoa and delicious cocoa butter, it is easy to see why more and more people want to put their money where their mouth is!

Cacao – Starting from Chocolate and going back to Cocoa bean

Chocolate is pretty much commonplace in today’s society and can be purchased in a variety of ways from boxed chocolates to candy bars. You will find candy bearing the name of their inventors including Stephen Whitman, Henri Nestlé, Milton Hershey, William Cadbury, Harry Burnett Reese, Forrest Mars, and Theodore Tobler in many different stores. Chocolate is found in the United States Army D-rations and chocolate has been to space as part of the diet of United States astronauts. All of this began in the 1800’s with the creation of the first solid chocolate candy, prior to this chocolate was not as easily accessible.

The later part of the 1800’s during the Industrial Revolution many new inventions were create including the complex machinery that could grind and process the cacao beans. 1910 was a year that marked a huge change in the chocolate market as the United States banned any cacao beans that were received through slave labor.

In 1765, the very first chocolate factory was built in New England and this delectable treat spread like wild fire. Chocolate was a huge success and everyone wanted to enjoy the delightful taste of this treat.

Prior to chocolate being introduced to America the first solid eating chocolate in 1847 in England and with a few years in 1876 in Vevey, Switzerland, Daniel Peter created a way of adding milk to the chocolate to create the delicious milk chocolate we have today.

During the 1600’s, Chocolate Houses were seen throughout England. Here everyone could enjoy a cup of chocolate while gambling, discussing politics, and socializing with others of the upper class. Of course, these delicious chocolate drinks had all kinds of flavors added such as sugar and cinnamon. Through trial and error, different flavorings were added to chocolate until they discovered a drink similar to the hot chocolate we drink today.

Herman Cortes can be thanked for bringing cacao beans to Europe in 1521. Cortes was given a taste of the royal drink “chocolatl, which meant nothing more than a warm liquid. The chocolate drink Cortes and his men drank was quite bitter and not pleasing to their taste buds, however, he added a bit of cane sugar and the drink was astounding. Emperor Montezuma was known to have drunk fifty or over cups of this drink on a daily basis served in golden goblets as if the drink was a food offered to the gods.

The cacao bean was discovered by another explorer, Christopher Columbus; however, the dark brown beans were not very impressive to King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella. The beans were nothing more than just another seed and nothing more.

The Mayan and Aztec Indians used the cacao tree and its beans to create a spicy oily drink known as xocoatl. The cacao beans were ground with cornmeal and chilis, and then mixed with water. At one time, all Mayans were drinking xocoatl, however, once the cacao beans were being given as a tribute only the wealthy rulers, soldiers, and priests were able to enjoy the treat. The drink had an important role in their religious rituals including human sacrifices.

Chocolate Is the Perfect Gift the Whole Year Round

Life is for savouring and that means making the most of every moment that you have. Sometimes it can be hard to remember this and it's easy to get bogged down in possessions and acquisitions, but it's worth remembering, especially in financially troubled times, that some of life's greatest pleasures are things you can't keep forever. However, when you want to let someone know how important they are to you and how much you value their presence in your life, it can be hard to decide how to go about showing them.

There's nothing like a special gift that tells someone you love or care about them, but it doesn't always have to be a conventional, pricey gift. Conversations, shared meals and experiences, special moments and thoughtful gifts are some of the things that can result in the warm and happy feeling of giving without becoming mired in the belief that bigger and more expensive is always better.

One present that is an excellent choice all year round is chocolate. What could be better than a present to be enjoyed in the here and now? Something that can be savoured and even shared - if your loved one or friend sees fit! A gift of chocolate is a gift of indulgence, without a massive price tag. A nice box of chocolates offers a moment of luxury in a busy life and a moment of simplicity in a complicated one, meaning it's the perfect present.

When you choose to buy chocolate for an occasion you are guaranteed that the special person you give it to will be able to enjoy their present and that it won't end up stuffed at the back of a drawer like an unwanted Christmas jumper or unopened beside the bed like the bestseller they never wanted to read. Chocolate is a great gift anytime of the year, and while chocolate treats are the top choice for certain festive holidays - don't disregard how many chocolate treats you can pack into all the other months.

