Cacao nibs are the meat of the roasted cacao bean with the husk removed, broken into bits. They are as close as you can get to the whole, complete cocoa bean in its natural state. I found them in a refrigerated case in my local natural food store, and you can also order them online.

I thought at first the nibs would be bitter, like unsweetened chocolate, but surprisingly, they are not. They are crisp and crunchy, more like a nut with a slight chocolate taste. One tablespoon has 5 grams of fat and 4 grams of carbs, but I couldn't see myself eating even a tablespoon. Maybe a half teaspoon. I'm munching on them right now. They are very tasty!

While I'm happy eating them right out of the box, serving suggestions include:
* sprinkling nibs over ice cream, yogurt, fruit, or chocolate mousse
* sprinkling nibs on warm buttered toast
* mixing nibs into pancakes, cookies, cakes
* garnish for icing on cakes and cookies
* tossed into salads instead of nuts
* to make traditional mole sauce

Natural food stores and raw food websites do sell raw cacao nibs. I read, however, that raw cocoa beans (even organic) can be contaminated with molds, bacteria and other organisms. Most of the contamination occurs in the husks, which are removed from the nibs. If you want raw nibs, just search on "raw cocoa nibs" on your favorite search engine and you will find the sites that sell them.

NOTE: After I wrote all this, I have to say, these little bits of real unadulterated chocolate have a kick! I didn't sleep much the night after I first ate these. I've found that I can eat one or two nibs a day. Just for reference, I can sleep all night after drinking a cup of coffee. So I personally can't see sprinkling them over ice cream or making cookies, though they may be fine for others. Watch and see how cacao nibs affect your own body.

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