Page 10 - Irene Farm Villagers Issue 2_2023

Estate News

CHOCOLATE THAT YOU AND YOUR

PET CAN ENJOY, SAFELY

Most of us love chocolate. Unfortunately, some of us are not allowed to eat
chocolate because of the caffeine content. There may be a solution at hand,
but please check with your doctor if it applies to you. The solution lies in

carob chocolate.

he chocolate we’re used to
eating is made from cocoa, which
Tis naturally bitter and has lots of
sugar, fat and additives. Carob chocolate
is made from the naturally sweet legumes
of the carob tree (Ceratonia siliqua).
The carob is a flowering evergreen tree
or shrub. It is native to the Mediterranean,
but also grows in other warm climates. It
appeared in South Africa in 1949 and has
been here ever since.
The tree is drought tolerant and has a
broad, spreading form that makes it an
ideal shade tree. The leaves are leathery,
glossy and dark green.
The tree can bear carob pods (the
fruit) after about six to eight years of
growth and by its 12th year, it can bear flavour. Instead of cocoa powder, you iron, phosphorus, manganese and
up to 100 pounds of pods per year for can use carob powder; just remember to potassium.
the next 100 years. The pods can be up reduce the sugar in the recipe because • Carob has anti-viral and anti-bacterial
to a foot long and are reddish-brown. of the natural sweetness of carob. properties.
Carob has been consumed since Inside the pods are the beans; these are
ancient times and has been used as used extensively in food manufacturing The biggest reason carob powder
food for over 5 000 years. It is also used for their gelling and binding properties. is healthy for you is that it is natural.
as feed for livestock. Some dogs love eating the pods. Carob comes from the pods of carob
Its name is referenced in the Bible, trees and is naturally sweet. Carob
where carob is called “honey locust” or Advantages of carob: doesn’t undergo the extensive
St. John’s bread as it was consumed by • Carob is caffeine free. Unlike chocolate, processing that chocolate does to make
John the Baptist while he was in the carob contains neither caffeine nor it taste good. Carob, therefore, doesn’t
wilderness. The husks that were eaten theobromine. Caffeine, and to a lesser have the additional sugar, corn syrups,
by the Prodigal Son in Jesus’ parable extent theobromine (the stimulant chemicals, additives and processed
were discarded carob pods. that is harmful to dogs and cats), are chemicals that chocolate does.
The word carat, which is still used both stimulants, making you more In South Africa, we have a small factory
today to measure gold and diamonds, alert and giving you an energy boost. called Bellair Montagu that produces dried
comes from the Arabic name for the However, they can also make you fruit ground with carob chocolate and
carob seeds because of their uniformity restless, anxious and irritable. yoghurt. It also produces carob-covered
in weight. • Carob aids with digestion and may nuts, seeds and ginger. My favourite is the
The pods from the carob tree are ease nausea or an upset stomach. carob-covered sunflower seeds. Thank
roasted or cooked for a short time and • Carob is high in calcium and rich in you, Bellair, for these wonderful healthy
are then ground into carob powder. vitamins A, B, D and E. It also contains snacks.
Roasting enhances the chocolate-like minerals such as magnesium, Information sourced from www.bellair.co.za

8 • Issue 2 2023 • The Villager