Thursday, December 26, 2013

Hot Chocolate for Paleo and SCD

The hot chocolate is a work in progress.  Because of my IBS (irritable bowel syndrome) there's a lot that I can't digest.  Specifically, chocolate and sugar are trigger foods.
For normal people, yeah, I know, that leaves out a whole lot of food, doesn't it?  I should be skinny as a rail!  Ok, yeah, but I cheat.  Not a lot, but let's just say I got into a cream puff frenzy over the summer and gained 20 pounds that I haven't managed to lose yet.  But I perfected the recipe.
Anyway, I follow the SCD (specific carb diet) for the most part.  It's a lot like Paleo, but more strict.  So, by definition, any hot chocolate I'm going to make is going to make me a little ill.  I told you, I cheat.  If you're in this same boat with me, plan on regular sized mugs (don't a porky size giant mugs.  Portion control!) and not having hot chocolate very often.  You'll only get a little gassy if you control how much you drink and if you don't cheat the rest of the day, you won't actually become violently ill.

I have not perfected the recipe because I think it's more a matter of taste than hard-core instructions you must follow.  If you're new to this style, you'll miss that milky part.  I haven't willingly ingested a milk product since I was a child and we were too poor for hot chocolate back in the day (I didn't always have IBS) so watery hot chocolate is all I know. This is like a choose your ending kind of story, remember those?

Liquid Base                                            Chocolate                                             Sweetener
water                             Dark or regular unsweetened cocoa powder                   honey
coconut milk                                                                                                         chopped dates


I wouldn't like the flavor of the dates in MY hot chocolate, but if you have problem with honey, there ya go.  Chop them, put it all in the blender, and you have sweetened hot chocolate.  I also ALWAYS add a dash of cinnamon to my hot chocolate.  I've tried it with both the water and the coconut and I prefer the water.

I don't want to get any hopes up, but there's talk of the ability of whipping coconut milk just like whipped cream.  I've never tried it but you have to understand that these same people claim that coconut oil also whips up into the consistency of whipped butter AND smells like coconut!  Listen, I've been making soap for 20 years.  Coconut oil does NOT whip up into a fluffy butter-like delight.  It merely smooths out, but the whipping makes it runny.  Doesn't matter if you freeze it or keep it in the fridge as you whip, it only becomes a smooth liquid.  Add scented oils to it and it remains runny but gradually goes back to being a little grainy again over time.  And yes, you add scented oils to it because it has no odor whatsoever.  Do you really think people want all their food cooked in coconut oil to taste and smell of coconuts?  Of course not!  Any scents were processed out during the making of the product.  If you're unfamiliar with coconut oil, I hope you just gleaned from that paragraph that yes, you can utterly cook with it and yes, it is a nice body oil after a shower.

I had an idea today!  
 I bought this for my son this year.  Gingerbread house ornament (edible) and I thought, "HEY!" 
I could make a whole fleet of these as ornament gifts next year!

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