Coconut Oil & Chocolate Coconut Bark

I get lots of questions about Coconut Oil and the bark that I make.  Hopefully this will help to answer some of them.  The following 2 paragraphs are from Tropical Traditions website.  

Virgin Coconut Oil is a food, and is one of the best cooking oils you can use. It has been a staple cooking oil for thousands of years in tropical climates. As a cooking oil, its chemical structure is kept in tact and therefore is resistant to mutations of fatty acid chains even when used in higher cooking temperatures, unlike most vegetable oils. Research shows that the medium chain fatty acids found in coconut oil boosts the body’s metabolism, raises body temperatures, and helps provide greater energy which can lead to weight loss.

 Virgin Coconut oil is rich in lauric acid, a nutrient that supports the body’s immune system. Lauric acid is also found in human mother’s milk.  Dr. Mary Enig suggests the average adult include about 3.5 tablespoons of coconut oil per day in their diet to take in an equivalent amount of lauric acid that a nursing infant would receive from breast milk.

This is from Dr. Mercola's site. 

The many benefits of coconut oil are finally reaching the mainstream.


Benefits like:
Promoting your heart health
Promoting weight loss when and if you need it
Supporting your immune system health
Supporting a healthy metabolism
Providing you with an immediate energy source
Helping to keep your skin healthy and youthful looking
Supporting the proper functioning of your thyroid gland

I could post a lot more from other sites, but this gives you the gist of it.  You can get coconut that still has the coconut flavor and you can get coconut oil that does not have it.  I have tried several different ways of getting coconut oil into our diet.  Some people eat it right off the spoon.  I could do that with a tiny amount like 1/4 of a tsp. or less.  I have put it in my herbal tea and took it like that for a period of time.  What happens though is the coconut oil floats on top and cools while sealing the heat in the tea below it.  So, you test the drink and it feels cool and you take a big drink and then the hot tea hits your mouth and you get blisters.  I know this from first hand experience.  Some people really enjoy it that way and I am glad for them.  It did not work for me for very long.  Then I heard about this coconut bark.  I tried it and have been in love with it ever since.  It is SO EASY to make and tastes delicious.  So, here is the recipe for the bark.  I normally triple this recipe when I make it.  

 

Chocolate Coconut Almond Bark

3/4 cup coconut oil

1 tsp. vanilla extract, org.

3 Tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder

3 to 4 Tbsp. Real Maple Syrup (or you can use stevia to taste)

4 heaping Tbsp. of unsweetened coconut (I did big pinches)

Sliced almonds ( This is optional - When I use it I put 3 to 4 big pinches)

You can melt the coconut oil, but I do not. It was soft enough to be stirred. Add the vanilla, cocoa powder and maple syrup with the coconut oil and mix well. You need to make sure that this is truly mixed together well or it will separate on you. The last batch I made was getting firmer before I got the rest of the maple syrup out of the jug.  It was like a thick frosting.  It was the best batch I have made to date.  (I would melt the oil if I was making this as magic shell)

Add in the nuts and coconut. If you melted the coconut oil, you can probably pour this into an 8"X 8" pan. I had to spoon it in and spread it around with a spatula. Line the pan with waxed paper or parchment paper.

Put it in the freezer for at least 10 mins. Get it out and break it into pieces to eat. I break it up into bite size pieces and put in a bowl in my fridge. I use this as my coconut oil that I take before a meal. I grab a piece about 20 mins. before we eat. 

I want to put a banana on a stick and roll it in this and freeze it.  YUM!!!  You can halve this recipe as well.