Chocolate University Online Blog
If you are a self-proclaimed true blue chocoholic and want to satisfy your need for anything chocolate, then why don’t you head to the Field Museum in Chicago?
“Chocolate: Around the World”, a smash hit exhibit which sold more than 360,000 tickets in its first Field run in the year 2002 is back not only to entertain you, but also give you juicy and interesting information.
In the past nine years, “Chocolate” has already been to 22 other American museums and will go international when its present Field run is done in January, said the Field president and chief executive officer, John McCarter.
“Chocolate” is a combination of both the Field’s focus on anthropology as well as natural history and its attention to the origins of cacao beans and the role chocolate played in the past centuries. “This is one of the great combination stories,” McCarter said.
From the modest examples of cacao beans to a vintage chocolate mold with the shape of a rabbit driving a scooter, “Chocolate” aspires to present a food that Americans love dearly.
One of the “Chocolate” exhibition keepers, Gary Feinman, said that visitors were interested as much toward the exhibit’s story as the subject matter. “Everybody loves chocolate,” Feinman said. “The story is great, and the exhibits are about stories.”
The exhibit is almost untouched since it first premiered at the Field, very little has changed. Among the new items featured are excavated ceramic vessels in which chocolate residue was found. This aids in explaining how chocolate was used.
There is also information about the disturbing situation at African cocoa farms. “There are issues with child labor, the labor conditions,” Feinman said. “There are still issues but I think there’s more consciousness about some of the problems.”
Try visiting there and have a shot at kicking your love of chocolate up a notch.
-Through Jan. 8 (9 a.m.-5 p.m. every day but Christmas)
-The Field Museum, 1400 S. Lake Shore Drive, Chicago
-The exhibit is included in the Discovery and All-Access passes, $22-$29 for adults, $18-$24 for seniors and students with identification, and $15-$20 for ages 4 to 11.
-(312) 922-9410; fieldmuseum.org
Categories: chocolate education, chocolate in the news
Tags: chocolate art, chocolate destinations, chocolate exhibit, chocolate history, chocolate museums, cocoa, Field Museum
The brownie, one of the most loved baked treat, was believed to be “invented” in America. Some references imply that brownies were originally made in New England at the beginning of the 20th century. Albeit the facts that it is basically cake-like and baked in a cake pan, brownies are considered as bar cookies rather than a cake.
Brownies can either be “cake-style” or “fudge-style”. Cake-style is that with the consistency of a cake, only richer and denser. On the other hand, fudge-style is more like, er, fudge than cake. It is the richer, denser, and creamier version of the brownie. What determines the style of brownie is the ratio of flour to chocolate and/or cocoa.
I hate to state the obvious but it’s apparent brownie derived its name from its dark brown color. But just like almost any food, the origin of the “brownie” is covered in myth. One of the legends told is that a chef added melted chocolate to biscuits by mistake. Another one states that a cook was baking a cake but didn’t have enough flour and baked it anyway, thus, making a brownie.
The most famous legend, however, says a housewife in Bangor, Maine, who was making a chocolate cake, failed to add baking powder. When the cake didn’t rise, she just cut it and served pieces of the flat cake.
Several tales indicate that the first known published recipe appeared in the Sears, Roebuck Catalogue in 1897, but that was a recipe for a molasses candy only called brownies. Nowadays, brownies are baked with either cocoa or melted chocolate or a combination of both.
Although the first few brownie recipes were published and modification to it started in the beginning of the 20th century, it wasn’t until the 1920s that brownies became a darling in the department of baked chocolate treats, and it never ceased.
Categories: chocolate education, fun chocolate facts
Tags: brownies, cake, chocolate cake, chocolate history, fudge, invent
Chocolate accidentally paved way for the invention of the microwave oven. Scientists during the World War II were primarily experimenting with microwaves wanting to come up with better radar detector. What really happened? Read on.
Radar was primarily used as a military weapon, but it was utilized in other fields as well such as air and sea travel, weather forecasting, among many others. The war was starting to cool off in 1945, but radar work was continuing to be hot stuff.
An American self-taught scientist named Percy Spencer was working around building devices called magnetron for radar sets. He reportedly walked by a cavity magnetron while it was at work. Spencer reputedly felt some heat and realized that a chocolate bar that he had been carrying in his pocket had melted into a sticky mess.
