Chocolate is an interesting food, it is often in the media for one reason or other. The general consensus is that high quality chocolate, with at least 70% cacao, is actually very beneficial. Cacao has a very high concentration of antioxidants which help protect skin from UV damage, and let's not forget the feel good factor that it gives by raising the levels of serotonin and endorphins in the brain. However, when we are talking about all these benefits of chocolate, I doubt that you would get much from your standard galaxy bar.
Raw chocolate is all the rage, but if you are a diehard Cadbury's fan, chances are you won't be finding most of it to your liking. Personally I quiet enjoy a little bit of raw chocolate, Mr RF on the other hand took some persuasion (he really would much rather have his box of quality street). I was determined to find something that he would at least deem acceptable. Stage all set, enter Ombar.
Ombar (the name makes me think of Om meditation, but on the inside of the wrapper it says that it is to do with the sound of the universe being made), is raw chocolate bar that comes in variety of flavours, and has added good bacteria that is meant to survive the chocolate making process (or it would be useless really). If you ever tasted a bit of raw cacao you know it is not really that sweet, and in general not at all what most of us would be used to. So to sweeten their creations, ombar use coconut sugar.
What makes coconut sugar a better alternative to your standard refined white stuff, is that it is minimally processed and low glycemic, it also contains B vitamins and potassium. As always though, this doesn't mean it's ok to have lots of this stuff just because it is a slightly better option, it is still sugar.
The range is vegan, so none of the bars have dairy, they use coconut cream instead. I haven't tried all the flavours on offer, but so far the Coco Mylk and Strawberry & Cream have become favourites. So the bars themselves are small, one fits in the palm of my hand, but they are rich and creamy, I think it is a good single portion size. I find that I can't eat as much raw chocolate as I can with the standard variety anyway. Personally I love these, I think this is the best chocolate ever, strawberry & cream in particular is divine. While I am a huge fan of coconut everything, Mr RF only seems to like coconut water, and neither of us are big fans of dark chocolate, which of course would be most nutritious. Some of my previous attempts to convert Mr RF to raw chocolate failed miserably, as it apparently "tastes funky" (I could not get a better explanation no matter how hard I tried). The Mylk version of Ombar on the other hand gets a pass, he doesn't share my conviction that it tastes better than conventional chocolate, but he is at least happy to eat it, and that is a huge win in my books.
As well as being raw and vegan, these bars are certified organic with Soil Association.
Are you a fan of raw chocolate? Let me know in the comments.
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