Will we run out of cocoa?
January 7, 2009
An interesting article from Newscientist.com.
Studies are underway to find ways of producing more and better cocoa trees so that we dont run out!..And that would be a shame!
Make your own chocolate gifts – Idea 1
November 28, 2008
Over the next few weeks, I will be scouring the web for some fun ideas that you or your kids can make at home to give as original, home-made and chocolatey gifts!
The first idea I came accross was a “Hot Chocolate Ice-Cream Cone”.. I tried one out here in the shop, and they look really good!
How to make:
1. Buy some of your favourite hot chocolate mix – either in individual sachets, or in a larger jar or tub. You could even use some cocoa powder and add sugar. Empty enough for about 4 mugs of hot chocolate into a clear disposable icing bag. You could also use some rolled up cellophane taped up at the bottom, or a clear sandwich bag. Leave a bit of air at the top, tie it closed with an elastic band, and trim the top of the bag.
2. Push down the tied end towards the hot cocoa mixture to make an indentation. This is where the marshmallows and your choice of topping will sit.
3. Place the cocoa cone inside a second clear icing bag (or whatever you used for the first bag!). Line up the seams.
4. Put in marshmallows, then chopped chocolate pieces (or use your imagination to add other flavours – chocolate pieces with orange or mint flavour perhaps?).
5. Tie closed with an elastic band.
6. Tie a ribbon around the elastic band.
7. If you want to include instructions for making the hot cocoa, you could print them up, punch a hole in the paper, and tie it on with the ribbon.
If you try this, we would love to hear from you!
(information from www.ice-cream-freaks.com and www.oprah.com)
Chocolate companies that grow their own cocoa!
November 11, 2008
Having compiled information for our 2-part article on how chocolate is made, I came to appreciate how much time and effort is really involved.
I watched a documentary series a while ago on Channel 4 called “Willie’s Wonky Chocolate Factory“, and it showed the process of seeing the whole process through from beginning to end in a very interesting way. Click here to view some photos.
So I wondered how many companies that “make chocolate” actually go the whole way from bean to bar? I came accross a website that lists some of them (it has about 50+ companies listed so far) – it makes interesting reading! Click here for a bit more detail of the process of one of these companies. It would be interesting to taste and compare the differences between some of these chocolate products, and those produced by the commercial giants!
If you have tried any chocolate from a company that actually grows it’s own cocoa, I would be interested to hear what you think!! Please post comments below.
How is Chocolate Made? – Part 2
November 7, 2008
In Part One of this article, we saw how the cocoa beans were grown, harvested and packed ready for shipping. What happens next?
Processing
Before making the cocoa into chocolate, it must go through several steps of processing. Cocoa processing includes converting the beans into nibs, liquor, butter, cake and powder. Chocolate manufacturing includes the blending and refining of cocoa liquor, cocoa butter and various ingredients, such as milk and sugar.
First, the beans are inspected and thoroughly cleaned. Once the beans are cleaned, the processor has the option of roasting them before or after the shell is removed.
The inside of the cocoa bean is called the nib. Generally speaking, chocolate manufacturers prefer to roast the beans before shelling them, while cocoa processors favour the nib-roasting process.
Once the beans have been shelled and roasted (or roasted and shelled, as the case may be), the nib is ground into a paste. The heat generated by this process causes the cocoa butter in the nib to melt, earning it the name “cocoa liquor.” The paste, further refined, may be sold as unsweetened baking chocolate.
The liquor is then fed into hydraulic presses that remove a certain percentage of the cocoa butter, leaving behind a cake containing from 6 to 24 percent of the cocoa’s initial butter. The cocoa cake is either broken into smaller pieces (kibbled) and sold into the generic cocoa cake market, or ground into a fine powder.
Chocolate Manufacturing
To manufacture chocolate, cocoa liquor is mixed with cocoa butter and sugar. For milk chocolate, producers can add fresh, sweetened condensed or powdered milk.
After the mixing process, the blend is further refined to reduce the size of the milk and sugar particles. The mixture is then placed into conches—large agitators that stir the mixture under heat. Normally, cocoa butter is added to the mix at this stage, although some manufacturers add it during the original blending process.
“Conching” further smoothes the mixture. As a rule, the longer chocolate is conched, the smoother it will be. The process may last for a few hours to three full days, or even longer.
After conching, the liquid chocolate may be shipped in tanks or tempered and poured into moulds for sale in blocks to confectioners, dairies, or bakers. It may also be converted into proprietary bars for sale direct to the consumer market.
