Wednesday, July 9, 2014
It's One of Those Days....
11:10 AM | 
Posted by
Kaplan Center for Health and Wellness
By Jeanette Andrade:
I’m
hungry and nothing seems to be filling me up. Do you ever have one of those
days? You know those days where you can
eat all the food within your refrigerator and still look for more? Ugh, I tried
to eat fruits (blueberries and strawberries) and vegetables (carrots, tomatoes,
and green peppers) to keep me full, but within thirty minutes I am looking for
more. I scoured my cabinets to find something that I think will keep me
satisfied and only came upon dark chocolate. Disappointment fills me up as I am
not a sweet eater nor do I like the lingering after taste of dark chocolate.
However, I’ll give it a whirl as this particular dark chocolate has
carbohydrates, fats, and benefits that will hopefully keep me full until the
next meal.
The
fats found in dark chocolate are stearic and oleic acids. Stearic acid is
considered a saturated fat, but surprisingly does not tend to raise total
cholesterol as other saturated fats (University of Michigan, 2014). Oleic acid
is a monounsaturated fat that tends not to raise total cholesterol and is
generally considered the good type of fat (University of Michigan, 2014). This
particular dark chocolate that I am about to take a bite of also has 65% cacao.
This amount of cacao may potentially have more flavonoids (i.e. procyanidins and
epicatechins). These particular flavonoids may be beneficial for the heart and
may improve one’s mood (University of Michigan, 2014). Who knew chocolate would
help my mood? Well, that is a bonus to take a bite of this sweet delight, but
only an ounce will do.
I gingerly take that first bite, yuck bitter, so I drink a lot of water
as I have to stop this hungry feeling. After several more tiny bites my
profoundness for this piece of dark chocolate has grown. Soon that ounce has
disappeared inside my belly (well more technical than this, but suffice it to
say it lands in my belly). Ok, the wait begins. Yes! Thirty minutes has passed
and no hungry feeling. Soon I forget that I was once hungry as I am now full
and satisfied. Thank you dark chocolate for filling my belly and as a bonus
giving me some healthy benefits.
For those who are dark chocolate lovers, here is a yummy recipe for you
from Delish:
Ingredients
- 2 cup(s) semisweet, bittersweet, or milk chocolate chips, melted
- 1 1/2 cup(s) assorted nuts, such as hazelnuts, almonds, and cashews, plus more for garnish
Directions
- Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil. (Take care to avoid wrinkles.) Combine melted chocolate and nuts in a medium bowl. Scrape the mixture onto the foil and spread it into an approximate 12-by-9-inch rectangle. Sprinkle with additional finely chopped nuts, if desired. Refrigerate until set, about 20 minutes.
- Transfer the bark and foil to a cutting board. Use a sharp knife to cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces.
Nutritional Information
(per 1.5 inch serving)
(per 1.5 inch serving)
|
Calories
|
74
|
|
Total Fat
|
5g
|
|
Saturated Fat
|
2g
|
|
Cholesterol
|
--
|
|
Sodium
|
1mg
|
|
Total Carbohydrate
|
--
|
|
Dietary Fiber
|
1g
|
|
Sugars
|
--
|
|
Protein
|
1g
|
Delish (2014). Chocolate
Nut Bark. Retrieved from
http://www.delish.com/recipefinder/chocolate-nut-bark-recipe
University of Michigan (2014). Healing Foods Pyramid: Dark Chocolate. Retrieved
from http://www.med.umich.edu/umim/food-pyramid/dark_chocolate.htm
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