Does Dark Chocolate have Health Benefits?



3 min. read

Cebu City, Philippines

 

               Dark chocolate has always been my favorite.  Even when choosing chocolate bars, I search for the darker kinds.  I’m a big fan of our local sikwate (Filipino hot chocolate) too.  The thing is, I always thought it was not good for me.  I was always told it raises my blood pressure.

               But would you believe the truth is actually the opposite?  Johns Hopkins nutritionist Diane Vizthum, M.S., R.D. in an article titled “The Benefits of Having a Healthy Relationship with Chocolate” said it lowers blood pressure.

               The article stated that dark chocolate contains antioxidants including a flavonol (compounds found in plants) called epicatechin.  Flavonols fight inflammation and protect against cell damage caused by free radicals.

               Here are 2 main benefits of dark chocolate:

  • Helps your heart.  It has antioxidants that lower blood pressure, reduce the risk of clotting and increase blood circulation to the heart.  This lowers risks of stroke and coronary heart disease.
  • Balances your immune system:  It has flavonols that reduce oxidative stress, an imbalance caused by cells fighting against free radicals. 

               Vizthum says that these benefits are associated with chocolate with at least 70% cacao content.  "You should look for a minimally processed dark chocolate with at least 70 percent cacao content, and maybe have an ounce as an occasional treat.”

Where can I find dark chocolate in Cebu?

               The only dark chocolate I knew was the locally sourced tableya (a flattened ball of ground cacao beans).  But I always had apprehensions to the source.  I wondered about its sanitation.  Purity was also a problem.  Some tableya were mixed with other unknown ingredients.

               Commercially available dark chocolate bars were mostly imports and a bit pricey.  Even then they were a bit too sweet.  The nearest taste I appreciate were the bars for baking.

               So when a friend introduced me to another friend’s dark chocolate products, I was hooked.  I’m talking about the cacao products of Cebu’s Chocolate Queen Raquel Choa and her family.

The Dark Chocolates of The Chocolate Chamber

            If you haven’t experienced The Chocolate Chamber (TCC) yet, you’re missing out.  They have excellent dark chocolate products – cakes, cookies, hot choco drinks, cacao tablets (tableya), cacao powder, chocolate bars and many, many more.  For this article, I’ll just mention two.                                      

            Chocolate Queen’s Cake Collection

This Red Wine Chocolate Cake and Cerveza Negra, plus an assortment of chocolates around them.  The photos were taken by Ryan using his Vivo phone since he was so inspired!
 

These TCC mini cakes are 3 inches in diameter and they are soooo heavenly!  There’s the Old-Fashioned Chocolate Cake, Red Wine Chocolate Cake, Chocolaté con Corazon and the Torta de Cerveza.

We were privileged to receive these on Father’s Day.  They were works of art.  It was a duo of Red Wine Chocolate Cake for Daddy Richard and Cerveza Negra for me, plus an assortment of chocolates for Raffy and Ryan.  The chocolates around them had meaning too.  The cameo face represented me as the mother.  Hand-rolled truffles, molded vintage care milk chocolate and pralines.

I tell you, personalized is an understatement!  Raquel does this for most orders.  These cakes are one of a kind.  So whoever you plan to gift them to will be uber grateful!

                    Unsweetened Cacao Powder

Dark Chocolate Cake with TCC’s unsweetened cacao powder..
 

This quarantine period saw most of us in kitchens cooking and baking.  So we used TCC’s unsweetened cacao powder to bake.  It was also my way of keeping the boys occupied and luring them away from their gadgets. 

At first, Raffy baked the chewiest, darkest brownies ever.  Then Ryan made a cream cheese brownie version.  Raffy started on his exercise and diet routine and shied away from the kitchen.  So Ryan baked our very first cake, complete with a dark chocolate frosting.


TCC’s unsweetened cacao powder made all the difference. 

AJ, the sixth child in the Choa family, is the one in charge of the blending and mixing of the cacao powder.  So it’s an artisanal labor of love.  The powder is made from pure cacao beans.  So it’s really dark with a strong chocolate consistency.

AJ hard at work.  Aside from prepping cacao powder, he helps with the cacao pandesal as well.

You may order TCC cakes or unsweetened cacao powder by contacting 09175561521 and 09176287661. Usually orders are made and/or picked up at The Chocolate Chamber, Robinsons Galleria, Cebu City.  But if quarantine restrictions prevail pick them up at Casa de Cacao, 3349 Topaz St., Casals’ Village, Barangay Mabolo, Cebu City.  They also deliver via Lalamove or Angkas.




Location: Cebu City, Cebu, Philippines

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