(Information compiled from the World Cocoa Foundation Website)
How is Chocolate Made? – Part 1
October 31, 2008
Every year, about 3 million tons of cocoa beans are produced – Where do they grow? How is the crop harvested? And how do they end up in your chocolate bar?!
Growing
Cocoa trees grow in hot, rainy areas – mostly near the equator. The trees are quite sensitive to wind and sun, so the cocoa farmers must take good care to protect the trees from these elements. Sometimes they plant other trees, such as banana or coconut trees around the cocoa trees to shelter and protect them in the early stages of their growth when they are at their most delicate. Once the trees are established, the soil needs to be fertilized, and the trees need to be monitored closely.
Most cocoa trees bear fruit in their fifth year. It produces at it’s peak in about ten years, and will continue to produce cocoa pods after that for an additional 12 years or so. Some trees still produce fruit when they are 30-40 years old.
About 10 per cent of the pink or white cocoa blossoms will mature into fruit. The fruit are called pods, and they are green or maroon in colour. As they ripen, they turn to a golden or red colour.
Harvesting
When these pods are ripe, they must be harvested. The farmers use special long-handles tools to snip down the pods from the top of the tree, or possibly machetes to cut the pods that are lower down on the tree. Once the pods are harvested, the shells must be broken open. It takes a great deal of practice to split the shells, but a good pod-breaker can open 500 pods an hour.
The husk and inner membrane of the pod is discarded, and a farmer can expect 20 to 50 cream-colored beans from a typical pod. Dried beans from an average pod weigh less than two ounces, and approximately 400 beans are required to make one pound of chocolate.
The beans are then put into boxes, or in huge piles, and are covered with mats. Layer of pulp surrounds the beans, and this naturally heats and ferments the beans in the sun. This process lasts between three and nine days, and takes away the bitter taste from the cocoa. Chemical processes take place within the bean to produce the chocolate flavour once the beans are roasted. The beans turn a rich brown colour, and are now ready for drying.
To keep the beans from spoiling, they must be dried. In the hot seasons, the farmers can dry the beans out by laying them out in the sunshine. This process takes a few days, during which time the beans loose more than half their weight. The beans are then packed into large sacks for shipping. The beans are graded, and then loaded onto ships.
EDIT: Just came accross this website which explains in even more detail and has some fantastic photos! Well worth a visit if you are interested in this subject.
Watch out for Part 2 of this article!
(Information compiled from the World Cocoa Foundation Website)
Where is Cocoa Grown?
September 18, 2008
More choccie facts and figures!
West Africa supplies about 70% of the world’s Cocoa production. This is led by the four major producing countries made up of Cote d`Ivoire, Ghana, Nigeria and Cameroon.
The Americas produces about 10% of the annual global cocoa output. This is lead by Brazil and Ecuador.
Asia and Oceania produces about 20% of the annual global cocoa output. Indonesia is the major producer of cocoa in this region followed by Papua New Guinea and Malaysia.
Figures taken from www.worldcocoafoundation.org
Photo from trinidesktops.com. Photographer Michael Tikasingh
Fun Chocolate Facts!
September 16, 2008
Did you know that…..
- There are about 5 to 10 milligrams of caffeine in one ounce of chocolate; by contrast, there are 100 to 150 milligrams of caffeine in an eight-ounce cup of brewed coffee!
- Although chocolate is not an aphrodisiac, as the ancient Aztecs believed, chocolate contains phenylethylamine (PEA), a natural substance that is reputed to stimulate the same reaction in the body as falling in love. Hence, heartbreak and loneliness are great excuses for chocolate overindulgence!
- Ten percent of U.S. Recommended Daily Allowance of iron is found in one ounce of baking chocolate or cocoa.
- Consumers spend more than $7 billion a year on chocolate.
- Chocolate has over 500 flavor components, more than twice the amount found in strawberry and vanilla.
- The U.S. produces more chocolate than any other country but the Swiss consume the most, followed closely by the English.
- The average American eats 10-12 pounds (4.5 kg) of chocolate a year. The average Swiss eats 21 pounds (9.9 kg) a year. Despite the fact that the average Swiss eats 21 pounds (9.9 kg) of chocolate, they have the lower incidences of obesity and coronary heart disease in Western Europe.
- Once upon a time, money did grow on trees. Cocoa beans were used as currency by the Mayan and Aztec civilizations over 1400 years ago. When they had too much money to spend, they brewed the excess into hot chocolate drinks.
Do you have your own Chocolate Facts to add?
Feel free to include one or two in your comments below!