A better chocolate syrup: giving the brown bottle the boot
Who doesn’t love Hershey’s Chocolate Syrup? I mean, what’s not to love? Oh, wait, let’s read the label…
Ingredients: High Fructose Corn Syrup, Corn Syrup, Water, Cocoa, Sugar, Potassium Sorbate – Preservative – 2% or Less, Salt – 2% or Less, Mono and Diglycerides – 2% or Less, Xanthan Gum – 2% or Less, Polysorbate 60 – 2% or Less, Vanillin – Artificial Flavor – 2% or Less
There is three different kinds of sugar in Hershey’s Syrup… the largest amount (as well as the #1 ingredient), high fructose corn syrup, being the absolute worst for you. Most of us are learning just how bad high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) really is for us. The word is getting out so much so that the Corn Refiners Association has started putting out advertisements trying to convince you that it is actually natural and good for you.
Don’t buy it. These ads are akin to the tobacco ads of yore where a kindly and smiling doctor with a stethoscope around his neck advised you smoke a cigarette to reduce stress and improve your health. Yeah, not so much.
HFCS is used because it is… cheap! Food manufacturers like cheap because it improves their bottom line. But, let’s be clear, it does not, will not, and cannot improve your, um, bottom.
There are lots of easy, quick, and healthier chocolate syrup options out there for you. Recipes like this one eliminate the HFCS, corn syrup and preservatives and still provide you with a tasty chocolate syrup… that’s cheaper than buying the Hershey’s brown bottle to boot.
And if you want to forgo the sugar but still have your syrup too… there are several raw chocolate syrup recipes out there that are delicious and dangerously close to being… *gasp*… good for you. Here’s just one example of what I found: (more can be found searching for chocolate sauce recipes online)
The below recipe is sweetened with agave syrup. Agave is wonderful because of its low-glycemic impact! A great sweetener option!
Deep Dark Delicious Chocolate Sauce
2 T raw cacao powder, either ground from raw cacao nibs or purchased as powder (I like Nativas Naturals or Green & Black’s.)
2 T raw agave syrup
1/2 t coconut oil or other organic raw nut oil
Mix the agave syrup and the oil or water together.
Slowly whisk (do not use your blender) the raw cacao powder into the agave syrup mixture, mixing it in until well-blended into a smooth sauce. The amount suggested is a rough guideline. How much cacao powder you will ultimately use depends on the consistency you want.
(recipe source: AdventuresInRawFood.com)
Enjoy!!
April 11th, 2009 at 11:26 am
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