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Review: Ombar Raw Chocolate

If you know me in real life, you’ll know that I’m a chocolate fiend. Chocolate to me is how coffee is to many people. A daily necessity. Religiously I have a little piece of dark chocolate after lunch, and I need that cacao boost to the extent that I’ll carry a bar of the dark stuff with me when travelling, for fear I won’t be able to get my fix!

I’ve talked about the Nutribox on here before, and my first taste of Ombar Raw chocolate was via my monthly snack box. It was love at first taste and since I’ve been trialing a new option with the Nutribox to have more say in which products you receive, I’ve been requesting Ombars! I’d only tried the Coconut 60% and the Cranberry & Mandarin so jumped at the opportunity to try the whole range of flavours.

Before I tell you what I thought of the individual flavours I thought I’d talk a little about raw chocolate for those of you unfamiliar with it. You might be wondering “What’s the difference between raw chocolate and ‘normal’ chocolate?” or “What’s better about raw chocolate?”

Well, there are 2 main aspects: the first is low temperature. To make standard chocolate the ingredients are heated to high temperatures, 2, 3 or more times in the bean to bar process, destroying nutrients. Raw chocolate, on the other hand, is made from unroasted cacao beans and any heating that takes place is done at low temperatures preserving the flavanols responsible for its antioxidant properties. The 2nd aspect is that there’s no added junk. Raw chocolate doesn’t contain any of the junk generally added to conventional chocolate- no dairy, refined sugars, added fats or fillers.

Ombar raw chocolate bars only use high quality ingredients: raw cacao, coconut sugar, fruit and bio live cultures (probiotics!), all of which are organic and sustainably sourced. You’ve probably heard about the darker side of chocolate production, with workers on huge plantations around the world being poorly treated and receiving far below acceptable wages, but Ombar explicitly state that they work with independent farmers and pay them a significant premium over market price to ensure that they are fairly compensated for their hard work. This does mean that Ombar raw chocolate is a bit more expensive than the chocolate you might be used to buying, but, in my opinion, it’s worth it!

Coconut 60% – This bar was what first got me excited about Ombar. It’s very creamy and has a really smooth texture due to the coconut cream in the ingredients. The coconut flavour is quite pronounced, which I love, but it isn’t overpowering.

Açai & Blueberry – This one is darker in colour with a fruity fragrance. The fruit flavour didn’t come through as much as I would have liked though.

Dark 72% - I’m typically a fan of dark, dark chocolate, 90% being my favourite, so that might be affecting my judgment on this one. It just wasn’t chocolatey enough for a plain bar for my tastes. You could tell it had a higher cacao percentage than the others though, with its darker colour and firmer texture.

Strawberries & Cream – YUM! I really loved this one. Like the coconut bar it has coconut cream in the mix so it has the same super smooth, melt-in-the-mouth texture. The strawberry flavour is pleasant too. Perfect for this “Coconut and Berries” girl

Coco Mylk – If I thought the previous bars I tried were creamy, this one was even more so. It’s very reminiscent of milk chocolate from what I can remember- sweet and milky. I’m sure if you’re a milk chocolate fan but are avoiding dairy then you’ll love this one. it was just a little too sweet for me.

Cranberry & Mandarin – This was another of my favourites. It has a darker chocolate base (no coconut cream) and a lovely zinginess from the fruit which balances out the sweetness nicely. The cranberry and mandarin is a great flavour pairing too.

Green Tea & Lemon – I liked this one, but didn’t love it. It’s a unique taste certainly and I was surprised that the lemon complemented the chocolate so well. I couldn’t really taste the green tea in this chocolate, but it is rich in antioxidants so at least I was getting a health boost!

Goji Berry – I was surprised that this was another one of my top picks. Goji berries are not something I eat by the handful, although I do like them occasionally mixed with other fruits and nuts in trail mix. Unlike the açai berry & blueberry bar this one had whole pieces of berry in, as well as fruit powder, which added a nice texture and infused the whole bar with fruity fragrance.

I’m really impressed with Ombar raw chocolate. I’ve tried a few other raw chocolate brands and none of them have compared. The texture has either been a little grainy, or they’ve been too “buttery” with not enough chocolatey flavour for me. I’m really pleased to see that Ombars are certified Vegan too. This is chocolate you can feel good about eating!

Ombar raw chocolate is available in various independent health food stores and larger stores such as Wholefoods, as well as online retailers including The Raw Chocolate Company and Planet Organic. (EUROPE only at the moment)

Have you tried Ombar or other raw chocolate before? What did you think?

