{"id":1133,"date":"2011-02-10T20:51:56","date_gmt":"2011-02-10T20:51:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/skinnygeneproject.dreamhosters.com\/?p=1133"},"modified":"2011-02-10T20:51:56","modified_gmt":"2011-02-10T20:51:56","slug":"i-heart-chocolate","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.skinnygeneproject.org\/i-heart-chocolate\/","title":{"rendered":"I HEART CHOCOLATE"},"content":{"rendered":"
DID YOU KNOW<\/strong><\/span>…Both dark chocolate and cocoa have a greater antioxidant capacity and a greater total flavanol, and polyphenol, content than the fruit juices! (Which is outstanding because of the glycemic value of cocoa v. fruit juice is much better too!)<\/em><\/p>\n Heart disease is the #1 cause of death of people in your city, state, country, and world<\/strong>. But guess what? Great news for all of the chocoholics! Dark chocolate and cocoa are super foods<\/span> that contain a very high amount of antioxidants \u2013 meaning they have been proven to lower your blood pressure and cholesterol therefore lowering your risk of heart disease! The darker the chocolate the more super the food!<\/p>\n Another bonus is that cocoa has a low glycemic index (GI). Although it is a sweet treat, it doesn\u2019t impact our blood sugar in the way that sugar does, which is important when it comes to diabetes prevention.<\/p>\n So far, chocolate does not seem to be so bad, right? Well, what about all the fat? Chocolate in general does have a lot of fat. Although dark chocolate is different; it contains a special saturated fat from the cocoa bean that is unusual. Research has found that this fat actually acts more like an unsaturated fat in the body, therefore not resulting in increased cholesterol like other saturated fats do. Another chocolate bonus!<\/p>\n But there is one downfall of chocolate \u2013 the calories. On average a chocolate bar has ~220 calories, therefore it is essential to enjoy your love of chocolate in small quantities!<\/strong><\/p>\n You gotta try this!! When it comes to cooking with cocoa, most recipes include adding fat (butter) to make it chocolaty. Keep in mind a heart healthy solution you can try is lowering the fat in the recipe by choosing an alternative, such as I can\u2019t believe it\u2019s not butter sticks. It looks like butter, cooks and bakes like butter, but has half the saturated fat!<\/p>\n Making healthy substitutions is the easiest way to keep your heart and your taste buds happy.<\/p>\n Try this recipe for DARK CHOCOLATE BROWNIES from best-selling author Ellie Krieger, Registered Dietitian on the Food Network<\/strong>.<\/p>\n