Nearly 80% of the country's cacao is still grown in Mindanao, although that's slowly changing as farmers across the country begin to combat the recent downturn in cacao production & world cocoa prices. As the government's efforts at land redistribution have continued, many of the historically large cacao farms were broken up and redistributed to local landless people. Many of those new farmers in turn chose to cut down or ignore the cocoa already growing on the land, usually in favor of other seemingly more valuable crops.

Part of the appeal of these bean-to-bar chocolate makers is their social mission which has an impact on communities as much as on the quality of the cocoa beans that they get. They are closer economically and emotionally to these farms: their multiple sojourns into the cocoa growing depths of their countries often come with the intention of helping farmers to maximise yields, better cocoa quality and hence increase their earnings. Through the years, Filipinos have associated cacao as tablea and not as commercialized chocolate. However, in recent years, many Filipino chocolate makers have emerged to introduce their very own Pinoy-made ( Pinoy is a local term for the word Filipino) chocolate bars. To name a few are Auro Chocolate and Malagos Chocolate. Bring on the good stuff! This golden, caramel-like bar infuses cocoa butter and milk to recreate a well-loved delicacy.This Antonio Pueo version is sold in either a tan or gold wrapper. It is sold as a log of eight tablets. This one is my favorite! Aiming to revitalize the Philippine cacao industry, Malagos Chocolates is certainly one to look out for! Malagos 65% Dark Chocolate Bar These bean-to-bar flavors include brown buttermilk chocolate, bacon chili chocolate, and queso de bola (the Filipino version of Edam cheese). Hiraya

Having a similar tropical and semi-mountainous climate to South and Central America, it's no wonder how some of the world's best cacao trees sprung up like wildfire across the country. You'll rarely find Filipino chocolate in mass-produced commercial chocolate as the country supplies less than 0.01% of the world's cocoa-chocolate exports. In 2018, Davao-based chocolate brand Malagos took home multiple awards from The Academy of Chocolate, one of the most competitive chocolate competitions in the world . Filipino brand Auro Chocolate also won two bronze awards for its dark chocolate and flavoured white chocolate bars. This is a simple, straightforward sweet breakfast recipe. And you’ll love making it all the time because: Hernan and I both grew up as members of the Filipino diaspora, searching for reconnection and meaning. For many of us Filipinos growing up outside of the Philippines, it can feel like we’re grasping in the dark to have something to hold ourselves to the past and anchor us to the ancestral lands of our parents and grandparents. For Hernan, he grabbed hold of chocolate. For me, I found Filipino fashion.Aside from tsokolate, tabliya is used in a wide variety of other traditional desserts in the Philippines, most prominently in champorado, a glutinous rice porridge flavored with chocolate. [4] [7] Preparation [ edit ] Tsokolate with suman rice cakes and ripe carabao mangoes In turn, the Spanish found value in it, as well, bringing seeds to try and cultivate in each of their colonies, including the Philippines. At the time, cacao was only consumed in the form of a beverage, as the Aztec & other native peoples of Mexico were consuming it. Winning two bronze awards in the 2019 Academy of Chocolate ceremony, MS3’s Bonchoc Bar is unforgettably tasty. There you have it. Chocolate plus rice equals sweet chocolate rice porridge. If there ever was an excuse to eat chocolate for breakfast, this is it!