History of Chocolate Essay

The first recorded evidence of coffee as a food product goes back to Pre-Columbian Mexico. The Mayans and Aztecs were known to make a suck up c wholeed Xocoatll from the beans of the cocoa tree. In 1528, the conquering Spaniards returned to Spain with java still consumed as a beverage. A similar coffee berry drink was brought to a royal wedding in France in 1615, and England welcomed java in 1662. To this point chocolate as we spell it today, had been spelled variously as chocalatall, jocolatte, jacolatte, and chockelet. 11.In 1847, Fry & Sons in England introduced the first eating chocolate, save did not attract much attention due to its bitter taste. In 1874, Daniel Peter, a famed Swiss chocolateer, experimented with various mixtures in an effort to balance chocolates rough flavor, and eventually stumbled upon that abundant product milk. This changed everything and chocolates acceptance after that was quick and enthusiastic. GROWING COCOA BEANS cocoa beans atomic number 1 8 usually grown on small plantations in suitable land areas 20 degrees north or south of the Equator.One spring up cocoa tree can be expected to yield about five pounds of chocolate per year. These are planted in the shade of larger trees such as bananas or mangos, about 1000 trees per hectare (2,471 acres). Cocoa trees take five to eight years to mature. later harvesting from the trees, the pods (which contain the cocoa beans) are go bad open, beans remote, and the beans are put on trays covered with burlap for about a week until they brown. Then they are sun dried until the moisture content is below 7%. This normally takes another three days.After cleaning, the beans are weighed, selected and blended before roasting at 250 degrees Fahrenheit for two hours. Then shells are removed leaving the nib. Nibs are crushed to create a chocolate mass. This is the base raw material from which all chocolate products are make. KINDS OF CHOCOLATE Milk Chocolate This consists of at least 10 % chocolate booze (raw chocolate pressed from carob nibs) and 12% milk solids combined with sugar, cocoa butter (fat from nibs), and vanilla. lovable and Semi-Sweet Chocolate Are made from 15-35% chocolate liquor, plus sugar, cocoa butter, and vanilla.Imprecision of the two terms causes them to normally be called dark or plain chocolate. Dark chocolate has a large following among afters makers, and for this reason is referred to as baking chocolate. Bittersweet and Bitter Chocolate Bittersweet usually contains 50% chocolate liguor and has a distinct bite to the taste. Bitter or unsweetened chocolate liquor also is employ in baking and is also referred to as bakers chocolate. Creams and Variations Bite sized and chocolate covered. They are filled with caramels, nuts, creams, jellies, and so forth.White Chocolate Is not really chocolate as it contains no chocolate liquor, Carob This is a brown powder made from the pulverized fruit of a Mediterranean evergreen. It is used by appro ximately as a substitute for chocolate because it can be combined with vegetable fat and sugar, and made to approximately the color and consistency of chocolate. HOW CHOCOLATES ARE MADE chocolate pouring There are quaternity basic methods of coating chocolate onto something such as caramel or a nut. They are Enrobing least big-ticket(prenominal) method.Centers are carried by conveyer through a machine that showers them with chocolate. Panning Chocolate is sprayed on the centers as they rotate in revolving pans, then cool air is blown in pan to harden the chocolates. Dipping for the most part done by hand by small scale producers. Shell Moldinq Most sophisticated method. use for most sculptural chocolates. The process consists of many intricate steps, thus causing it to be more expensive than other methods. (Source Chocolate The Consuming Passion by Sandra Boynton. Workman Publishing New York, 1982).