He then thought of using magnetron for cooking food but other researchers begged to disagree. They believed that it wasn’t a good idea to place certain things by the magnetron. Nevertheless, Spencer pulled through with his further investigations.
Spencer tried placing popcorn near the magnetron and then it successfully popped. Thereafter, he tried placing an egg which cooked so quickly it exploded in his colleague’s face. He knew then that he was on to something big.
By 1947, Spencer’s employer made use of his work and started putting microwave in the market. The first microwave ovens were humongous and very costly. In the 1950s, certain companies tried to sell it as an “electronic oven” but it still repelled customers due to its hefty price tag.
By around 1967, microwave ovens were finally small and affordable enough to be seen in average households. And by the 1980s, microwave ovens were everywhere warming up leftovers, popping corn and, of course, melting chocolate.
If you ever wonder what specific chocolate bar Spencer had in his pocket it was, well, a Mr. Goodbar.
Categories: fun chocolate facts
Tags: chocolate history, chocolate science, microwave, Mr. Goodbar
The title is one of the advertising slogans of Thorntons, a household name in UK for chocolate retailing. The company was established in 1911 by Joseph William Thornton who eventually turned the business over to his sons, Norman and Stanley Thornton. Since then, it has always been Britain’s go-to store when it comes to high-quality chocolates. This year, it celebrates its Centenary birthday. And what better way to celebrate their 100th birthday than sharing it with their customers?
The first ever Thortons chocolate shop was opened in Sheffield in the year 1911 and it was called the Chocolate Kabin where you are magically transported into a chocolate heaven as you step inside the store. Today, as a Centenary birthday treat, Thorntons wants to give their customers a chance to experience such delight. They excitedly bring you the recreated Thorntons Chocolate Kabin where a Golden Key to the chocolate factory is hidden. And the lucky winner gets to be Willy Wonka for a day! Isn’t that such a sweet treat?
Go and grab the chance to experience the chocolate lucky dip, or see chocolates come plummeting down a truck directly to a super duper chocolate scooper, where you can also have yourself a chocolaty treat.
As you leave the delightful and almost enchanted Kabin, you can give donations to the Live Mechanical Chocolatier in exchange for chocolates. Such donations will be going to the NSPCC, Thorntons charity of the year.
One lucky customer who finds the Golden Key from each place the Chocolate Kabin visits will get a chance to see behind-the-scenes at Thorntons and visit their chocolate factory to take a look at how they have been manufacturing their chocolates for the past 100 years. You don’t get to experience this everyday, so for our readers in the U.K., try your luck and let us know how it goes!
The Thorntons Chocolate Kabin will be visiting:
- Covent Garden, London on Friday 2nd September
- Liverpool One Shopping Centre on Saturday 10th September
- Nottingham off Market Square on Saturday 17th September
- Edinburgh Castle Street on Saturday 24th September
- Sheffield Fargate on Saturday 1st October
For more info visit Thorntons Centenary website.
You can also find your local Thornton’s store or buy chocolates online when you click here.
Categories: chocolate in the news
Tags: chocola, chocolate celebrations, chocolate companies, chocolate destinations, chocolate history, chocolate manufacturing, favorite chocolate, Thorntons
Chocolate has been around for millennia now, and the history is extremely long and diverse. The earliest references of chocolate were over fifteen hundred years ago in the Central American Rain Forest, an ideal environment for the cultivation of the Cacao Tree because of the mix of high rain fall, temperature and humidity.
The Mayan culture worshiped the Cacao tree as they believed it was of divine origin and it symbolized life and fertility. Cacao is actually a Mayan word which meant “God Food”, modernly coined as “Food of the Gods”. The Mayans were believed to be brewing and drinking this spicy bittersweet beverage by roasting, grinding and fermenting the seeds of the Cacao Tree. This was intended for the wealthy and elite.
The Aztecs, like Mayans, also have their own version of the fermented drink and they called it Xocolatl, meaning “bitter water”. Their Emperor, Montezuma, allegedly believed that this was an aphrodisiac, and drank almost 50 cups a day. The beans were even used as currency and considered as treasure that when Spaniards came and searched for gold and silver, they found no more than the beans.
The Spanish explorer, Hernando Cortez, reputedly brought the beans to the Europeans who then improvised the drink by putting in sugar and vanilla so it became more pleasant to the palate. The English corrupted the name of such to Chocolate. The drink created a buzz and spread all throughout Europe and made it a staple in their royal courts.
