Chocolate is made from roasted cacao beans, ground and mixed with sugar and cocoa butter. Dark, milk and white chocolate are used in baking, desserts and drinks.
- Made from
- Cacao beans (Theobroma cacao)
- Types
- Dark, milk, white
- Flavor
- Bitter-sweet to sweet
- Key terms
- Cocoa solids, cocoa butter
- Contains
- Caffeine and theobromine (small amounts)
History
Cacao was cultivated in Mesoamerica by the Olmec, Maya and Aztecs thousands of years ago, who drank it as a bitter, frothy beverage. Spanish explorers took it to Europe in the sixteenth century, where sugar was added. Solid eating chocolate came in the nineteenth century.
Where it comes from
The Amazon basin and Mesoamerica. Today most cocoa is grown in West Africa (Ivory Coast, Ghana), Indonesia and Latin America.
Where it is used most
Chocolate chip cookies, brownies and cakes in North America and Europe, hot chocolate in Spain and Mexico, mole sauces in Mexico, and confections worldwide.
Varieties and types
Dark chocolate contains more cocoa solids and less sugar. Milk chocolate contains milk powder. Baking chocolate is unsweetened or bittersweet. Chocolate chips hold their shape in baking.
Flavor and how to use it
Melt gently over barely simmering water or in short microwave bursts. Chop bar chocolate for cookies to get melty pockets rather than uniform chips.
Buying, storing and substitutes
Keep in a cool, dry place away from strong smells. White bloom on the surface is harmless fat or sugar crystallization.
Good to know
Dark chocolate is toxic to dogs. Check labels for allergens such as milk, soy and nuts.
Recipes that use it
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