In the shape of Santa Claus, Advent, as decorations for the Christmas tree – no matter in what form, Christmas and pre-Christmas sweets attract like a magnet. Often, however, the composition is less pleasant than the colorful packaging. What to pay attention to?
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The author of the text: dietitian Martyna Przybyłko
Christmas is fast approaching. Streets, buildings and, above all, shopping malls adorned with Christmas decorations remind us of this. Romantic music that makes you think about Christmas shopping can be heard in many galleries, and Christmas images are used on almost every product, including food. Christmas is a time associated with something very positive. Following this belief, we often choose products that are not necessarily good.
Advent calendars
It is a tradition that allows you to count down the days to Christmas Eve in a tasty way. The most common form of an Advent calendar available in stores is a cardboard box with holes in which chocolates are hidden for each day. However, is it good quality chocolate? As in most milk chocolates, sugar is in the first place, but the cocoa mass, which proves the cocoa content in this product, is only on the fourth position. Most of them are definitely cheaper and often lower quality cocoa butter. The manufacturer also added aromas and synthetic emulsifier E476 (polyglycerol polyricinoleate) used for faster, more durable and easier mixing of all ingredients. Therefore, they are far from good quality chocolates.
It is worth thinking about making an advent calendar yourself. It is enough to prepare 24 places where we can place a treat of better quality or home-made
Santa-shaped chocolates
The ranking of Christmas Santas and the rules for choosing them have been mentioned many times. The image of Santa Claus is probably associated with Christmas by everyone. For the sake of this symbol, we put it in holiday packages without thinking about the composition. But no wonder, because it is impossible to even trace him in the store. The tightly wrapped silver foil and the invisible print are quite a challenge. There are some disturbing things in the caramel-in-chocolate-flavored figurine I analyzed. First of all, the chocolate content is only 21%, while the cocoa ingredients in milk chocolate should be at least 25%. In addition to the high sugar content, the manufacturer also added glucose syrup. A large part of the composition consists of vegetable fats, such as shea, rapeseed oil and partially hydrogenated palm oil. Emulsifiers E476, soy lecithin, as well as color and flavors have also been added.
When preparing Christmas packages, let’s make sure that the treats contained in them are of better and healthier quality. Let’s not be fooled by producers who often use their Christmas image to serve us with chocolate-like products. Let’s focus on real chocolate, and prepare a nice, Christmas packaging by ourselves.
Photo 1 is from: whiper / Foter.com / CC BY-SA
Photo 2 is from: shawnzrossi / Foter.com / CC BY
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