fun chocolate facts
About Organic Chocolate
April 12, 2012
Organic chocolates are made of cacao beans that are cultivated without using any synthetic pesticides, herbicides, or fertilizers. Authentic organic chocolates also utilize organically grown sugar.
In America, specific standards of qualification (set by the USDA) need to be met in order for a product to be called organic. That said, when you eat organic chocolate, you can rest assured that you are consuming those ingredients that have been farmed in an environmentally-suitable manner.
One primary reason why it is best that you opt for organic chocolate, instead of its non-organic version, is the fact that you decrease your chances of ingesting harsh pesticide residues. Non-organic chocolate, especially dark ones, are fine to eat all their own. However, the drawback there is the possibility of also eating the pesticide residue, if any, in the cocoa used. In great enough quantity, this could lead to certain health problems.
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The Chocolate Egg-Laying Easter Bunny
March 29, 2012
Easter is our chance for renewal and rebirth. It is the holiday where we celebrate the resurrection of the Lord, Jesus Christ. And, adding to the happiness we feel, is the fact that we also get our annual chance to have a visit from the infamous bunny and his heaps of Easter candy.
Contrary to popular belief, bunnies do not lay eggs. 🙂 Also, they don't have anything to do with how chocolate eggs are produced. However, we just seem to be huge fans of associating rabbits and eggs. Why did we even think that the Easter Bunny lays chocolate eggs?
How these two Easter symbols originated can be traced to some centuries back, and they have just drastically evolved as time passed by. The Easter Bunny and Easter eggs both started out symbolizing fertility. They surface when celebrating the arrival of spring. Like the majority of creatures, rabbits breed the most in the spring. Also, they are remarkable procreators. That's practically the reason why these lovely animals were used as a symbol of fertility.
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Cocoa Shell Mulch
March 22, 2012
Did you know that the outer covering of the cacao bean, called the cocoa shell, can be used for mulch? Gardeners everywhere are raving about it.
Cocoa shell mulch is also known as the Sunshine of Africa. It's actually just a byproduct of chocolate industries coming from the cocoa beans. The shell contains 2.5% Nitrogen, 1% Phosphate, and 3% Potash with a pH of 5.8.
Cocoa shell mulch serves as all-purpose mulch for professional gardeners and amateur gardeners alike. It can be utilized by landscapers and horticulturists, as well. It is great as decorative mulch due to its nice-looking deep copper color. Its rich color pleasantly contrasts with the vibrant green color of plants. And, it smells great too!
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Magnesium-Loaded Cocoa Beans
March 15, 2012
Maintaining a good health can be particularly tricky in this day and age. With all the processed and cholesterol-loaded food available in the market, it gets all the harder especially when the less healthy stuff is a more accessible and affordable option.
Having healthy foods as a staple in your diet is key. Cocoa beans, for one, pack a lot of nutritional benefits. Did you know that the cocoa bean is the richest source of magnesium in nature? You read right. What is magnesium, by the way?
Magnesium is a mineral that plays a significant role in your health, and it's actually contained in several parts of your body. To enable your body to absorb the ingested calcium properly, there should be enough magnesium available. A lot of individuals take calcium supplements and fail to realize that magnesium is required for optimal calcium absorption. That being said, you can consume cocoa along with the calcium supplements that you are taking.
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Chocolate-Powered Race Car
March 8, 2012
It turns out, chocolate may not only be used as a base material in making food products, drinks, and beauty products, but it could also be effective when used as a fuel. British scientists have developed a vehicle that is powered by waste from chocolate factories. The vehicle runs on vegetable oils and chocolate waste which was converted into biofuel.
Such fuel can be an alternative source of energy to answer the present worldwide energy crisis. The outcome was a vehicle filled with chocolate waste fuel which is able to run fast enough. This car, which is referred to as the greenest of its kind, is expected to reach the maximum of 135 mph when it is on the track. It can actually reach 60 mph from a standing start in less than 2 and a half seconds.
