A method of providing a cocoa replacer based on a material selected from roasted wheat, roasted and/or malted barley, comprising the steps of (a) addition of the roasted wheat, roasted and/or malted barley to water at an initial temperature of at least 65° C. in an evaporation vessel； (b) maintaining the initial temperature for at least 30 minutes； (c) adding cold water； and (d) immediately spray-drying the solution to give the cocoa replacer； the water in step (a) comprising from 12-22% of the total weight of roasted wheat, roasted and/or malted barley and water, and the water in step (c) comprising from 25-40% of the water in step (a). The resulting powder is dark in colour and can be used to replace a proportion of cocoa without a loss of flavour and with no undesirable after-taste.
