Best Gluten-free Chocolate & Baking Cocoa

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I’ve decided February is going to be Chocolate Month here on My Gluten-free Kitchen.  I have a bunch of chocolate recipes lined up to share with you.  I might sneak a few healthy dinner/side dish recipes in there, but all of the desserts I will post this month will have chocolate in them. I can’t wait to share with you my favorite cake, cream puffs, flour-less cake, amazing brownies, and decadent triple chocolate cookies!

To start off Chocolate Month, I thought I’d share with you what I think are the best gluten-free chocolate & cocoa products. These products are the best I’ve found. I know there are others out there, and I haven’t tried them all as some of them are way expensive.

Here’s a rundown on my favorites, all pictured above:

Semi-sweet Chocolate Chips or Chunks:

• Ambrosia – The only place I’ve found these is in a huge black/red bag at Costco but unfortunately, they’ve informed me that they aren’t carrying these anymore because they’ve started carrying their own brand (Kirkland) of organic semi-sweet chocolate chips.  Unfortunately for us sensitive folks, the Kirkland brand is manufactured on shared equipment with wheat, so that brand is a no-go.  If you can still find the Ambrosia brand at your Costco, snatch it up! I’m going to look into seeing if I can buy this from another source. I had previously verified with the company that makes these and was assured they had no products with gluten in them, and no risk for cross-contamination because of this.
• Guittard – I’ve always used this brand’s butterscotch chips, and have now started buying their semi-sweet chips.  They are affordable, yummy, and clearly marked to show they are made in a dedicated gluten-free and nut-free facility!
• Callebaut Chocolate Chunks & Swirled Semi-Sweet/White Chocolate Chips– I bought these in bulk and store these in the bins you see pictured above.  The ingredients are gluten-free but I haven’t been able to find much online to confirm any manufacturing processes with these.  The place I bought them from, the GYGI store in Salt Lake City, gets them in bulk and repackages them but assured me they are careful and shouldn’t be at risk of contact with gluten.  I took a chance on these, and have liked these products and have had no problems with them.  Again, you’ll have to weigh the risk if you are sensitive.
• Hershey’s Chocolate Chips – I don’t have any of these on hand as I don’t prefer the taste of these semi-sweet chips, but you can see that according to their allergen statement, these are gluten-free.
• Nestle Chocolate Chips – I don’t have any of these on hand as I don’t prefer the taste of these semi-sweet chips, but their ingredients list is gluten-free. I can’t find any information online regarding their manufacturing processes so I do not know what the risk of cross-contamination is with this product.
• Ghirardelli – I can no longer recommend any Ghirardelli products. They have changed their manufacturing facilities and now the majority of their products bear a “May contain wheat” warning.

White Chocolate – one important note about white chocolate.  Most of the products out there are “white chips” but do not actually have any cocoa butter in them so they aren’t truly white chocolate. In fact, they usually have partially hydrogenated oil, which I try to stay away from.  I prefer these brands because they are truly white chocolate:

• Bakers White Chocolate Squares – These work great and they are gluten-free though I cannot find any info on manufacturing processes so I do not know what the risk of cross-contamination is with this product. I can only say that I have not had any problems with using these.
• Ghirardelli white chocolate bar- I can no longer recommend any Ghirardelli products. They have changed their manufacturing facilities and now the majority of their products bear a “May contain wheat” warning.
• Don’t recommend: Lindt, according to their here, and here, it sounds like lots of potential for cross-contamination and they don’t recommend them for those sensitive to gluten.

Unsweetened Chocolate:

• Baker’s Unsweetened Chocolate Squares– I always stick with these and they work out great!

Cocoa Powder:

• Saco Premium Cocoa – blend of natural & dutched cocoa – this is my go-to brand. It is inexpensive, and I feel like the blend of both kinds of cocoa gives me great results. Their gluten-free info is found here.
• Hershey’s Cocoa Special Dark – When I want that deep, dark chocolate color for my baked goods, I will usually use half of this dark cocoa, and half of the Saco. This cocoa is listed on their gluten-free list.
• Callebaut Royal Dutch Cocoa Powder – I’ve just recently started using this powder and have been impressed with the quality/taste.
• Ghirardelli – I can no longer recommend any Ghirardelli products. They have changed their manufacturing facilities and now the majority of their products bear a “May contain wheat” warning.

I hope this helps you stock some great chocolate products in your pantry so you’ll be ready for making many delicious chocolate desserts!