Monthly Archives: August 2010
Banning Chocolate Milk in School Cafeterias
August 31, 2010
Reports show that 71 percent of the milk served nationwide is flavored, and the predominant flavor is chocolate. Most public schools offer chocolate milk as an alternative to white milk. 
But chocolate milk is the center of controversy in many cities in the US. The school districts of the District of Columbia; Berkeley, California; and Boulder, Colorado have already banned chocolate milk from the cafeteria. Florida schools are considering it.
What’s the big deal?
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Novi Cioccolato
August 30, 2010
Novi chocolate is an Italian made chocolate from the province of Piedmont.
My in-laws recently traveled abroad and brought back a Novi milk chocolate bar for me.
This chocolate, called Novi Al Latte Classico, is an extra fine milk chocolate with a cacao content of 30%.
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The Shelf Life of Chocolate
August 29, 2010
It's Q&A time. Here is another question from a subscriber:
"Once chocolate has been melted, how long is it good for once it has been molded (again)?"
Chocolate is a very versatile and tolerant product to work with, the nuances of tempering aside. Chocolate can be melted, tempered and molded, re-melted, re-tempered and re-molded, again and again.
The shelf life of chocolate depends on whether it is milk or dark and whether or not it has inclusions like nuts, coconut, or dried fruit.
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Ultimate Raspberry Chocolate Sauce
August 28, 2010
Try this taste sensation over ice cream to elevate the experience of your taste buds. Your ice cream will taste better than your usual ice cream.
Keep a bag of frozen raspberries on hand for an all year ‘round treat...
| Ultimate Raspberry Chocolate Sauce • 12 ounces frozen raspberries (individually quick-frozen), defrosted • 3/4 cup Dutch-process cocoa • 3/4 cup heavy cream • 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened • 1 1/2 cups sugar • 1/3 cup light corn syrup Read more |
Tired Of Eating Chocolate?
August 27, 2010
Is it really possible to get sick of eating chocolate?
According to feedback from participants in a medical research study out of Australia, it is! What, no way! Sure enough, read on...
Heart patients were given 50 grams of 70% chocolate to be consumed daily as medicine during a research study on how the antioxidants in chocolate help control blood pressure.
By the end of the study, many participants said they would rather take a pill containing the antioxidants than eat any more chocolate. About half the people in the study found the chocolate difficult to eat because of the strong flavor and about 20 percent “considered it an unacceptable long-term treatment option” over the concern for the fat and calories from the chocolate.
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Fermenting Cocoa Beans
August 26, 2010
Did you know that one the most important steps in making chocolate taste like chocolate is cocoa bean fermentation?
Cocoa beans grow inside a thick-walled pod surrounded by a sugary pulp that provides nutrients to the beans (seeds). The pulp is made up of about 12% sucrose which gets broken down by microbes, mostly yeasts.
During the harvest, pods are cut down from the tree, opened, and the cocoa beans scooped out by hand. Large mounds or heaps of pulp and beans are built in order to start the fermentation process. To speed things along, big leaves (like banana) are used to cover the heaps in order to seal in the heat generated by the microbial action.
The temperature can reach 40C to 50C in the fermentation heap. Many chemical reactions take place, and it is here during fermentation that chocolate acquires its color and flavor.
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Brownie Oatmeal Gems
August 25, 2010
If you can’t get enough chocolate per bite, try these babies. And for more chocolate impact, go with the optional chocolate dipping at the end.
| Brownie Oatmeal Gems • 8 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, chopped • 1/4 cup margarine or butter • 2/3 cup light corn syrup • 2 eggs, slightly beaten • 1/4 teaspoon salt • 4 cups old fashioned oatmeal • 2/3 cup brown sugar, firmly packed • 1 cup walnuts, coarsely chopped Read more |
Functional Chocolate: Snacking with Benefits
August 24, 2010
Chocolate for chocolate’s sake is just not cutting it anymore with consumers. Apparently we are demanding chocolate with more meaning, purpose, and benefit.
The general term for this type of chocolate is “functional chocolate.” Functional chocolates supply a nutritional benefit and chocolate is a good vehicle for transporting things like vitamins, probiotics, omega-3, and calcium.
In the last couple years, a few companies have introduced functional chocolates and one of them is Maramor Chocolates. You can find some of their products at Walgreen’s and GNC stores across the nation.
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Kashi Cocoa Beach Granola
August 23, 2010
Kashi company, www.kashi.com, started in 1984 with their first creation of a “unique blend of Seven Whole Grains and Sesame for its supreme nutritional profile — a vegetarian source of protein and complex carbohydrates that’s hearty, satisfying, and energizing.”
I recently tried their Cocoa Beach granola cereal. The cereal has almonds, coconut, and granola clusters all coated in cocoa.
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Lecithin in Chocolate
August 22, 2010
Take a look at an ingredient label on a bar of chocolate. 9 times out of 10 you will see soy lecithin listed there.
Is using lecithin as an ingredient in chocolate important, and what is the benefit of using it?