Note: These products were sent to me for review purposes, but the opinions expressed are my own.

Chocolate-Coated Peanut Butter Banana Pops

Even if I haven’t made ice cream in my ice-cream maker yet this summer, that doesn’t mean I haven’t been enjoying frozen treats. The heat-wave that’s hit England the last few weeks seems finally set to break but that definitely won’t stop me continuing to enjoy these delicious banana pops.

I’ve long been freezing bananas with sticks in and eating them as simple frozen pops (or lollies as we usually call them here), but seeing people around and about with decadent chocolate-coated ice creams put me in the mood for something a little more naughty! As these are homemade you can avoid all those nasty added ingredients in store-bought ice cream and feel rather more virtuous about eating them. You could even make these raw using raw almond butter for the filling and making your own raw chocolate with cacao, agave and coconut oil. Date caramel would also be a great filling if you’re not a big nut butter fan ( although just writing that sounds crazy to me!).

These involve a couple of stages but are super simple to make, and the result is so worth it.

Chocolate-Coated Peanut Butter Banana Pops

2014-05-15 02:30:03

Serves 4

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Ingredients

2 Ripe bananas
1/4 C Salted peanut butter (or other nut butter)
Optional extras: 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp vanilla, 1 Tbsp raisins- I added all of these and loved the little chewy raisins and sweet cinnamon flavour)
2/3 C Dark chocolate chips
1 Tbsp Coconut oil
4 Ice lolly sticks or wooden skewers

Instructions

Slice Bananas in half across the middle to get 4 pieces then slice each of the 4 pieces in half lengthwise to get 8 pieces.
If using extras mix them into your peanut butter now. Spread 1/4 of the peanut butter onto the flat side of 4 of the pieces, place the skewer on top and sandwich together with another half banana. See picture above. Place on a parchment-lined baking tray and freeze until solid.
When ready, melt chocolate chips in a bowl over a bowl of hot water or bain marie and stir in melted coconut oil. The coconut oil makes the chocolate runnier and easier to spread.
Take the bananas out of the freezer at the last minute and spread each one with chocolate. I used a mini spatula to spread it evenly. The chocolate will firm up immediately on the frozen banana so move quickly! When bananas are completely coated place back on the tray and freeze for a short while.
Store wrapped individually in parchment paper or in a sealed container in the freezer.

Coconut and Berries http://www.coconutandberries.com/

I’m submitting this recipe to the weekly blog hops Raw Foods Thursdays and Healthy Vegan Fridays

I’m a huge fan of the peanut butter and banana combination and the thick layer of salted peanut butter and crunchy chocolate coating made for a fabulous summer dessert, especially enjoyed sitting on the grass in the garden.

I’d love to make some fruity lollies but I don’t have a mould unfortunately. Any ideas for making them without?

Vegan Hazelnut-Coffee Mousse (& Banana Crunch Parfaits)

I finally managed to whittle down my out-of-control nut butter stash to just 2 jars - 1 peanut, 1 almond (coconut butter and tahini don’t count 😉 ) but then my cupboard was looking a little bare so I had to restock again (!) and decided to do so with some of the homemade variety.

If you haven’t made your own nut butter before, I urge you to remedy that now. It’s so easy, you can control the added ingredients (most of the store-bought varieties still contain unnecessary palm oil), it’s much cheaper than buying it and roasted nuts make your house smell amazing!

Hazelnut butter is a good one to start with since hazelnuts are on the higher fat end of the nut spectrum which makes them quicker to blend and gives you a super silky end product. And remember, nuts contain the good kind of fat which is so important for both physical and emotional health, so don’t be afraid of them!

Once you’ve got a lovely jar of homemade hazelnut butter you’ll of course have to make my favourite Hazelnut Butter Chocolate Chip Muffins!

But for this recipe, as mad as it might sound to some, I wanted to go chocolate-free.

I bet if you played the word association game and asked people to name the first word they think of when someone says “hazelnuts”, it would be chocolate. And you’d definitely be in the minority if you didn’t like Nutella growing up….

But, as much as I’m a fan of the chocolate/hazelnut thing, hazelnuts are amazing in their own right and other pairings are also worth exploring.

Coffee and hazelnut is another magical combination but until now I’d only had it with chocolate in the mix too, as in my Healthy Mocha-Hazelnut Shake. Another must-try!

You honestly do not miss the chocolate one bit in this recipe. The mousse is sweet and creamy, with a rich, nutty depth and kiss of caramel flavour from the coconut sugar. I didn’t want it to be too heavy so instead of going all out on the nuts, I used silken tofu as the base. You don’t taste it so don’t worry if it sounds strange!

