Chocolates!

Being a chocolate person, besides enjoying the heavenly experience, I'm also interested to know more about chocolates and hence picked up a book from library. Chocolate by Sara Jayne Stanes is a little and easy to read book - perfect for me since I'm a lazy reader. ;p

Here are some interesting info which I have gathered from the book and would like to share with you...

1. Cocoa was first used as a gift by the Mayans (600 BC to AD 800) who used the cocoa beans as a prenuptial acknowledgement between bride and groom.


2. ~ 1518 to 1520s, cocoa bean was even used as a currency ($$$) - e.g. a slave costs 100 beans and a rabbit costs 30 beans.

3. Early consumption of chocolate was in liquid form (cocoa nibs were grounded using a metate and a metalpili, rolled into a lump, grated and then add water) and no sugar (instead, some herbs and spices were added) was added to the drink.

4. In the mid-seventeenth century, the nuns of Puebla in Mexico discovered the idea of adding sugar to cocoa drink.

5. Natural cocoa bean contains around 300 different flavours and 400 separate aromas!

6. Top quality chocolate is made from 70% cocoa solids and 30% sugar and refining was done to reduce the size of the solid particles to less than 20 microns.

Christmas is coming soon! Everywhere I go, I can see lots of chocolates (in different shapes, sizes, flavours...and even organic ones) piling up on the shelves. Have you bought some for Christmas?


Merry X'mas and Have Fun! :)