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Bean To Bar

How Beans Become Your Favorite Chocolate Bar

Chocolate seeds or beans are harvested by hand. After they are taken from the bean pods, they are laid out to dry and allowed to go through the fermentation process.

As the temperature rises to 120 degrees, the sugars in the pulp are broken down by enzymes into vinegar and other acids. The beans are further dried and roasted, followed by the removal of the dry husks to reveal the cocoa nibs. The nibs are crushed into a paste called cocoa liquor which is completely non-alcoholic. The liquor paste is about ½ cocoa butter and ½ cocoa solids. Cocoa butter is sold to the food industry as well as other industries; the bulk of the cocoa going to the food industry. The cosmetic industry only uses about 1% of the total harvest of cocoa butter for to its excellent moisturizing properties.

Red And Wonderful

A Pomegranate May Not Save My Life, But ...

A few years back, National Georgraphic reported on a study that showed that pomegranate juice may help reduce the formation of fatty deposits on artery walls. I don't know about that, but with my chocolate addiction, I figured it couldn't hurt to surround myself with the delicious fruit they call Red Wonderful.

Not only do I eat them, I put the oil from them in some of my products, including the new Berry Pretty Facial Scrub, which I am now putting the finishing touches on.

A Little About Pomegranate Oil

The pomegranate is native to regions ranging from the Middle East to Northern India. It was cultivated and naturalized over the Mediterranean region since ancient times. Pomegranate oil improves elasticity of the skin, and is excellent oil for eczema, psoriasis and mature, sunburned or aging skin due to high lipid content.

Naturally pH balancing Pomegranate Seed Oil is readily absorbed quickly moisturizing and nourishing the skin. Pomegranate is also rich in polyphenols, therefore a strong anti-oxidant helping to reduce the signs of aging by fighting free radicals.

Pomegranate seed oil’s conjugated fatty acids help with inflammation also associated with pre-mature aging.  Studies have shown that pomegranate oil is also effective at killing cancer cells when applied topically.