fun chocolate facts
Cacao DNA Revealed!
September 21, 2010
Here’s some chocolate trivia few people know since its only recently been discovered: The cacao plant has about 35,000 genes.
I looked it up and humans have about 30,000 genes. Umm, should I be concerned?
11 years ago, the Cacao Genome Database Project was founded to sequence the genome of Theobroma cacao. 3 years ahead of schedule, the genome sequence was released on September 15, 2010!
The goal of the genome project is to provide as much genetic information as possible and as fast as possible. A cacao tree takes up to 5 years to mature and start producing. It is more beneficial to the farmer to find out if the tree has any weaknesses, such as vulnerability to disease, at the seedling stage.
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Does Chocolate Give You Acne?
September 9, 2010
How did a link between chocolate and pimples come to be? From what I can tell by reading some of the history behind chocolate health myths is that people assumed that acne was caused by eating too much fat and since chocolate has a high fat content, chocolate caused acne.
While I find this sort of logic laughable, plenty of 1950’s dermatology books put it in print as fact.
Over the years, many foods have been blamed for certain ailments and afflictions. Chocolate has been singled out to cause such things as tooth decay, acne, obesity, and depression. But chocolate by itself doesn’t cause these problems. No single food does.
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Peanut Butter and Chocolate
August 14, 2010
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.
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Invite Chocolate To Your Wedding!
August 12, 2010
Chocolate and celebrations go back as early as the ancient Maya, maybe even earlier. The Maya served a frothy chocolate beverage made from crushed cacao beans. Perhaps it was used for the first toast by the best man!
Today, the tradition of serving chocolate at weddings continues. Receptions serve guests chocolate wedding cake, the bride and groom thank their guests with chocolate wedding favors and, the pièce de résistance, a chocolate fountain for dipping!
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Categories of Cocoa Beans
August 5, 2010
The chocolate world divides cocoa beans into two general categories: Flavor Beans (varieties Criollo or Trinitario) and Bulk Beans (variety Forestero).
The percentage of flavor beans in the total world production of cocoa beans is only around 5% per year. Virtually all the cocoa harvested is classified as bulk cocoa.
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The Spread of Cacao Around the World
July 29, 2010
I was recently asked about the spread of Cocoa or Cacao trees around the world.
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.
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Cocoa Bean Shells Make Great Mulch
May 26, 2010
I love the smell of my flower bed after it rains. Ahhhh, it smells so chocolatey!
Yep, that’s right, an aroma like brownies baking in an oven. I use cocoa bean shells for mulch and it is true that when it gets wet, it smells delightfully like chocolate.
As the name indicates, cocoa shell mulch is made from the shell of the cocoa bean. These shells come off the bean either during or just prior to the roasting process. The shells are cleaned and packaged for sale as mulch.
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Chocolate and Romance: A Great Pairing
February 8, 2010
Like chocolate, for instance.
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Chocolate and Cocoa Recipes
January 9, 2010
Back in 1909 Walter Baker & Co., Ltd. published a little book called Chocolate and Cocoa Recipes By Miss Parloa and Home Made Candy Recipes By Mrs. Janet McKenzie Hill.
The staff here at Chocolate University Online have created a special 100th anniversary edition of this book and released it in a PDF download format.
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