Chocolate

Dark, bittersweet, smooth, lingers on the tongue and lips, makes you feel good.  The Latin name for the cacao tree is Theobroma cacao, meaning ‘food of the gods.’

Anthropologists have found cacao residue in Honduras on pottery that is estimated to be from 1400 B.C.E.  At that time the pulp of the fruit was fermented into an alcoholic drink.  Wow, what a combination!

Later on the Spanish brought it back to Europe, sweetened the drink, and its use spread.  It wasn’t until 1628 that a way was found to make powdered chocolate by removing half the fat – a Dutch chemist is responsible.  Joseph Fry is credited with being the inventor of the chocolate bar.  But I think the best chocolate bars are made by Europeans.

We know that chocolate stimulates the release of endorphins in the brain; leading to good feelings (is that why I want to eat chocolate on cold, grey winter days?)  It also contains flavonids which help to protect the heart, and reduce the tendency to blood clots.  Some research shows that eating dark chocolate also reduces blood pressure.  High quality dark chocolate provides the most benefits and has more antitoxins than milk or white chocolate (which isn’t really chocolate).

So what’s to complain about?  Valentine’s Day coming up, chocolate lovers indulge!  Unfortunately the fats and sugars contained in chocolate are not so good for us.  Can cause weight gain (no, really?!), and probably clog up your arteries, if not offset by exercise.  It also contains caffeine, so that’s not good if you eat it before going to bed.  Dogs should not be fed chocolate – it can make them sick, cause seizures, even kill them.

I remember seeing a movie (Woody Allan, I think) in which a woman mixed cocoa into her bath water so she could get the good feelings without the weight gain.  Seems like a waste of chocolate to me.  Why not eat the chocolate and then go for a run or brisk walk?  Or if you’re into water, a swim.

I recently found a web site that listed the 50 best chocolate makers across the world.  Most of them I hadn’t heard of, but Green and Black’s (London, England), I agree is good, while Lindt to my mind is so-so.  They didn’t list Ritter (from Germany) which is one of my favourites -- I like the variety (plain dark, dark with hazelnuts, dark with marzipan), it isn’t too sweet and doesn’t have a lot of additives.

Hot chocolate is great made with squares of bittersweet chocolate and milk, and then frothed.  But it’s terribly potent (lots of caffeine, fat, sugar) so not a drink you want to indulge in very often.  I like to add cinnamon to my hot chocolate, but have never tried cayenne or chilli peppers.

Most of the world’s chocolate grows close to the equator, specifically in Brazil, Equador, Ghana, Nigeria, Cote d’Ivoire, Malaysia and Indonesia.  And unfortunately the cultivation of it can involve child labour, and the growers themselves are often not paid fair prices.  However, you can find fair trade chocolate, even organic fair trade, and it’s good.

Enjoy!