Chocolate was merely a drink until a Dutch chemist named Johannes Van Houten tried to remove the bitter taste from the roasted ground beans to make the drink more palatable, but ended up with the cocoa solids. And the rest, as they say, is history. What would the world be without chocolate bars, candies, cakes, and stuff? Imagine that! I could not thank Van Houten enough for “accidentally” inventing the solid form of this precious thing. The liquid versions are good all their own, but I just can’t imagine life without the solid ones!
Chocolate is always fascinating. It makes it even more fascinating when you know that the confection you are enjoying at the moment has a very extensive yet interesting history.
Categories: fun chocolate facts
Tags: aztecs, cacao tree, chocolate history, cocoa beans, cocoa solids, mayans
Anniston Museum is known for their collection of historical artifacts like fossils, mummies and wide selection of plant and animal exhibits. But Last January 29, 2011, Anniston Museum of Natural History opened their sweetest and tastiest exhibit for the public eye to see.
The museum featured a chocolate exhibit dedicated to the history and science revolving around chocolate. The huge exhibit almost occupied the entire lobby area of the museum.
People could take a look and explore the featured life story of chocolates with the use of videos, replicas, antique chocolate tins, and copies of old promotional magazines, wrappers and leaflets of different brands like Milky Way, 3 Musketeers and more. You could even smell the sweet aroma of beans and chocolate all over the place.
Free chocolate samples were also given during special occasions known as “Chocolate Sundays” (hmm, that’s kind of like our own “Chocolate Sunday Updates” for those on our mailing list). People can also purchase chocolate products like chocolate fudge, chocolate games, chocolate lotions and bath salts at the local gift shop.
Sadly, last Saturday, May 21, 2011, was the sweet goodbye to the chocolate exhibit. The museum hosted a huge outdoor celebration called “Evening Garden of Light and Dark Chocolate.”
The social gathering gave much joy and excitement to the people who participated. There were live bands that performed on the garden stage, a masquerade with a chocolate or candy themed costume, games and prizes, fun filled chocolate activities like create-a-cupcake, assorted beverages and a huge selection of delightful dishes made from chocolates. There were chocolate fountains, cupcakes, chocolate cheese and chocolate treats seen all over the place.
For the people who were not able to see and explore the chocolate exhibit, they were given a chance to view the display for the very last time. The Museum opened last Sunday afternoon for the public to take a final glimpse of the exhibit before it left.
It is sad to report the closing of the exhibit as it would have been much more fun to report on its opening. If you hear about things like this in your area, please let us know using the contact us form. We’d love to promote chocolate events wherever they are.
Categories: chocolate in the news
Tags: 3 Musketeers, chocolate exhibit, chocolate history, Milky Way
You can probably guess what PB&J means. Peanut Butter and Jelly. PB&J is a classic American combination mostly reminiscent of childhood. Now that you are grown up, I suggest you switch to a more sophisticated flavor combination – Peanut Butter and Chocolate. Can we call it PB&C?
The most accepted theory of who put peanut butter and chocolate together is the story of H.B. Reese. Mr. Reese started out as a dairy employee for Hershey Chocolate Company in the 1920’s. He soon ventured out to start his own company and began to manufacture a single product called peanut butter cups, known today as REESE’S Peanut Butter Cups.
The variety and popularity of recipes that are made with the peanut butter and chocolate combination are numerous. You can find the pairing in granola, ice cream, cake, brownies, chocolate truffles, melt-a-ways, candy bars, cookies, pie, fudge, and mousse. Whew – I am certain I missed something.
Here is a great recipe recommended by many who enjoy the chocolate and peanut butter combination for breakfast…
Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Muffins
2/3 cup peanut butter, chunky or smooth
2 tablespoons butter, melted
3/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
1 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 cup milk
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
Preheat oven to 350°. In a large mixing bowl, combine peanut butter and melted butter; stir until well blended. Mix in sugar, eggs, and vanilla. Combine flour with baking powder and baking soda. Add to peanut butter mixture along with milk and chocolate chips. Stir just until combined.
Spoon batter into 12 paper-lined muffin tins. Bake 20 to 25 minutes, or until muffins spring back when lightly touched in center. Serve warm or at room temperature. |
Categories: chocolate recipes, fun chocolate facts
Tags: chocolate history, peanut butter
Summer time is ice cream time – with hot fudge sauce of course!
