Natural Cocoa Butter usually retains a strong chocolate or cocoa odor and is more yellow in color. Deodorized Cocoa Butter will still have a slight odor and be lighter in color. Both butters are very hard in texture.

Cocoa butter is the natural, cream-colored vegetable fat extracted from cocoa beans during the process of making chocolate and cocoa powder. Even though the word "butter" is in its name, it does not contain dairy ingredients of any kind. Back to Top

Cocoa is finely pulverised de-fatted, roasted CACAO kernels, to which natural and artificial spices and flavours may be added. It is commercially manufactured by pumping hot CHOCOLATE liquor (semi-liquid ground cacao kernels) into hydraulic cage presses where, under extreme pressure, part of the fat, or cocoa butter, is removed. The fat content of cocoa varies from less than 10% to 22% or more for breakfast or high fat cocoa.

The natural flavor is a starter distillate. Starter distillate is a steam distillate of a culture grown on a skim milk medium which has been fortified with .01% citric acid. The culture could be one of the following: Streptococcus lactis, S. cremoris, S. lactis Subsp, Diactylactis, or Lueconostoc. (These are cultures that can also be found in kefir) According to our butter maker, distillate give the butter an old-fashioned tang, without having to sour the cream to achieve it. [back to top]

Cocoa flavanols are naturally occurring compounds found in cocoa beans. Preliminary studies suggest that cocoa flavanols may have a beneficial effect on cardiovascular health by: Promoting healthy platelet function, which may contribute to the maintenance of healthy blood flow and circulation. Reducing the oxidation of LDL, a process believed to be an initial step in the development of heart disease.

The cocoa beans used in Silk Chocolate Soymilk are Dutch processed. This means that the cocoa beans are cleaned, cracked and roasted. At the time of roasting, the beans are treated with alkali for color and flavor. This process yields a dark, flavorful cocoa "liquor," which is made into a cocoa cake that is then milled into cocoa powder. There is no dairy involved in this process.

Not all chocolate or cocoa contain the same level of cocoa flavanols, because these compounds can be lost during processing of the cocoa. Mars, Incorporated developed a proprietary method of gently processing cocoa beans shown to retain much of the naturally occurring flavanols in their chocolate products.

Vitamin E, Aloe Vera and Cocoa Butter have been used for many years to help promote healing. While each will provide some limited healing benefits, these products have not been shown to be as effective as SCAR LESS? Generation III Topical Gel for long-term scar management. Since these are organic products, they are media for microorganism growth. When microorganisms grow at the site of the scar, the immune system must divert attention to fighting off these unwelcome invaders.

Dutch processed cocoa, which is also called "alkalized" cocoa powder, has been treated with an alkali during processing to produce a less harsh tasting, darkly colored cocoa. This process is purely to control flavor and color. Many people erroneously assume that alkalized cocoa powder is "better" than non-alkalized or "natural" cocoa powder. It is no better, just more mellow tasting and darker colored. For best results, use the type indicated in the recipe.

Our dark chocolate has 54% cocoa content, the milk chocolate has 34% and the white chocolate has 31% cocoa content. Because of our high cocoa content, you are able to benefit from the added antioxidant and polyphenols in the chocolate.

Cocoa is shipped as a binhex (.hqx) archive containing a double-clickable installer file. Most web browsers will automatically unpack the .hqx archive leaving the installer file ready to use. If that's not the case, you may have to de-hqx it using Stuffit Expander or similar products. Double-click the Installer and follow the instructions. The installer will ask you to find the Plug-ins folder for your web browser to install the Cocoa Plugin.

Cocoa is available two ways: 1) "natural"; and 2) "alkalized" which is also known as "dutched" or "dutch process." Natural cocoa has nothing added to it and retains its rich, slightly bitter taste. Alkalized or dutched cocoa uses hydroxide to neutralize the acids in the cocoa, producing a less bitter and smoother taste. Both taste profiles are useful and recipes will often specify one type or the other, especially for baked items. For AH!LASKA products, we use only natural cocoa. Back to top

You can use butter substitutes such as Molly McButter?, Butter Buds? and I Can't Believe It's Not Butter? spray as great alternatives to actual butter. For more specific condiment usage information, refer to our complete list of Condiment Options (PDF file).

Once opened, refrigerate butter in its original barrier film inside of its resealable envelope in the coldest part of the refrigerator, not in the refrigerator door! We recommend slicing from the roll and keeping the remainder of butter in the barrier film. This film helps to protect the butter from absorbing odors from other foods in your refrigerator. Fresh cultured butter should have a delicate cream and nutty flavor and a pale yellow color.

Clarified butter is a purified, thicker form of butter that’s been melted and has had the water and milk solids separated from the clarified or clear part. Because the water has been extracted, clarified butter will not burn at high temperatures, and, therefore, is most commonly used as a fat for cooking, or as a base for sauces like Hollandaise and Béarnaise. The disadvantage of using clarified butter is that much of the butter flavor is lost in the process of clarification.

MSN Health & Fitness does not provide medical or any other health care advice, diagnosis or treatment.

All dairy products are acceptable on the Candida Diet. One thing to look for is raw, unpasteurized, grass fed dairy. Raw milk is not legal for sale in most states but you can find a farmer near you that has a "cow share" program. Go to Milk.com to find local suppliers.

Over the last century, the process for making peanut butter has become more automated and efficient, but generally has changed very little. Here are the basic steps: To stop the roasting process when the peanuts reach their optimum flavor and color, they are cooled quickly with fan–circulated air. A machine called a blancher removes the outer skin from the peanuts, after which they are split, cleaned, and sorted.

Shea butter is a thick, moisturizing butter extracted from the pit of the fruit from the karite tree (Butyrospermum parkii) found in West and Central Africa. Similar to cocoa butter in consistency, shea butter is a wonderful emollient that can be used straight on the skin to help heal cracked and damaged skin. Shea butter has been traditionally used by African natives to heal small wounds, burns and skin ulcers, and as a moisturizer for the skin and hair. They even cook with it.

Melted butter and water are transferred to a high vacuum reactor where in the presence air, steam and smoke the acidity of the butter is lowered and any unwanted odor is removed (deacidification and deodorization). As this process is performed in a vacuum, the temperature does not need to be increased. Melted butter is then mixed with diatomaceous earth in order to obtain decolorization before being filtered with press filters through several layers of paper and cloth.

No. Dutch processed cocoa has an alkalizing agent similar to baking soda added to neutralize the natural acidity of cocoa. It has a more mellow flavor and a darker color.

Many people don't realize that cocoa and therefore chocolate products deliver many naturally occurring compounds similar to other foods in a healthy, plant-based diet. Some of these beneficial compounds are minerals such as calcium, potassium, magnesium and copper. Much of the current research is focused on another group of compounds called flavanols. Because of their molecular structure, many compounds in the flavanol family can act as antioxidants.

You may have heard that a higher percentage of cocoa means that the product contains more heart healthy flavanols. When it comes to heart health and cocoa flavanols, the most important factor is whether the naturally occurring flavanols have been preserved or maintained in the final product. Seeing 30%, 50% or 70% cocoa on the label does not guarantee that it has higher levels of cocoa flavanols.

Our cocoa goes through a special process called "Dutching". This is an alkaline treatment of the cocoa bean center prior to grinding, which neutralizes the bitter, acid flavor found in natural cocoa. We prefer this smoother chocolate taste in our products. TOP