Anthropologists have found shards of pottery at sites in Puerto Escondido in northern Honduras to have traces of theobromine – which is an alkaloid specific to cocoa, and caffeine on them.  By making use of innovative extraction techniques they can find traces of the contents of ancient pottery.  It is not necessary to find a whole vessel in order to see what it was used for, as tests can be conducted on the shards.

Traces of a substance also found, indicates that these ancients brewed a type of wine by fermenting the mucous, which surrounds the cocoa seeds in the pods.

An interesting fact is that vessels with narrow spouts were used for drinking, but the vessels found that had cocoa residue on them, where all short, wide jug-like vessels.  This indicates that they brewed the cocoa beans in the vessels.  This was a strong, bitter and frothy drink, which would account for the wide-mouthed vessel to accommodate the froth.  These discoveries indicate that people were drinking cocoa hundreds of years before was originally thought.

The Mayas of Central America appear to have been the first people to use the cacao trees seeds to make a drink. There could have been people doing it before their time, which we still have to learn about.  Archaeologists found this information from ancient Mayan paintings.  The drink was used for medicinal purposes, as they felt it gave them strength and vitality.  For this reason, it was only preserved for the nobility.  Poor, common folk were not permitted to drink the fruit of the cacao tree.

The custom of making a drink of cocoa beans boiled in water, carried on for centuries.  Generation after generation planted the cacao trees and made use of the seeds.  Some groups flavored the drink with chilies and pepper, and later years vanilla, berries and honey were added to make a sweet drink as opposed to the previous bitter one.  The sweetness of the honey probably brought out the flavor and aroma of the chocolate.  This was then more a social drink than a medicinal one, as in former years.

In 1502 Christopher Columbus discovered the cacao beans on a ship, which he seized off the coast of Honduras.  Years later in 1521 Cortez introduced the cacao beans to the Spanish Court.  This drink immediately became a firm favorite, but sugar and spices were added to it and they drank it warm.  For about 100 years they kept the cacao beans a secret from the rest of Europe.

When the secret eventually got out the news spread through Europe.  Once again it became a drink for the wealthy, as these beans had to be imported from tropical regions at great cost.  Chocolate only became affordable to the masses during the Industrial Revolution in the mid 1700’s.

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It is strange to think that there are no famous brands of chocolates that come from the regions where the cacao tree is grown. The beans were taken to Europe many years ago and were experimented with until they began to add sugar to it and eventually chocolate as we know it evolved. This is why European chocolates are still considered the tastiest in the world.

There is something about chocolates from Belgium with delectable soft centers that no one can resist. The Swiss have always been renowned for their smooth and tasty chocolates and so have the British.

Chocolate recipes for any type of goodies are always popular. Remember that the quality of the chocolate you put into your baking will determine the taste. If you are baking something very special, buy a better brand chocolate and you will find that the end result is so much better.

Here are a few tips to melt chocolate correctly

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Remember that dark chocolate is more of a stimulant than white chocolate. The negative side is that white chocolate has much more sugar than the darker varieties. Maybe it will just be better to indulge in the silky smooth taste of chocolate earlier in the evening and enjoy a good night

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There are chocolate festivals in almost every State of USA and many towns and cities participate. The programs seem to be much the same, with plenty of chocolate tasting and fun for the kids. Many of them have chocolate sculpting and chocolate cooking demonstrations, and talks on the history of chocolate. There is usually a show or concert in the evening with plenty of music.

There are festivals with a difference like the one that was held in Versoix, Switzerland, earlier this year. As this is the year of astronomy

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It took a couple of nations to each add their expertise to the process of making chocolate bars. Each invention was obviously born from the desire to make more of the cocoa bean than just a drink.

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The cacao tree is totally regionally bound.  The trees only grow in the equatorial belt in the tropics.  They require a warm, humid climate with a high rainfall all year round and need to grow in the shade of other trees.  They are native to America, but are found in most tropical countries around the world.  Western African countries, for instance, contribute half the annual world supply of cocoa.

In natural areas the trees will grow up to 15 meters tall, but are trimmed when cultivated in order to make harvesting easier. They only fully mature at 10 years, but do begin to bear fruit from 4-5 years.   They lose their leaves 2-4 times a year and new ones spasmodically appear.

The leaves of the cacao tree are fascinating  – the young ones come out a reddish color in order to minimize sun damage.  They have the ability to turn 90 degrees from vertical to horizontal in order to protect the young leaves and get better access to the sunlight.  They are said to be poisonous to humans.

In former years large areas of the rainforests were cleared in order to plant large plantations of cacao trees.  As time went on these plantations began to produce less and less fruit pods and the trees were becoming diseased.  The most cocoa is now being produced on small holding farms where independent farmers plant no more than 1,000 trees.  By working with nature and not against it their crop production has greatly improved.