Wow – it seems there are about as many different recipes for hot fudge sauce as there are types of ice cream to put them on.
From what I can tell (after reviewing many recipes) hot fudge sauce is different from ordinary chocolate sauce in that it’s really a chocolate fudge that never sets. Cream or milk, sugar, and butter are boiled until thickened so that it gets nice and gooey.
I wonder if the first hot fudge sauce was simply a fudge failure?
Fudge making appeared on the scene in American history in the late 19th century. At some point, people began to deliberately make under-cooked fudge and serve it warm over ice cream.
Here are two hot fudge sauce recipes for your eating pleasure. Enjoy!
Hot Fudge Sauce
1/4 cup butter
3 cups sugar
2 squares unsweetened chocolate
1/2 tsp salt
1 can evaporated milk
Melt butter and chocolate, then add sugar and salt. Slowly add milk and bring to a rolling boil until thickened. Serve warm over vanilla ice cream.
Microwave Hot Fudge Sauce
1 cup sugar
3 tbsp cocoa
1 stick butter
1/2 cup milk
Mix sugar and cocoa and milk. Stir. Bring to a boil in the microwave. Add butter and continue to boil until butter is completely melted. Serve warm over ice cream. |
Categories: chocolate recipes
Tags: chocolate history, fudge, ice cream, nostalgia
I was recently asked about the spread of Cocoa or Cacao trees around the world.
 Cacao is believed to have originated in South America. There is a lot of evidence suggesting that the ancient Maya in Central America were the first to domesticate Theobroma cacao as a crop.
The Aztecs ground cacao into Xocoatl, a chocolate drink used mostly for spiritual and ceremonial rituals.
Hernan Cortés is credited with bringing cacao to Spain where it spread throughout Europe in the 1500’s and 1600’s.
Spanish friars began to grow cacao in Ecuador around 1635. The French introduced cacao to Martinique and St Lucia, the Dominican Republic, and Brazil in the mid to late 1600’s. England started growing it in Jamaica and the Dutch in Curaçao. All of this effort just to meet the ever growing demand for the affluent in Europe.
When demand exploded again in the 1800’s even more had to be cultivated. Cacao from Brazil was taken to Principe and Sao Tomé, islands off the coast of West Africa around 1830. From there, it spread to Nigeria and Ghana.
Today, the largest cacao producing country is Ivory Coast, Africa.
Categories: chocolate education, fun chocolate facts
Tags: cacao tree, chocolate history, cocoa beans, world chocolate
A S’more is considered a summer time classic by many. It brings back memories of camping and backyard barbeques. And, of course, it just tastes good.
 If you are not familiar with s’mores, it is like a marshmallow and chocolate sandwich with the bread replaced with graham crackers. First roast a marshmallow skewered on the end of a long stick or fork over the coals of a camp fire or grill.
Meanwhile put a piece of chocolate on a graham cracker. After the marshmallow turns a golden brown, you pull it off the stick, place it on top of the chocolate, and top with another graham cracker. The warm marshmallow melts the chocolate and voilà! a s’more is born.
No one is certain when or who invented the s’more. The accepted idea is that the Girl Scouts made “Some Mores” at Girl Scout Camp back in the 1920’s.
Here’s my theory: someone forgot it was a bad idea taking candy bars camping during the summer heat and the whole lot melted before dessert time. Because the dim-witted person was also frugal, there was a strong need not to waste the chocolate.
This is how chocolate and I get along in the heat… If I purchase a gift of chocolate from my favorite chocolate shop during summer, I go into game show contestant mode. The game is called “Get Home Before It Melts.”
If I succeed, I declare myself the winner and treat myself to some chocolate (go figure!  ). There is strategy involved. I have to pick the most efficient route home, and I must place the chocolate directly under the AC vent on the floor of my car with it blowing full blast. I yell at all the drivers to get out of my way as I precariously drive the line between speeding and simply going slightly over the limit.
Back to s’mores. The real reason I bring this up today is because of an article I read from Global Exchange. They remind us to use fair trade chocolate when making our s’mores this summer. No, sad to say, Hershey is not fair trade, so what this really means is that you might have to step out of your flavor comfort zone and explore a new taste while supporting the fair trade initiative.
To learn more about their project, visit this website: www.globalexchange.org/smoresaction.
Categories: chocolate education, chocolate in the news
Tags: chocolate dessert, chocolate history, favorite chocolate, nostalgia
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