Chocolate’s Dark Side
During the medieval times, Christianity and chocolates didn’t mix. The Catholic Church used to bracket together chocolate and heretical behavior like blasphemy and even witchcraft. Does it even make sense? Read on.
I bet if you’re the type who digs medieval anything or maybe you’ve heard it at school at a certain point in your student life, you probably know about ‘Inquisition’. Never heard? Well then, let me shed some light on you about this dreadful thing. The Inquisition, Inquisitio Haereticae Pravitatis (inquiry on heretical perversity), gives a picture of the heavy-handedness of religion during that certain time, persecution, and prejudice. It was the fight against heresy by the Roman Catholic Church.
You may be wondering by now what exactly it is about chocolate that connects such a morbid even to our beloved chocolate. For starters, even downing a chocolaty beverage while in a particular event can be included in heretical behaviors. Truth be told and as morose as it may seem, there were even stories told in which Charles II, King of Spain, supposedly drank chocolate while observing Inquisition victims being slain.
Document and papers about Inquisition even acknowledged some actions of chocolate merchants that are involved in anti-Christian behavior, chocolate was even utilized in seduction and witchcraft. Those documents also showed how people went on betraying one another either by choice or by force.
A lot of individuals during those tough times were laid blame on for using chocolate in “non-Christian” acts. Some chocolatiers were even denounced for being observant Jews.
Thankfully, nowadays, chocolate is tantamount to anything cheery, joyful, and festive. It was quite a transition and a very disheartening story to hear. But it’s a thing of the past. All we can do now is be grateful that we can enjoy chocolate freely!
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Categories: chocolate articles Tags: Chocolate History, chocolate information, History
Chocolate And Kissing
Passionate kisses always give a different level of excitement to the body, but so does eating chocolate. As a matter of fact, studies have shown that the feeling of having chocolate melt in your mouth is even better than those long intimate kisses.
In a recent experiment conducted, young lovers who were all in their 20s had their hearts and brain monitored. Then they had dark chocolates melt on their tongue without chewing, and kissed their partners the way they normally would.
The outcome was quite intriguing and surprising according to the researcher. They were aware of the fact that chocolate is a stimulant because of the stimulating substances it contains, but what they didn’t expect was the length of duration of the effects it had on the mind.
The researchers also compared the resting heart rates of the participants with their heart rates when they had the chocolate and kissing tests. Turns out, even the most intimate and passionate kiss didn’t compare to the buzz that chocolate can give. At the point where chocolate was melting on the tongue, the entire regions of the brain were stimulated more intensely and the effects lasted even longer than what they got from kissing. The chocolate chunks also supposedly made the heart rate go higher.
And even though women are known to have more liking towards chocolate and also more romantic in nature, both sexes yielded the same results. The chocolate was able to provide a long-lasting body and brain buzz which lasted four times as long as kissing.
Like I said, chocolate contains several highly-stimulating substances that give a natural buzz, such as theobromine, caffeine, and phenylethylamine which is elicited when we are in love.
The said experiment used a 60% cocoa dark chocolate. A spokeswoman for the chocolate makers said: “You’d think people would be shy about kissing in a laboratory, but that wasn’t the case at all. We’re not talking about a quick peck here.”
Categories: chocolate articles Tags: chocolate information, Informative, research, Science
Brownie Tidbits
We all have a soft spot for brownies. So here are some interesting information about it.
The first brownie was believed to be made in America. Some suggest and claim that it was originally from New England at the beginning of the 20th century.
Despite its being cake-like and being baked in a cake pan, brownies are considered as bar cookies instead of a cake.
Brownies can either be “cake-style” or “fudge-style”. Cake-style is that with the consistency of a cake, but with a thicker consistency. While, fudge-style is more like, yes, fudge than cake. It is the richer, denser, and creamier version of the brownie. The style of brownie is determined by the ratio of flour to chocolate and/or cocoa.
It goes without saying that brownie got its name from its dark brown color. But as expected, the origin of the “brownie” is covered in myth and stories that make all of us wonder which one is the real deal. One of the stories told is that a chef accidentally added melted chocolate to the batch of biscuits he was baking. Another one claims that a cook was baking a cake but had inadequate amounts of flour but baked it anyway, thus, making a brownie.
However, the most famous legend states that a housewife in Bangor, Maine, who was making a chocolate cake, forgot to add baking powder. When the cake didn’t rise, she just cut it and served pieces of the flat cake.
