Facts and Tips of Chocolate

Chocolate has been called the food of the Gods, and as Karl Petzke and Sara Slavin note in Chocolate, A Sweet Indulgence (Chronicle Books, 1997) "The craving for chocolate is physical, arising out of the desire for its uniquely dark, slightly bitter, rich taste. But the craving is also emotional for chocolate symbolizes, as does no other food, luxury, comfort, sensuality, gratification and love."

Although chocolate may not actually be a true aphrodisiac it does contain theobromine, a mild relative of caffeine and magnesium, a component found in some tranquilizers, so it has the unique ability to simultaneously both pick you up and calm you down. In addition, it's said eating chocolate releases a chemical in your body similar to that which is produced when you're in love.

Despite the fact we've been consuming chocolate in copious quantities since the nineteenth century (although the Aztec emperor Montezuma was drinking it -- about 50 goblets a day -- centuries earlier) Americans don't win the prize for highest world wide chocolate consumption. No that distinction goes to the Swiss whose per capita consumption is a whopping 19 pounds a year. The Swiss are followed by the citizens of Norway, the United Kingdom, Belgium/Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Germany, Austria, Ireland, Denmark, Sweden -- and then the U.S.A. where every man, woman and child is said to munch down 9 pounds a year.

Chocolate is the most popular dessert flavoring around. But as you'll discover it's a long way from cocoa bean to chocolate bar. Detailing the process chocolate expert Elaine Gonzalez writes in The Art of Chocolate (Chronicle Books, 1998) "Chocolate is made from beans that grow inside the pods of the cacao trees, which flourish in hot, rainy climates within 20 degrees of the equator. Cocoa beans, as they are known in the United States, don't develop their distinctive chocolate color, flavor and aroma until they have been fermented, dried and carefully roasted to precise temperatures. The roasted beans are then shelled and cracked into small pieces called nibs. The nibs are then ground, producing a thick, semi-fluid mixture called chocolate liquor, the primary ingredient in all forms of chocolate, except white chocolate."

Because chocolate is so delicate to work with many cooks often find they have a problem melting it properly. Keep in mind that chocolate naturally melts just below body temperature, so applying direct heat, say atop a stove is apt to scotch it. Instead utilize a double boiler and melt it slowly in a heatproof bowl or pot set above a pan of simmering water, being careful both to stir frequently and make sure none of the water below or the condensation from the steam created leaches into the chocolate.