I love meeting nutritionally energized people who are filled to the brim with food facts, suggestions, and stories.
A few days ago I randomly got involved in a raw food conversation while sitting at my neighborhood raw food cafe (what are the odds?). The conversation focused on the body’s positive reaction to a fully raw diet- a lifestyle that I do not follow but love to learn about nonetheless. The conversation took a lovely turn when it became more hands-on and I was offered to try “the food of the gods”, aka a delicious ball of cocoa, coconut, and pure goodness.
The two men spearheading the conversation blew my mind away as they fervidly shared facts and health benefits of the cacao plant. I literally took out a pad of paper to jot down notes.
First things first, definitions:
- Cacao: unprocessed beans and pods of the Theobroma Cacao tree
- Cocoa: a powder or butter made from roasted ground cacao seeds
- Chocolate: cocoa liquor + cocoa butter + emulsifier + vanilla
A few interesting facts provided by my cacao gurus, Cacao Web, and All Chocolate:
- Flavinoids found in the cacao bean reduce the blood’s ability to clot and thus reduce the risk of stroke and heart attacks
- Cacao contains Phenylethylamine, a slight antidepressant and stimulus similar to the body’s own dopamine and adrenaline
- Cocoa and chocolate can increase the level of serotonin in the brain
- Cacao beans are rich in magnesium (in which everyone is apparently deficient), calcium, iron, zinc, copper, potassium, sulfur, and manganese and contain vitamins A, B1, B2, B3, C, and E
- Used as a currency in Mexico into the mid-1800s
- The first commercially prepared dark chocolate was produced in 1847
- The Swiss developed milk chocolate in 1876
- The average American consumes 11 lbs of chocolate each year
This new knowledge got me pumped to incorporate cacao into my diet, and not just via dessert. While chocolate ice cream and chocolate chip cookies are delicious, I wanted a seemingly healthier and savory alternative. With that a light a bulb went off– cocoa rubbed tofu. I often see chefs on the Food Network roast beef and pork in a cocoa-cayenne crust, so why not use a similar concept for tofu? I searched the web for inspiration and adapted the following. YUM.
Cocoa Curry Tofu:
(Kudos Hershey)
2 tbsp ground cumin
2 tbsp curry powder
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ground pepper
1 1/2 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
1. Drain extra firm tofu and pat dry with paper towels
2. Cut into thick slices, 8 or so per block
3. Coat tofu with Cocoa Curry Spice mix
4. Heat a tad of extra virgin olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat (enough to cover the bottom)
5. Add tofu and cook on one side until a caramel brown (4-5 minutes), flip and repeat
Serve immediately and enjoy!
Elizabeth 