See my Little Lemon Pots and Blueberry Coconut Cream Parfaits for other tofu desserts.

I especially love the Hazelnut-Coffee Mousse layered up with sliced bananas and chopped roasted hazelnuts for some crunch. It’s a really easy, pretty wholesome, and outrageously delicious dessert!

Vegan Hazelnut-Coffee Mousse (& Banana Crunch Parfaits)

Serving Size: 3-4 Servings

Ingredients

1 x 200g/7oz pkg Silken tofu, drained ( I use Clearspring Organic )*
1/4 C Roasted hazelnut butter*
1/4 C Coconut sugar
1 Tbsp Maple syrup (optional, if you like your desserts on the sweeter side)
1/2 tsp Vanilla extract
1 tsp Instant coffee (I used Four Sigma Foods Mushroom Coffee with Chaga & Cordyceps)

To serve:

1/4 C Roasted hazelnuts, roughly chopped
1 Ripe banana, sliced

Instructions

To make hazelnut butter:

Preheat oven to 190C/400F, spread hazelnuts in a roasting dish/tray and roast for approx 10 minutes. Remove from the oven, wrap the nuts in a tea towel and rub together vigorously to remove most of the skins ( don't worry if a few don't come off). Place the skinned nuts into a food processor with a large pinch of salt and process until smooth. This can take at least 10 minutes. You will need to stop and scrape down the sides a few times at the beginning.

For the mousse:

Blend all ingredients in a food processor or high-powered blender until smooth. Pour into a bowl and refrigerate for at least 1 hour. When ready to serve, spoon into small glasses or ramekins, layering with sliced banana and roasted hazelnuts if desired.

Notes

*If using unsalted hazelnut butter, add a pinch to the mousse ingredients when blending.

*If you're using a larger pkg of tofu and have some spare, try adding it to a smoothie for a creamy texture and protein boost!

http://www.coconutandberries.com/2015/06/03/vegan-hazelnut-coffee-mousse-banana-crunch-parfaits/

Have you tried making your own nut butter yet? What’s your favourite flavour?

If you’re new to Coconut and Berries, please sign up for email updates and join me elsewhere! I’m on Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram (@coconutandberries), Google +and Twitter! You can also follow Coconut and Berries with Bloglovin or Feedly.

Review: Healthy Nibbles Box

Healthy snacks delivered to your door? I’m in!

The home delivery snack box thing has definitely become popular in the last few years. More and more of us are looking for healthier options and though they are getting more widely available, nothing beats the convenience (and fun!) of a neatly packaged box of goodies delivered straight to your door.

My Healthy Nibbles are a snack box company with 4 different box sizes, each of which can be tailored to suit dietary requirements including gluten-free, paleo, vegan and “original”.

I was lucky enough to give one of their vegan boxes a spin and wanted to share my thoughts with Coconut and Berries’ readers.

Each box is available as a weekly or monthly subscription, or as a single purchase and the selection of healthy snacks from both established brands and artisan suppliers is constantly changing. I love the element of surprise with these things and because my box was all vegan and healthy I knew I’d be able to eat it all!

I ripped into that pretty pink tissue as fast as I could…

…to reveal SO many snacks! I wasn’t anticipating quite so much and judging by the prices I’ve seen some of the individual products sold at, the Healthy Nibbles boxes seem very good value.

There was a nice selection of familiar and unfamiliar products as well as sweet and savoury.

Clearspring Organic: Tamari Roasted Sicilian Almonds

I’m a big fan of Clearspring and have talked about them on the blog before. All their products are fantastic quality and their snack packs are no exception. These savoury roasted almonds are great for stashing in your handbag for an on-the-go snack or for sprinkling on salads for some crunch and protein power.

Ombar: Coco Mylk Buttons

These are amazing! Doesn’t everyone love chocolate buttons? Somehow chocolate buttons are more fun to eat than a bar and they were definitely one of my favourites growing up. Though I’m a fan of the dark dark stuff these days, I make an exception for Ombar “mylk” chocolate which is really high quality, raw, vegan and organic. It’s been a long time since I’ve had regular milk chocolate but Ombar coco mylk chocolate is possibly even creamier! I’ve tried all the bars before but not the buttons so these were a real treat.

The Food Doctor: Savoury Roasted Soya

I’ve been making (moderate) efforts to curb my sweet tooth lately so great-tasting savoury snacks are very welcome. These roasted soya beans from The Food Doctor are tasty, filling and seriously nutritious. I wonder if they make them in big bags..?

