Homemade Chocolate Chips

So my mom, little brother, and I are doing this yeast detox diet for 28 days. All I can say is...this is the closest to hell I have ever been. I have decided that a life lived without wheat, dairy, and sugar is not a life at all. I fully intend to stick to my 28 day commitment, but that doesn't mean I have to like it. I am doing this for the sole purpose of figuring out what food allergies I have. After the 28 days are over you slowly add the food groups back in one at a time while monitoring your reactions. I have no doubt it will work, but 5 days in I pray that the 28 days will go by sooner than later. As a student of the art of making sugar and wheat into something that is truly good, true, and beautiful I feel as if my mission in life is not complete and there is still much to learn.

This "plan" eliminates basically all carbs - no potatoes, rice, bread, pasta, wheat, corn - nothing - zilch. Oh, we can eat quinoa - which is very weird tasting to me, and I am trying to like it - really I am. Also - limited fruit - and definitely no bananas, or grapes. Lots of veggies...big whoop there. No dairy - milk, cheese, yogurt, - not even rice or almond milk is allowed. The hardest has been no sugar. No honey, no maple syrup. We can however use this natural sugar look alike..."xyitol". I still haven't figured out exactly what it is, but apparently it is safe for diabetics. In a desperate search of something to quench my sweet tooth over the next 23 days I finally came upon an acceptable "cheating chocolate" solution. I made my own chocolate chips...well I guess they were more like chocolate bits. Very excited about this recipe. I am also a huge fan of carob so I made mine with carob powder. However, it should work just as well with cocoa powder. Also, it calls for coconut oil - which is awesome, but I imagine you could also use butter if you don't have coconut oil on hand. I have never used coconut oil before this recipe, so I am not sure if it will yield the same results, but it is worth a try.

This recipe is from Nourishing Traditions, a book my friends so graciously gave me with the hopes of converting me to the "healthy" way of life. Nice try guys, but I think I will stick with my refined sugar. : )

Carob or Chocolate Chips:
adapted from Nourishing Traditions
Makes 1 cup

3/4 cup carob powder or cocoa powder
1/4 cup of rapadura or xyiltol
1 cup coconut oil or butter
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon chocolate extract (optional)

Place all ingredients in a glass container and set over pan of simmering water until melted. Mix together well. Spread mixture on a piece of buttered parchment paper and allow to cool in the refrigerator. When hardened, remove parchment paper and cut into chips. Store chips in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Because the coconut oil does melts easily, keep this in the refrigerator.

Good luck!