Carob - A Healthy Alternative to Chocolate that is Vegan Friendly

Many consumers are likely unfamiliar with the carob, but this sweet, almost candy-like food is more commonplace than you might think. According to chocolate purists, carob holds no candle to chocolate, but it is nonetheless often used in its place, due to a subtle flavor reminiscent of chocolate. Many never know the difference.

Carob is the pulp harvested from the pods of the tropical carob tree. The pulp is edible directly off the tree, but for retail use, it is often roasted and then ground into a carob powder, and then used extensively to flavor a variety of goods, the majority being candy and some baked goods.

Carob is also healthier than chocolate, and so can often be found in health food stores and supermarkets that sell a large selection of healthy goods. Carob can be purchased in both a fresh or dried form, in bars or in pieces, and is often packaged as a snack. It also makes an appearance in many varieties of trail mix and acts as a nice sweetener to health bars and other nutritious snack products. You can also purchase carob chips for use in baking.

Carob's role is not limited to human consumption. Both the carob portion of the carob tree pods and the seeds, which are normally inedible to humans, serve as healthy feed for livestock, and carob is also used to make sweet treats for dogs, since it tastes vaguely similar to chocolate but has no adverse affects on canines as chocolate does.

The seeds of the carob pods are also utilized in a variety of ways, most notably in cosmetics. Carob can also be used as a thickening agent for various purposes, such as making paper, or, as in ancient Egypt, as an adhesive to bind mummies.

Chances are you've eaten carob or snacks and other foods containing carob several times, perhaps hundreds, in your lifetime, as it is also used to sweeten icing, cakes and cookies, and other candy which uses carob rather than chocolate in an effort to provide healthier alternatives to sugary, fattening candy.

Carob is not without a few health benefits as well, most notably its ability to aid in digestion. It is also free of caffeine, another ingredient found in chocolate, and contains a slew of vitamins and minerals, including A, B, B2, B3 and vitamin D, potassium, iron, calcium, and many more.

You might need to search across a few websites, but recipes using carob can be found aplenty on the internet. Some of the most common include St. John's Bread, Carob Cocoa, and a popular Egyptian carob drink. The recipe for the Egyptian Carob Drink is as follows:

In a saucepan, heat together a cup of crushed carob pods and a cup of sugar. Stir continuously until the sugar has caramelized, and add eight cups of water. Bring the water to a boil, and then set the saucepan aside, allowing the mixture to cool. Strain the mixture through a cloth into a jug and refrigerate the drink. Serve cold.