Chocolate Can Help You!

In a dieter's perfect world, all diets would include chocolate. For years researchers have been trying to convince us that chocolate is beneficial to our health. Many chocoholics ran with this idea and started eating chocolate like crazy; that didn't turn out very well for some. Researchers have recently found out that chocolate is actually incredibly beneficial to many areas of the body including the heart and the brain. This does not mean that we can run to the nearest grocery store and buy five candy bars; the key to chocolate being beneficial is to eat it in moderation and to eat chocolate in the purest, darkest forms possible.

The most recent research studies have shown that by regularly eating chocolate you can reduce the risk of both high blood pressure and diabetes. High blood pressure and diabetes are both leading risk factors for heart attack, stroke and heart disease. Chocolate contains polyphenols which are antioxidants that help produce nitric oxide. An increase of nitric oxide could help with circulation and blood flow in general which would then lower blood pressure. Chocolate is also rich in antioxidants. Antioxidants have been found to lower the risk of heart disease, stroke, and cancer. Chocolate has also been proven to help cure emotional stress. The consumption of an ounce and a half of dark chocolate for two weeks straight has shown to lower stress levels tremendously.

If you are planning are adding chocolate to your diet for beneficial reasons always remember; the more cocoa present in whatever chocolate treat you are enjoying, the better. The majority of fat found in chocolate is coco butter. Coco butter is composed of oleic and stearic acids, having a diet containing foods that have these two acids in them have been known to lower cholesterol. Some people might question the sugar found in chocolate. Sugar is definitely going to be present, but what some do not understand is that there is approximately ten to fifteen grams of sugar per serving of dark chocolate. Most fruit juices contain three times that amount of sugar in one eight ounce glass.

At the end of the day, chocolate is still chocolate. It has been proven to do great things but if you go off the deep end you could end up doing more harm than good. As stated before, if you do decide to add chocolate to your diet, make sure you are choosing the healthiest forms of the tasty treat.

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There Is Much More to Chocolate

I often hear that sweets are bad for me. Sometime a guilty feeling washes over me as I reach for more and more delicious chocolates. As it turns out chocolate is an exception in the world of sweets. Not only is it not bad for health it is great food source with many developing health benefits. It is amazing that the cacao plant can yield such a wonderful healthy delicacy like chocolate. It is a profound illustration of how nature can make something really beautiful from what seems to be nothing. The good news for all chocolate lovers is that chocolate can help keep you healthy. Dark chocolates contain complex chemical nutrients that go way beyond micro nutrients like vitamin C and D. The antioxidants and flavonoids in dark chocolates provide great benefit to the heart. Have you ever wondered why chocolates have the power to calm nerves when you are feeling depressed, angry, frustrated, hopeless, sad, confused and nothing makes sense? Well here is the answer. Dark chocolates are antidepressants. They have been proven to relax people. So the next time you feel depressed reach for a bar of delicious dark chocolate. It is a natural healthy alternative to other chemical anti depressants. Research has shown that chocolate lowers blood pressure and reduces cholesterol levels up to 10%. How can you beat that?

Chocolate can also be considered a stimulant in some applications. This must be one of the reasons why people always say "chocolate is for lovers". It has long been known as the food of love. I have my own proof of this point. Whenever I eat chocolate I always fall in love and feel like I can take on the world. When I feel lazy and laid back I use chocolate to kick start my day. If am feeling tired at work or need some extra energy to help finish an extra task I will always find help in a delicious bar of chocolate. I owe it to myself since chocolate has so many health benefits. The saying "too much of a good thing is bad for you" does not apply to chocolate. We should stop using chocolate to explain our weight problems by saying things like "I am not overweight. I am just chocolate enriched". Chocolate is healthy and it is a fact. Chocolate influences our life in many ways and I am sure there are many other we have yet to explore. For science or pleasure chocolate is always a treasure. It can be used for birthday's graduations and even corporate gift. Chocolate will go with everything. It will bring endless deep delicious healthy delights to anyone that seeks it. There is no question that the future holds more amazing chocolate inventions for humanity. I feel luck to be living in a time when chocolate has become so important to life on earth. There is much more to chocolate than anyone can imagine.

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Tips for Serving Chocolate and Wine

Adding chocolate to the traditional post dinner cheese plate is the perfect way to give the 'sweet tooths' out there something to enjoy alongside the savoury goodies you've prepared. While this may go against the traditional idea of what you should include, there is no reason that this can't make a great compromise between sweet and savoury if you plan it well. Using a dark chocolate with a high percentage of cocoa is often the best way to serve up chocolate and wine when putting together a cheese plate. Other options include using fruit cheeses and dried fruit and nuts or selecting a sweet desert wine to compliment the sweet taste of regular chocolate.

Wine with chocolate characteristics

There are endless ways that wine flavours are described and chocolate is also used to describe certain characteristics and flavours in different wines. Looking for wine that has this characteristic may be another way in which you can narrow down the choice of wine that will be suitable to serve with chocolate. Adding a wine to compliment a chocolate desert or to drink alongside of chocolate may work best if that wine holds these characteristics which will reflect and enhance the flavour of the actual chocolate.

Matching different types of wine with chocolate

If you're not familiar with chocolate and wine served together, then the first thing you might look at is how to choose a wine that will most appropriately accompany the chocolate you have bought. Red wines are particularly well suited as an accompaniment to dark chocolate with a high percentage of cocoa, as the bittersweet taste of this type of chocolate fits well with the taste of the wine. If you are going to prepare a cheese platter and include something sweet, then the addition of chocolate is an alternative to the more usual style of after dinner chocolate. Picking cheeses with fruits such as apricot or figs will also introduce other sweeter options that will accompany the chocolate well. When served with a glass of wine this is a great way to enjoy these two indulgences at once. Nibbles such as nuts, dried cranberries or apricots and so on are also great accompaniments to chocolate and wine.

Different types of wine will suit chocolate better than others. If you have a sweet chocolate or a chocolate dessert, then desert wine that has a greater concentration of sugar will work well. This includes ice wine, raisin wine or botrytis. Fortified wine such as a Muscat which is very similar to desert wine is another option and it is ideal for those colder months. Traditional full bodied red wine can work well with a dark chocolate that is generally less sweet than its milk chocolate counterparts. Ultimately, the best way to make the perfect match is to try different options and you'll find over time that you develop a clear favourite that suits your taste.

Find more ideas on serving Chocolate and Wine and great online prices Here!

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