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Chocolate

From the Worcester News, first published Monday 2nd Apr 2007.

What's in a name?

The word chocolate has been taken from the Mayan and the Aztec, creating "Chocaltil", the direct translations being bitter and water, it became more commonly known as "food of the gods".

Historical!

Chocolate had been drunk by the Mayans and Aztecs for centuries, a very bitter substance that would probably be quite inedible for today's palettes. It was also very expensive and often used as a currency, 100 beans could buy a slave and 5 chocolate beans would buy the favour of a woman. It was Don Cortez who, in 1528, returned the first beans to Spain.

For centuries the chocolate was only consumed as a beverage, the Spanish choosing to add a little sweetener to make it more palatable. They also tried to keep its importance a secret from the rest of the world. Unwittingly Dutch and English Pirates threw it overboard when they captured cargo calling it "sheep's dung".

In 1828, Van Houton discovered how to extract cocoa butter with his machinery.

In 1875, the first chocolate bar was invented by Rudolphe Lindt.

The rest, as they way, is history!

Fact

Chocolate is obtained from the dried and roasted seeds of the tree Theobrama Cocoa'. These are contained in gourd-like lanterns that hag in clusters off the main trunk.

The cocoa tree grows within twenty degrees of the equator and lives in the shade of other trees for up to 100 years.

The large cocoa pods contain twenty to thirty beans, which are picked and left to dry.

Heath & Fitness

Chocolate holds a very small amount of magnesium and potassium, however it is consumed mainly for its feel good factor, believed to boost the endorphin levels in the brain. If too much is consumed, it can also have an effect on weight gain, but that could be said for most things.

Interestingly, there is no conclusive evidence that eating chocolate causes acne. It also does less harm to the teeth then other forms of sugar confectionary and reports are now showing that a couple of pieces of dark 70% chocolate can actually help lower cholesterol.

Hint & Tip

When melting chocolate, always take care never to overheat it.

Chocolate melts on the tongue, so keep the melting process little over body temperature! A quick way to do it is in the microwave; a couple of 5-10 second blasts should just be enough to do the trick.

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