wakey wakey, chocolate shakey!

enjoying my chocolate banana smoothie before my morning yoga practice. so good the birds were singing. sis, this one's for you--head tilt and all!

Who woulda thought that a girl on an endeavor to eat a mosssstly raw/living food diet would be indulging in chocolate shakes pre-yoga sesh? Could it really be true?? YES. Raw chocolate is the bomb dot com.


Side-note: Rony, if you're reading this, I know I gave you a raw cacao bean and you almost died trying to eat it. But, when it's made into a powder and put in a shake, it's muy delicioso and I'll prove it to you next time you try some of my food ;)


So a goal that I have for this blog is to start spreading the word about something super awesome: raw superfoods! Today we'll start with my (thus far) favorite...drum roll please...the cacao bean (aka raw chocolate!). This is God's gift to raw foodies.


As an aspiring teacher, allow me to give you a little history lesson. Cacao beans were brought to Central America during the times of the Mayans and Aztecs--the beans were so revered that they actually used them as a form of money! Montezuma, the famous Aztec emperor, filled his vaults not with gold, but with about 960,000,000 raw cacao beans! Now that's a choc-o-holic if I ever knew one...


Let's get on to the exciting facts:


*Cacao is the #1 natural source of magnesium of ANY food....magnesium builds strong bones and is associated with increased happiness. Over 80% of Americans are chronically deficient in magnesium.


*It is high in sulfur. Sulfur builds strong nails, hair, beautiful skin, detoxifies the liver, and supports healthy pancreas functioning.


*Cacao diminishes appetite, due to it's MAO inhibitors--these facilitate rejuvenation.


*Cacao contains phenylethylamine (PEA) which is an adrenal-related chemical that is also produced within the brain when we are in love :) It increases focus and alertness.


*Anandamide (the bliss chemical) is found in cacao. it is released naturally in the brain when we are feeling great.


*Cacao is the highest known source of antioxidants. It has nearly 20 times the antioxidants of red wine and up to 30 times that of green tea.


Raw foodies love their cacao. It opens the doors to endless amounts of desserts--minus the calories, fat, and sugar!


I must say, the other day I started feeling a little down (must of been the cloudy weather). I didn't have the energy to make anything, but I forced myself to make this shake. Let's just say I no longer was a dana downer...this stuff seriously has some happy chemicals in it! After drinking my smoothie I was out the door, getting stuff done, and enjoying my cloudy day!


I have seen cacao used in raw mint-chocolate brownies, raw chocolate mousse, and raw chocolate cakes. The way that I like to use cacao in my diet is in smoothies--simply because it's super simple and quick. Feel free to play around with different ingredients, but here's the recipe for my raw chocolate banana smoothie:


1-2 frozen bananas
about a cup of coconut water
2 spoonfuls of raw cacao powder
1-2 spoonfuls of raw almond butter


Smoothie Tips:
-always peel your bananas and freeze them the night before for a creamy, frothy smoothie!
-adding raw almond butter increases the "filling" factor of your smoothie and gives you a great dose of protein
-using coconut water not only tastes heavenly, but it contains more potassium (about 294 mg) than most sports drinks (117 mg), it also contains less sodium, and has the same electrolytic balance as we have in our blood--so it is often called the "fluid of life."


If this didn't make you excited about raw foods, I'm not sure what will...
Don't worry, I still have a few more tricks up my sleeve!


love & lettuce,
d