Whether you are looking for cute character chocolates for children or a sensual box of luxury chocolates for your partner, you'll find that the choices seem limitless when it comes to anything from chocolate christmas gifts, to easter, Halloween or birthday presents. Make sure you put a smile on someone's face by tickling their taste buds on special occasions, they are sure to thank you for it.

Being Inspired by Chocolate

Inspiration is everywhere if we're open to it. Not long ago after several long ten to twelve hour days, I was dragging. I was working hard and had gotten a lot done, but I had more to do. The problem was my mojo was running low. So, I did what so many of us do when we need that temporary jolt of energy. I headed for the chocolate!

This time it was a special box of chocolates that I'd been given a month ago as a gift. I reached into the cupboard for that familiar gold crested box of the divine choc-o-late. You know what I'm talking about: Godiva.

And oh, I had been so good with this box of Godiva. I'd only take one or two pieces at a time to make it last as long as possible. Then I'd make sure that each and every bite was a ceremony of sorts; complete with the Mmmm's and the Ohhhh, so good's. Now, I don't do this with Hershey kisses; I pop those morsels in my mouth without a second thought - not even time for the going, going, gone! But, Godiva, well that's an upgraded chocolate experience. It's an experience that demands that you... Take. Your. Time.

Interestingly though, this time as I was removing the box top with the stately Godiva crest embossed across it, I realized something that, in all my Godiva chocolate eating years, had never occurred to me. This box didn't say what I'd always thought it said; it didn't say Godiva. No, not at all. It said Go-Diva!

Right then and there I realized that all this time this glorious box of Godiva was much more to me than a sensuous thrill for my taste buds, more than the epitome of chocolate satisfaction that I knew it to be. This beautiful gold box of heavenly delight was actually, albeit secretly, inspiring me to be the bodacious, diva woman that I am all while rewarding me with an amazing chocolate experience. Of course! Ah, in that moment, life made sense!

Now I understood a deeper root to my love for this particular confection! It was like a subliminal message! A shot of spectacular encouragement chased quickly with the rich, glorious sensation of that very fine chocolate - talk about a spoonful of sugar! Oh, if Mary Poppins had only known about this!

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cheesecake

Hope everyone is having a nice Thanksgiving. Mine could've been better - my dad is sick, my mom is incompetent in the kitchen, and the chicken is taking longer than expected. Oh and I have to be at work 4:30 tomorrow morning for you early birds, so you all better be nice and drop the attitude. It's not our fault if we are sold out of your stupid zhu zhu pets. And please don't trash the store either because the closing crew usually stays an hour after closing just to clean up after you. Trust me, they don't pay us THAT much.

Moving on, I made this cheesecake last week since my dad insisted on making pies for Thanksgiving dinner. In case you haven't heard, Libby's is having a pumpkin shortage. Once all the cans are gone on the shelves, that's it. No more pumpkin until next year. Good thing we have three large cans in the cupboard. Plan ahead when making this cheesecake because like most cheesecakes, this needs a long chilling time.

I cut this recipe in half because I have three small heart pans. Regular springform pan is on my wish list. That is partly why the piece in my picture is so small. That and it was almost gone.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cheesecake

Crust:

1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs (either in food processor or crushed by rolling pin)

4 Tbsp powdered sugar

6 Tbsp butter, melted

Filling:

16 oz. cream cheese, room temperature

1/2 cup sugar

2 eggs

1/2 tsp vanilla or maple extract

1/2 cup pumpkin puree

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp nutmeg

1/2 tsp cloves

1/2 cup chocolate chips

1. For crust: Mix together crumbs, sugar, and butter. Press evenly over bottom and sides of a 9-inch springform pan. Chill until needed.

2. Preheat oven to 350F. Beat cream cheese and sugar together until smooth. Add eggs and extract. Add pumpkin and spices, and continue mixing until combined. Any lumps in the batter will not disappear during baking. Fold in chocolate chips. Pour filling into chilled crust.

3. Bake 30-40 minutes. No covering or water bath needed. The center should feel somewhat firm to the touch. Let the cheesecake cool to room temperature. Then cover and place in refrigerator for at least 6 hours or overnight.

Makes one 9-inch cheesecake