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Chocolate Bloom
March 1, 2012
Chocolates are supposed to be smooth and glossy. However, there would be instances wherein you'll observe white blemishes on them known as called chocolate "bloom."Â It can indicate that the chocolate wasn't stored properly.
Chocolate bloom is a sandy, white film that sometimes forms on the surface of chocolate. Although not pleasant to look at, it is actually a harmless defect. Bloom can be formed from cocoa butter or sugar that has risen to the surface.
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The Largest Cacao Producing Countries
February 23, 2012
Cacao is cultivated mainly in the lands of Asia, Central and South America, as well as in West Africa. The largest cacao producing countries are CĂ´te d'Ivoire, Ghana, and Indonesia. Such countries account for a huge percentage of the total worldwide production of cacao.
During the beginning of 1970, growing of cacao was almost exclusively done in countries like Brazil and Nigeria as well as CĂ´te d'Ivoire and Ghana. Today, the cultivation of cacao has widened its horizons and has reached certain areas like the Pacific region, in which you can observe remarkable growth rates in terms of producing cacao with countries such as Indonesia.
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Saving The Best Chocolate For Last
February 17, 2012
Ed O'Brien, a researcher in social psychology at the University of Michigan, has written the paper. His idea indicates that our choices are remarkably relying on the moment associated with preference. And one especially critical instant would be the end of the experience.
According to O'Brien's hypothesis, we are enticed by endings or last chances. He said: "I think in everyday life we do have this expectation that we save the best for last."
"When people are given awareness that something is about to end, they're kind of motivated to make the most of that experience," he added.
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Chocolate Kisses
February 16, 2012
In 1907, an exquisite brand-new candy was released, and it was called Hershey's Kisses. Hershey's Kisses is chocolate brand created by The Hershey Company. They are bite-sized and possess a unique shape, typically referred to as flat-bottomed teardrops.
33 million Hershey Kisses are produced in one day in Hershey, Pennsylvania. Curiously, the city was originally named Derry Church, Pennsylvania. It was renamed Hershey in 1906 (one year before the Kiss was developed) after the growing popularity of Hershey's Chocolate.
Hershey's Kisses are individually wrapped in small squares of lightweight aluminum foil which includes a thin strip of paper sticking out from the top. The reason behind its name is not precisely known, but theory has it that they were named after the machine that makes them which looks like lips.
Ever since it was launched, the wrapping process of Kisses has always been the exact same. The tiny flag sticking out of the candy was put in 1924. Currently, their machines could easily wrap around 1,300 of these treats in a minute.
The very first Kisses were wrapped exclusively in silver-colored foil during the earlier times. However, come 1962, colored foils made their way into the picture. This started off a trend over the following years to be able to complement just about any holiday. Red, green, and silver foils were made available during the Christmas season; pastel pink, blue and green foils to celebrate Easter; lastly red and silver foil to harmonize with Valentine's Day.
Up until 1990, no enhancements were done to the chocolate itself.  Now, Hershey's franchise put almonds into the candies. They were instantly and popularly accepted and have never gone away. And they've added other variations since.
After more than a hundred years, Hershey's Kisses continue to be a darling in the simple silver foil packaging. The sweet and smooth chocolate flavor has stayed pretty much pristine. They are widely known throughout the world and are recognized right away by practically anybody as one of the little pleasures in life.
Valentine’s Day Chocolate
February 14, 2012
Valentine's Day is many things to different people. It can be a shot at new beginnings, rekindling old flames, or a chance to show your special someone how you feel about them. To others, it can be a cold splash of reminder that they are alone on a supposedly lovey-dovey day. No matter what your expectations and reservations about Valentine's Day are, you cannot deny the fact that chocolate is a staple during Valentine's Day.
From the time of the Aztecs, chocolate has always been an effective gift. For a reason not fully known to man, it is, by some means, a magical way to say "I love you." Chocolate is a lot more than just food. A quote from Patrick Skene Catling, the author of the children's book entitled The Chocolate Touch, even says "Other things are just food. But chocolate's chocolate." True enough, even the scientific name of the tree which chocolate has been derived from, Theobroma cacao, translated from Greek, means "food of the gods."
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