Jack Hollingsworth/Photodisc
Hot chocolate tastes even better when you make it from scratch.
Homemade hot chocolate is a cup of comforting nutrition
Even though we’ve had a relatively warm winter, our January nights are still chilly, and a warm drink is welcome and soothing. A cup of delicious hot chocolate delivers this kind of comfort.
Even though we sometimes equate chocolate with unhealthy foods, it gets some strong nutritional kudos.
Cocoa is packed with antioxidants. In fact, polyphenols make up more than 10 percent of the weight of dry raw cocoa beans. On the Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity scale, which measures the antioxidant power of a food, cocoa ranks very high. At 8,260 ORAC units per serving, cocoa is only a little bit behind blueberries (8,708 ORAC units per serving) and ahead of blackberries (7,500 ORAC units per serving) and red grapes (1,764 ORAC units per serving).
Like other antioxidants, polyphenols help to decrease free radical formation in our bodies. They also can help to increase circulating nitric oxide, which seems to help prevent fatty deposits on the insides of blood vessels. This can help lower risk for heart disease due to artery blockages.
Cocoa has a fair amount of fat, but a little more than a third of its fat is either the mono- or polyunsaturated type. Of the saturated fat that cocoa contains, more than half comes from stearic acid, a saturated fatty acid that seems to have no effect on blood cholesterol. This is different from most types of saturated fatty acids, because when we metabolize stearic acid, our bodies convert it into an unsaturated fatty acid, neutralizing its potentially harmful effects.
Cocoa also has a lot of copper. One tablespoon of cocoa has a little more than 9 percent of the copper recommended daily. Additionally, cocoa has significant amounts of magnesium. Both of these important minerals help protect our heart from disease.
There are a variety of other naturally occurring chemicals in chocolate, including theobromine and phenylethylamine.
Theobromine is a mild stimulant and a mild diuretic. Phenylethylamine seems to elevate mood by increasing dopamine and adrenaline levels in the brain. Theobromine is the reason you should not give chocolate to animals, because they can’t break it down very quickly. It stays in their system for a much longer time than it does for humans, and can cause diarrhea, vomiting, digestive problems, seizures, rapid heart rate and even death.
While you may be most familiar with making hot chocolate from a packet of a commercialized mix, I’m betting once you try making your own, you’ll be a convert.
It’s really not hard to make. Just mix a little of the milk with the rest of the ingredients to make a slurry, then when you combine it with the hot milk it should disperse evenly and not be lumpy. If you skip making the slurry and just try to combine everything and heat it up, you will have lumps of cocoa powder that won’t dissolve. The flavor is also much richer when you make your own.
If you don’t use the optional coffee liqueur in the recipe, you may need a bit more sugar than the recipe calls for. Taste and adjust before you pour it into mugs and serve.
Of course, feel free to experiment by increasing or decreasing the vanilla and cinnamon, using a sweetener instead of sugar, or using soy or other type of milk. Then sit back with your steaming mug of chocolate, snuggle in for the night, and enjoy.
Megan Murphy is a Tennessee-licensed registered dietitian and associate professor of nutrition at Southwest Tennessee Community College. Call 277-3062, fax 529-2787, e-mail [email protected].
Frothy Hot Chocolate
4 1/2 cups low-fat (1 percent) milk
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup coffee liqueur, such as Kahlua or Tia Maria (optional)
2 tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
Whisk together 1/2 cup milk, sugar, coffee liqueur (if using), cocoa, vanilla and cinnamon in a small bowl until a smooth paste forms. Heat the remaining 4 cups milk in a medium saucepan until steaming. Remove from heat and whisk vigorously. Whisk the cocoa mixture into the milk and pour into mugs.
Makes 4 servings (about 1 1/8 cups each).
Per serving (without liqueur): 149 calories, 4 gm fat, 2 gm saturated fat, 15 mg cholesterol, 22 gm carbohydrates, 1 gm fiber, 6 gm protein, 94 mg sodium.
– Source: eatingwell.com
Chocolate with Bill & Sheila
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