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Chocolate & Cocoa

Unsweetened Baking Chocolate

Rich in CopperRich in IronRich in ZincRich in Magnesium

Overview

Why use unsweetened baking chocolate?

Unsweetened baking chocolate is pure cocoa solids and cocoa butter with almost no sugar, which makes it intensely bitter and surprisingly mineral-rich. It is a baking ingredient rather than a snack: very calorie-dense and high in saturated fat, but a small square delivers copper, magnesium, iron and fiber.

Good to know: It is very rich: 642 kcal and 32 g of saturated fat per 100 g, plus caffeine and theobromine, so keep portions to the amount a recipe calls for.

  1. Loaded with copper

    One 0.5 oz square supplies 0.46 mg of copper, about 51% of the Daily Value, a mineral needed for iron transport and energy production in cells.

  2. Magnesium and iron

    Per 100 g it provides 327 mg of magnesium (78% DV) and 17.4 mg of iron (97% DV), minerals that support muscle, nerve and oxygen-carrying functions.

  3. Fiber without sugar

    With 16.6 g of fiber and under 1 g of sugar per 100 g, it adds cocoa fiber to recipes that feeds gut bacteria and slows digestion.

Overview drafted with AI from USDA FoodData Central figures. For education, not medical advice.

Nutrition facts

What’s in unsweetened baking chocolate?

Calories

642kcal

Protein

14g

Carbs

28g

Fat

52g

Fiber

17g

Sugars

0.91g

Minerals

  • Calcium101 mg8%
  • Iron17 mg97%
  • Magnesium327 mg78%
  • Phosphorus400 mg32%
  • Potassium830 mg18%
  • Sodium24 mg1%
  • Zinc9.6 mg88%
  • Copper3.2 mg359%
  • Selenium8.1 µg15%

Vitamins

  • Vitamin E0.4 mg3%
  • Vitamin K9.7 µg8%
  • Thiamin (B1)0.15 mg12%
  • Riboflavin (B2)0.1 mg8%
  • Niacin (B3)1.4 mg8%
  • Vitamin B60.03 mg2%
  • Folate28 µg7%

Other compounds

  • Omega-3 ALA0.12 g
  • Caffeine80 mg
  • Theobromine1,297 mg

% Daily Value is based on FDA reference amounts for adults. Bars cap at 100%.

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Source: USDA FoodData Central, “Baking chocolate, unsweetened, squares” (SR Legacy, FDC ID 167568).View the USDA record ↗ (opens in a new tab).