The deduction is that the trees do not thrive in a cleared area.  They no longer have the shade of other trees to shield them and the biggest problem of all is that the midges that pollinate the flowers do not venture out of the rainforest areas.  They breed in the fermented leaves on the floor of the forest and have no reason to leave the rainforests.

Although the cacao tree flowers constantly – flowers sprouting from the trunks and branches of the trees – very few of them actually become fruit pods.  If they are not pollinated within 24 hours they die.  These flowers have about 400 aromas to attract the midges.  The cacao tree constantly bears flowers and fruit at the same time, as they are not season bound.

The fruit is a seed-bearing pod – each one produces about 30-40 seeds embedded in a soft mucous. They average 5-12 inches long and 3-5 inches wide.  The fruit pods take a few months to develop and require about a month to ripen. This whole process could take about eight months.

The cacao tree is prone to various diseases, which is why many farmers make use of pesticides in order to ensure a good crop of cacao seeds.  Various types of insects, viruses and fungi cause the trees to become diseased.  Rodents and woodpeckers also do much damage to cacao trees.

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Chocolate is made primarily from cocoa, which is a natural product full of nutrients.  We tend to forget this fact, because we buy chocolate from the candy store we tend to think of all chocolate as candy.  Some of us almost feel guilty when we indulge in a bar of chocolate.

Only the dark chocolates that contain a high percentage of cocoa can be considered beneficial to your health.  This includes all the dark chocolates.  Cocoa contains antioxidants that protect the cells of your body and help promote good health.  The antioxidants in cocoa are very concentrated.

Antioxidants help reduce stress and reduce the risk of various diseases like heart disease and cancer.  They can reduce blood pressure, enhance the blood flow through the heart and reduce cholesterol in some cases.

It is a fact that dark chocolate contains more antioxidants than does green tea and red wine, which are high on the list of foods containing the most antioxidants.  It must be remembered that we are talking about dark chocolate, and not the milk and white varieties that do not contain cocoa, or very little of it.

Scientists are finding that heart health can be improved by eating dark chocolate.  It helps relax the arteries and promotes better blood flow and reduces the strain on the heart.  It is also thought to help stop the build-up of plague in the arteries.

Antioxidants protect your cells from damaging molecules called free radicals.  Free radicals bring about changes in the structure of the healthy cells.  This damage to the cells is thought to be the cause of many diseases.  Antioxidants neutralize the free radicals.

Chocolate contains cocoa butter, which is a natural fat and has no effect on the level of the potentially harmful cholesterol in your blood.  Milk chocolate on the other hand has additional fats added from the milk.

Dark chocolate does not have the same effect as candy does on the body, even though it is sweet.  It has a low glycemic index, which means that it will not put the body on a “high” for a while and then crash, to leave you feeling hungry when in actual fact you are not.

It seems like the antioxidants in cocoa and dark chocolate could aid people at risk of diabetes to help restore more normal functions in cells to control blood sugar.  Diabetics should consult their doctors before embarking on a cocoa-diet, as diet and weight control are very important if you are a sufferer of this disease.

Scientists are constantly doing research on the attributes of cocoa and dark chocolate and it seems like cocoa can be the answer to quite a few health problems.

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Most of us are very partial to this delectable substance. It surpasses all other candy and because many of us tend to over indulge in chocolate we feel that it should be bad for us. Chocolates eaten in moderation are actually good for us as the contain antioxidants. In fact the antioxidants in cocoa are more than in green tea and red wine, which are regarded as the substances with the highest antioxidant contents.

Dark chocolate is by far the best for your health. The darker chocolates have a higher content of cocoa, which is considered to be very good for us. White and milk chocolates contain more sugar than the dark varieties and this is why over indulgence can cause weight gain.

Cocoa is an excellent natural food as it is ground cacao beans. It contains many minerals like magnesium, zinc, iron, copper, magnesium, sulphur and potassium.
These minerals are all essential to our good health. Tests on cocoa have found that it contains an amino acid, which helps prevent depression. Other properties of cocoa are enhanced mental alertness. It is also said to have anti aging and anti-inflammatory properties.

There are many other properties of cocoa, which makes one realize how good it actually is for us. Because many of us have a guilty feeling about our love for chocolate we have never given the main ingredient

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We are told that chocolate makes us fat, but then so do many other foodstuffs. Over indulging in any type of food will cause you to gain weight. Chocolate must be consumed in moderation and then you never have to feel guilty about eating it.

What about acne? Many teens avoid chocolate for fear of breaking out in acne. Chocolates do not cause acne, as many researches have proved. Over indulgence could play a part

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