On the other hand, some state that the first known published recipe appeared in the Sears, Roebuck Catalogue in 1897, but that was a recipe for a molasses candy only called brownies. Nowadays, brownies are baked with either cocoa or melted chocolate or a combination of both.
Although the first few brownie recipes were published and modification to the recipe started in the beginning of the 20th century, it wasn’t until the 1920s that brownies became a well-loved treat in the department of baked chocolate goods. It still holds true today.
Categories: chocolate articles Tags: Brownies, Chocolate Brownies, Chocolate History, chocolate information, History
Is White Chocolate Really Chocolate?
Albeit the fact that it is considered ‘chocolate’, white chocolate isn’t really chocolate. It may be a confectionery imitative of chocolate since it’s also made from the same cacao plant, but its manufacturing process is somewhat special.
The process of making white chocolate primarily involves the drawing out of utilizable components of the cacao bean. Unlike the usual chocolate that makes use of the cocoa powder ground from the seeds, the white version uses only the cocoa butter.
Even though the manufacturing of white chocolate is similar with dark and milk chocolate by some means, it basically lacks cocoa paste, liquor or powder. Thus, it does not hold the important compounds of chocolate such as thiamine, riboflavin, theobromine, phenylethylamine, and serotonin.
According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, to be called ‘chocolate’, a product must have chocolate liquor. Since 2004, white chocolate have to be (by weight) at least 20% cocoa butter, 14% total milk solids, and 3.5% milk fat, and not exceeding 55% sugar or other nutritive carbohydrate sweeteners. The European Union has put the same policy in practice, only, there is no limit on sugar or sweeteners.
White chocolate is made up of cocoa butter, milk solids, vanilla, sugar and lecithin. Chocolate makers that use true cocoa butter generate ones of higher quality in comparison to those who scrimp and substitute vegetable fat for the cocoa butter.
True white chocolate is typically a pale yellow or ivory in appearance. The taste of cream and vanilla is heavenly in the mouth unlike those pretentious white creations that are made up of vegetable fat. Their consistency, taste and shelf life are also extremely different.
White chocolates melt quite easily and burn quickly since it is delicate, so take extra care when melting it for recipes like ganache or chocolate fondue.
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Categories: chocolate articles Tags: butter, chocolate facts, chocolate information, process, White Chocolate
Less Sugar, More Cocoa
“Less Sugar, More Cocoa” is one of the credos of Hotel Chocolat, a British chocolate company that has recently opened a couple stores in Boston.
Part of the philosophy of this successful chocolate company is to reduce the amount of sugar and use the best cocoa in their products. This way the cocoa flavors can really shine through for greater enjoyment.
Hotel Chocolat injects a bit of British humor into their experience. After all, chocolate is meant for enjoyment. For example they have a slab product called the Triple Chocolate Wham Bam. Regardless of the name, it is over a pound of delicious chocolate; a trio of flavors including mellow caramel, smooth milk, and creamy white, swirled together for dramatic results.
The company uses all natural ingredients so additives and preservatives are prohibited. The company’s conscience also extends to their suppliers. They constantly strive to give back to the cocoa farmers and cocoa growers to help improve their lives.
Click the banner above to check out the company’s website and order online.
If you’d like to read more about the company, here’s an article:
http://www.metrowestdailynews.com/lifestyle/food/x532582887/Checking-into-the-Hotel-Chocolat-in-Chestnut-Hill
Categories: chocolate articles, chocolate in the news Tags: chocolate information, chocolate shops, world chocolate
Dutch Processed
Sometimes people ask me “What is Dutch Process Chocolate?” Basically, this is chocolate that has been treated with an alkali. The process results in enhanced color, lower acidity, better solubility, and less flavor.
Back in the 1820’s a Dutch chemist by the name of Van Houten developed the process by which one can darken chocolate as well as reduce its bitterness. Unfortunately this process also reduces the chocolate flavor.
Even so there is a perceived benefit to the consumer. The darker chocolate color is generally thought of as being of higher quality. (It’s best to read a label because “dark chocolate” is not Dutched, rather dutched chocolate is darker than its non-Dutched counterpart.)
The darkest, chemically altered cocoa is called black cocoa. And, it’s the ingredient in the top and bottom parts of Oreo cookies.
While we might like the look of the darker chocolate, the Dutch process greatly reduces the antioxidant benefits of chocolate. So if you are looking for healthy chocolates avoid Dutch process.
You can learn more chocolate facts at Chocolate University Online.
Categories: chocolate articles, chocolate nutrition, chocolate process Tags: chocolate facts, chocolate information, dutch process