Nudie Snacks: Premium toasted coconut chips

I love that coconut is getting so much attention these days. I was way ahead of the game obviously 😉

Nudie Snacks are tapping into the coconut trend with their simple but delicious coconut chips. They’re just toasted coconut chips with a tiny bit of salt and sugar for flavour. I’ve been enjoying grabbing a handful as a snack all on their own or sprinkling them on porridge, smoothies, ice cream and even salads.

Get Fruity: Scrumptious Strawberry

Made from oats, fruit and coconut oil, this is a nice little snack for a growling tummy at 11am. I like that this is nut-free since so many of the snack bars on the market aren’t but the bit of fat from the coconut oil helps slow digestion and keep you satisfied for longer. Get Fruity also use gluten-free oats so these bars are suitable for anyone with a gluten allergy or intolerance.

Teapigs: Liquorice & Peppermint

As a big herbal tea drinker, I’ve definitely tried quite a few Teapigs teas before – but not this one. All their teas are really high quality and made with only whole leaf tea, whole leaf herbs and whole flowers, no tea dust! The liquorice and peppermint tea was surprisingly sweet but still refreshing.

Zendegii: Lightly Spiced Savoury Snaps

These crackers from Zendegii are pretty different to any others I’ve seen before as they’re both grain-free and nut-free. They’re made from apples, beetroot, carrot and linseeds and flavoured with chili powder and salt. I wan’t sure what to make of them and they tasted a little like the failed juice pulp crackers I’ve made in the past. Fine as something light and crunchy to dip into hummus but I wouldn’t rush out and buy them again.

iQ: Superfood Chocolate

Not my favourite raw chocolate but still nice. I like that this one from iQ is smoother than a lot of raw chocolates (which can be a bit grainy) and also that it’s thin and snappy. They make several flavours, including espresso, lime and orange & raspberry.

Lovechock: Raw Chocolate Rocks - Raisin/Coconut with a pinch of Reishi

I’ve tried a couple of Lovechock’s raw chocolate bars before and they’re definitely one of my favourites. I hadn’t seen these “rocks” before but am very happy to have discovered them! Superfood infused raw chocolate coated raisins with a dusting of shredded coconut. I need to get my hands on the Mulberry/Hemp Seed and Almond/Cinnamon flavours asap.

Rebel Kitchen: Chocolate Mylk

Another product I’m very familiar with. I reviewed Rebel Kitchen’s range of kids’ mylks when they were pretty new to the scene last summer. The brand has gone from strength to strength, launched a range of larger-sized mylks in more adult flavours - chai, matcha, chocolate & coffee, and even launched in the US! The chocolate is my favourite so I was very happy to find one in my Healthy Nibbles box. Just water, coconut milk, date nectar and raw cacao. Truly healthy and delicious.

Chimpanzee: Dates & Chocolate Protein Bar

This was pretty darn tasty but I wouldn’t say it was all that “healthy”. It does contain a decent amount of protein (8.6g) and fibre (5g) but also a lot of sugar, in the form of rice syrup, dates, chocolate chips, glucose syrup and barley malt. It reminded me of a Clif bar and I think it would be probably be a good energy bar for athletes or really active people but for me it’s more of a dessert than a snack!

Planet Organic: “Energise” Coconut, Barley grass & Hemp Protein Bar

Based on dates, coconut and cashews I was expecting this to be pretty similar tasting to a lot of other snack bars but the hemp protein makes it quite a bit drier. I needed to eat it with a cup of tea! I enjoyed the hint of lime flavour and do like that it contains some extra protein and superfoods. I’m a regular in Planet Organic so I might pick up the other flavours in the range to try.

Overall I was really happy with my vegan box and, even if I don’t get a weekly or monthly subscription box, a one-off box every now and again is definitely tempting. They’d make great birthday presents for fellow healthy eating friends or family too!

Healthy Nibbles are clearly committed to their cause and not only make snack boxes for all of us to enjoy but are involved in a new SMARTvending concept, supplying vending machines stocked only with healthy, nutritionally certified, sustainable products! How amazing would it be to replace all the junk food-filled vending machines with ones filled with delicious and nutritious goodies?!

Have you tried any of the snacks in my Healthy Nibbles vegan box? Any you’d be interested in trying?

If you’re new to Coconut and Berries, please sign up for email updates and join me elsewhere! I’m on Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram (@coconutandberries), Google + and Twitter! You can also follow Coconut and Berries with Bloglovin or Feedly.

[Disclosure: Healthy Nibbles sent me a free vegan snack box to sample, but, as always, all opinions are my own. I was not compensated in any other way for this post]

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