Here in Portugal at this time of year,
farmers and homeowners alike can be seen collecting their crop of carobs from
the trees. I spent a few hours myself recently shaking the branches of my own
tree with a broom to dislodge a few that are still tantalisingly holding on
that I can’t reach.

In fact, I was a bit overzealous, as I
managed to break the head off my broom in the process. But real Portuguese
farmers can be seen spreading a huge sheet on the ground to catch them while a
beater bashes the tree with a bamboo pole to reach the ones at the top, perhaps
with the whole family involved in collecting them up into sacks.

Carob powder is made from the ground
pods of the carob tree (Ceratonia siliqua), also known as locust bean or St.
John’s bread. These latter names are said to come from the belief that the
‘locusts’ sustaining John the Baptist in the desert, according to the Biblical
story, were actually carob pods.

The trees are native to the
Mediterranean region, although they now grow throughout North America too.

Carob Pods

Inside the pods are seeds that need to
be removed in order for the powder to be made.

One method of creating carob powder is
by boiling the pods, cutting them in half, removing the seeds, drying the pods
and then grinding them into a powder.

Other methods would see the pods being
roasted before grinding to make their colour darker and therefore more closely
resembling cocoa. Either way, the powder ends up looking almost identical to
cocoa powder, especially when roasted, but what about the taste?

Carob cake (bolo de alfarroba) or carob
biscuits (biscoitos de alfarroba) are great alternatives for those who are
allergic to chocolate, because the flavour and appearance is similar, and
Portuguese bakers across the country have many recipes for these delicacies,
with traditional treats featuring carobs featuring highly at many festivals
across the country.

It has its own naturally sweet taste and
it’s a little nutty. Some people like it. Others don’t. And although carobs can
be turned into carob chips that look like chocolate chips, if you put them in
your cookies, you will notice the difference.

Health food proponents and recipe
developers have tried to treat the two powders as one and the same over the
decades, but chocolate lovers won’t be convinced!

But carobs do have their benefits – they
are considered by some to be healthier than cocoa, as they contain polyphenols
– antioxidants known to reduce the risk of heart disease.

And it is said that 19th-century British
chemists sold carob pods to singers – apparently chewing on carob pods helped
singers maintain healthy vocal cords and soothed and cleansed their throats.

Not only can tasty treats be baked using
them, but farmers also use carob flour dissolved in water for a weaning diet
for piglets, calves and other ruminants. Some equestrians will feed carob to
their horses as part of a ‘cool feed’ (high fibre) or to replace sugary
titbits.

My dog loves them and will happily munch
on a whole one as a treat, and guess what – many dog treats, such as dog chocs,
are made with carob powder, no chocolate used at all. As carob doesn’t contain
caffeine and theobromine, it is safe for your pooch to enjoy. You can even make
your own doggie treats using carob powder, there are plenty of recipes online.

Carob Seeds

The seed of the carob weighs around
0.20g, and apparently a diamond weighing 20g would weigh the same as 100 carobs
seeds, and the word carat owes its derivation to the carob, and the seeds were
used originally by Arab jewellers to weigh against their precious stones long
ago.

Although carob seeds were used as a
standard of weight, it would be pretty simple to keep a heavier set and a
lighter set on hand in order to use the one that suited your needs best – if
you were selling, the lighter set would fit the bill, if you were buying, then
the heavier set would be to your advantage!