I’m still on my kick to try chocolates made with no cane sugar. In the last couple weeks I reviewed a Raaka chocolate bar sweetened with maple sugar and one sweetened with yacón root.

This week, I’m tasting a 70% dark made with coconut sugar from Hu (as in human) Kitchen. There are three ingredients to this chocolate bar: organic fair-trade cacao, unrefined organic coconut sugar, and organic fair-trade cacao butter.

According to their website, Hu Kitchen chocolates are 70% dark chocolate, stone ground, and contain no cane or refined sugar (also no dairy, no GMOs, no soy lecithin). There are a number varieties I wanted to try, but I chose my first experience to be their Simple Dark Chocolate so I could get an idea of the flavor profile of the chocolate and coconut sugar without any other flavors getting in the way.

Tasting Hu Chocolate

In the beginning, this chocolate opens with powerful sweet molasses and honey flavors. I assume this is from the coconut sugar. Unfortunately, the intensity mutes the chocolate terroir, at least at first. But I can eventually taste earthy, nutty, and slightly spicy cocoa notes in the middle and at the end.

There are almost no fruity notes. The combination of the coconut sugar and 70% chocolate works very well. The total effect is delicious!

Coconut Sugar

Coconut sugar is made from the sap of the flower of the coconut palm. The sap is collected, heated until the moisture is driven off, and usually sold in crystallized form. It looks like brown sugar when you buy it in the store.

So what’s the deal with coconut sugar? By now, you’ve probably heard a lot about it as a healthier alternative to sucrose. Don’t get too excited though because it’s not a super food or a zero-calorie miracle sweetener.

Coconut sugar does contain more vitamins and minerals than cane sugar and there are small amounts of antioxidants that white sugar doesn’t have. Coconut sugar also has a lower glycemic impact. All this sounds great, but it’s still high in calories.

I think what makes coconut sugar stand out at the moment is that it’s not overly processed or chemically altered. And it’s a very earth friendly, sustainable product compared to sugar cane.

Back to the Hu Simple Dark Chocolate bar, I like the fact that there are three simple ingredients. I like the coconut sugar. I like this chocolate!

You can order directly from the Hu Chocolate website or at Amazon, including this 8-pack variety.

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Bryn Kirk

Course Facilitator at Chocolate University Online

Bryn worked for nearly 10 years in a research and product development for Ambrosia Chocolate Company in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Now she develops all of the CUO lessons and coaches the members of the Primal Chocolate Club.

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