October 28th is National Chocolate Day #NationalChocolateDay. I don’t know about you but this makes me a happy camper because I love all kinds of Chocolate from Candy to Hot Chocolate. How about you. Do you like Chocolate? If so Milk Chocolate?
Dark Chocolate or White Chocolate? Charlie and I prefer Milk Chocolate and at times White Chocolate. David likes both of these and even Dark Chocolate at times which Charlie and I don’t care for. My sister’s favorite is Dark Chocolate.
If your #Homeschooling your children you could create a lesson plan around Chocolate. Let them get into the kitchen with you and create a recipe around Chocolate. Remember it doesn’t have to be a Dessert it can be a main dish or beverage using Chocolate. Then visit a Chocolate Store to see how many different Chocolate Candies they have.
National Chocolate Day, is celebrated each October 28th, which is nothing short of a special tribute to mankind’s greatest culinary invention. (No, it isn’t Pizza.) Chocolate can enhance even the most luxurious dessert items. On the other hand, you can get your fix from a simple Candy Bar. Hint: Try for Chocolate with a “high Cacao” percentage and low added Sugar.
The history of Chocolate goes back 2,500 years. Aztecs loved their newly discovered liquid Chocolate to the extent that they believed Quetzalcoatl, the God of wisdom, literally bestowed it upon them. Cacao Seeds acted as a form of currency.
And this was back in the “bitter” Chocolate days — before they added Sugar! Once Chocolate turned sweet — in 16th-Century Europe — the masses caught on and turned Chocolate into a powerhouse treat. Sweet or Un-Sweetened Chocolate a great treat at anytime.
Several present-day Chocolate companies began operations in the 19th and early 20th Centuries. Cadbury started in England by 1868. Milton S. Hershey, 25 years later, purchased Chocolate processing equipment at the World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago
Miton S. Hershey started the company by producing Chocolate-coated Caramels. Nestlé, dating back to the 1860s, has grown into one of the largest food conglomerates in the world. I don’t know about you but I wouldn’t mind having a Nestle Crunch. How about you?
Did you know that Chocolate is a fermented food? That’s right, once the Cacao Pods are picked, cleaned of pithy white material from the Fruit and dried, the Cacao Beans are fermented. The papery shell is removed and Cacao Nibs are revealed.
Chocolatiers then grind them into Cocoa Mass, separate them into Cocoa Solids and Cocoa Butter, and combine them with Milk and Sugar, or in the case of White Chocolate, just the Chocolate Butter with Milk and Sugar.
Today there’s a move toward Dark Chocolate since it contains far less Sugar. Ghana, Ecuador, and the Ivory Coast, all near the Equator, have ideal climates for Cacao Trees and produce some of the world’s best Chocolate. It’s best to look for Dark Chocolate from those regions.
But there’s a dark side. Child labor has become a serious issue. When you purchase “fair trade Chocolate,” you’re working to help make Cocoa farming more sustainable. Keep this in mind and choose your Chocolate wisely.
National Chocolate Day Activities
- Take the opportunity today and try making your own Truffles! Which may seem hard, but it’s actually easier than you think! Just research a recipe online and get busy and to make it more fun invite your friends or family to help.
- Take the opportunity today and get a up-close look at the process that Chocolate goes through from Bean to Bar at a local Chocolate Factory or Chocolatier. Most places have tours available to the public and are more than happy to share their knowledge, experience, and love of the Chocolate profession and trade.
- Chocolate is amazing, friends are amazing, and human connection over Chocolate is one of the most beautiful things! Most people like Chocolate, and really, even if they don’t, you know they’ll appreciate the offer to spend a moment with them and chat.
Facts About Chocolate
- Chocolate is technically a vegetable which comes from the Cacao Bean, which grows on the Cacao Tree.
- White Chocolate is not Chocolate and it contains no Cocoa solids.
- Hot Chocolate was brewed in Aztec culture, and tasted really bitter.
- The Aztecs valued Cacao Beans so much that it was used as currency.
- Chocolate is a unique melting point
Why People Love National Chocolate Day
- Did you know there is one study that showed people who ate Chocolate compounds had better cognitive performance and reported less mental fatigue than the control group. This could have something to do with how the chemicals in Chocolate interact with our brain: releasing serotonin, dopamine, and endorphins and giving us a good dose of antioxidants.
- Another study revealed that ingestion of Dark Chocolate prior to eating at an all-you-can-eat buffet triggered a 17% lower calorie intake for participants! It’s all about the Sugar. Looks like I need to switch from Milk Chocolate to Dark Chocolate try this the next time were going to a all-you0can-eat buffet. Would you like to try this with me?
- Per the American Heart Association: “Combining raw Almonds, Dark Chocolate and Cocoa significantly reduced the number of low-density lipoprotein, or LDL, particles in the blood of overweight and obese people. LDL is often called “bad cholesterol” because of the role it plays in clogging arteries.
Thank you,
Glenda, Charlie and David Cates
