Chocolate Addicts Lose Weight With Carob

While money does not grow on trees, "chocolate" carob does. Used to flavor baked goods and candy, carob is a healthful alternative to chocolate.

With 60 percent less calories than chocolate, you can't go wrong with carob when you are on a diet and need a chocolate fix.

The pods from the tropical carob tree are filled with a sweet, edible pulp that is dried and roasted before being ground into a powder.

You can find carob and carob products in most health food stores.

Also known as Saint John's bread and locust bean, carob has been used for centuries, long before the days of process foods, high fructose corn syrup and the refined sugars carob that contribute to the modern obesity epidemic.

The Bible indicates carob sustained John the Baptist during his time in the wilderness (Mark 1:16).

Historians say children during the Spanish Civil War in the 1930s sustained themselves with carob.

The carob tree (Ceratonia siliqua) has a dark brown leathery pod, which is sometimes classified as a legume.

Carob can be found in countries surrounding the Mediterranean Sea and the Middle East. They also grow in Southern California and Arizona.

If you are trying to lose weight, consider using carob powder or flour in place of chocolate or cocoa. Use three tablespoons of carob powder for each square of chocolate in a recipe.

You can also use carob as a sugar replacement since carob powder consists of 50 percent natural sugar.

Use carob in place of sugar when you are making cereals, muffins, pancakes, waffles, breads, cakes, and pies. Your baked goods will have a faint chocolate color, but the food will be more nutritious.

Carob has more calcium than milk. While milk contains 120 mg. per 100 grams, carob boasts 352 mg. of calcium for every 100 grams.

Carob pods contain 76 percent carbohydrate and four percent protein. Carob also has phosphorus, potassium, iron, vitamins B, A and minerals.

You can grow your own carob tree if you live in a hot, dry climate. You will know when the pods are ripe because you will hear loose seeds rattle. At that time, the fruit can be eaten.

Carob is ideal for diabetics because the protein-rich flour contains no sugar. In some countries, people use the roasted carob seeds as a substitute for coffee.

Carob flour contains 180 calories for every 100 grams. It has 4.5 grams of protein, 1.5 grams of fat and 7.7 grams of fiber.

If you are trying to lose weight but don't want to give up your favorite foods, a natural substitute such as carob can trick your taste buds. Next time you bake your family or friends a batch of chocolate chip cookies, try carob chips instead. They will probably feel satisfied on fewer cookies and you won't feel guilty when you indulge.

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