Our tasty dark chocolates and oat milk bars contain a few essential ingredients. Along with organic cacao beans and organic cane sugar, they feature smooth and velvety organic cocoa butter. So, what is cocoa butter and why is it such an important part of these sweet treats? We’ll explain how cocoa butter is made and where it comes from. We’ll also share why it’s a celebrated part of plant-based and vegan chocolate bars everywhere.
Where Cocoa Butter Comes From
Cocoa butter is an edible, plant-based fat. You may also hear it called “Theobroma oil.” It comes from the beans of the cacao (Theobroma) tree, so it’s more vegetable oil than actual butter. Cocoa butter makes up about half of an entire cocoa bean, while the other part can be used to produce cocoa powder.
How to Recognize Cocoa Butter
When it’s extracted from the beans, cocoa butter is white in color. It’s solid in texture at an average temperature, but it melts like regular butter. It helps chocolate melt in your mouth because its melting point is below body temperature. Its taste and smell are pleasantly mild and chocolatey. If you have cocoa butter in any of your beauty products at home, you’ll notice its distinct aroma.
Is Cocoa Butter Vegan?
Yes, cocoa butter is vegan-friendly because it doesn’t include dairy or animal products. It’s also an ingredient for those who consider themselves plant-based “reducers.” This is wonderful news for those who want to go veg but remember that cocoa butter is in dark and white chocolate. Not all products with cocoa butter will be vegan, so always read the ingredients list before you take a bite.
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How Cocoa Butter Is Made
Extracting and creating cocoa butter is no easy feat! It’s a process requiring keen effort and skill. Despite the intricacies, it’s most definitely worth it to make delicious craft chocolate bars.
Cream-colored cocoa beans are harvested from ripe cacao pods. They’re dried and fermented or roasted to intensify the flavor of the beans and improve the overall bean quality. The beans are then cold pressed to separate and extract the pure cocoa butter.
The extraction process separates the cocoa powder part of the bean from the part that makes cocoa butter. Cocoa butter and cacao butter are the same plant-based products but are processed a bit differently. Cacao butter is raw, but cocoa butter is processed at a high temperature.
Is Cocoa Butter Healthy?
When people ask “Is chocolate good for you?” you can thank plant-based ingredients like cocoa butter. Explore some of the main cocoa butter nutrition facts, and you’ll notice it contains beneficial fatty acids and vitamin E. This vitamin helps support your immune system and acts as an antioxidant for the body.
Cocoa butter is a saturated fat like coconut oil. It’s a better nutritional choice than some other saturated fat alternatives, but it’s still best to consume it in moderation. When you eat dark chocolate and plant-based chocolate, you can still feel good about the vitamins and nutrients.
How Cocoa Butter Enhances Chocolate
Cocoa butter helps to make chocolate bars creamy and fluid. It smooths the organic sugar and helps to create the signature chocolate taste and texture. Cocoa butter gives chocolate bars their melting behavior. It’s also responsible for the way chocolate looks shiny and glossy. Without cocoa butter, we simply wouldn’t have some of our favorite confections!
Enjoying Plant-Based Cocoa Butter
Now that you know how helpful cocoa butter is in making delicious chocolate bars, you probably have a new appreciation for the product. As you bite into one of our dense Holy Fudge bars or a rich Born Fruity bar, you’ll taste how cocoa butter makes the snack a bit lusher.
You’ll also notice the smooth and velvety combination of cocoa butter and oat milk in some of our other fan favorites like our Choco Latte and Toffee Time bars. Shop our chocolate bars and gift boxes and you’ll see there are even more ways to enjoy plant-based chocolate and get inspired by cocoa butter. Find your favorite and indulge in quality-made ingredients.