(VEGAN OPTIONS)
Pure roasted cocoa beans — with most of the fat removed — ground to a fine powder. With all of the flavor but a fraction of the fat, cocoa powder is essentially a concentrated form of cocoa beans: it is bitter and strong. Since cocoa beans are naturally tart and acidic (characteristics that provide fruitiness and complexity in the best chocolates and harshness in chocolates of lesser quality), these characteristics are accentuated in cocoa powder. The best natural cocoa retains the true flavors and complexity of the cocoa bean.
