Sweet History: 1753 … Food of The Gods, Chocolate

Heart Of Cacao Sacred Organic Raw Chocolate

Affordable and readily available, from the wealthy to the everyday-person, chocolate, by the middle eighteenth century, had secured a place in a person's life. Many varieties chocolate creations – from drinking to eating – were readily available in coffee & tea shops, pastry shops and food shops. But where does chocolate actually come from?

Theobroma Cacao, that's where. This is the official botanical name assigned to it by Carl von Linne in 1753. Theobroma from the Greek word meaning “food of the gods”; Cacao from the Aztec word cacahuatl. Theobroma Cacao or Cacao, the tree and its seeds processed to produce chocolate creations that we all just love.

For those thinking of having their own chocolate source in their own backyards, it might not be so easy. Cacao trees require regular rainfall, good soil and a humid environment. And of course, lots of love and nurturing. In the tropical or equatorial regions where cacao trees are grown, they are nurtured under a canopy of trees called “mother trees”. Mother trees – tropical trees, leguminous plants, banana trees, coconut palms, anything taller – provide the shade that allow the cacao to flourish and develop.

Like any fruiting tree, the fruits of the cacao start with flowers which bloom three or four times a year, though the fruits are usually harvest in May and October/November. The flowers are small (1.5cm in diameter) but grow in clusters. Hard to imagine them weighing down branches of the tree, but they do, that's why they – and the fruits – are produced directly on the tree trunk or near the forks of the main branches rather than on branches.

Though many flowers bloom, οnlу a few ripen tο thе dаrk yellow οr red fruits called cacao pods. The ripe pods are ovoid in shape, 15-30cm long and 8-10cm wide, weighing about 500g. The pod contains a sticky pulp-seed mixture from which approximately fifty (or 20 to 60g) cacao beans or seeds can be extracted.

Ripe pulps are split open, the watery pulp left open under the sun in baskets for 2-7 days to allow them to ferment, thus developing flavor. The cacao beans are the main ingredient of chocolate, while the pulp is used in some countries as an ingredient for a refreshing juice. Fermented beans still contain a lot water, so they're further dried and what's more natural than spread out to dry under the sun?

Once dried, billions of cacao beans make the transatlantic journey from the tropics to the processing plants in the East and West. There, they're roasted and the smell of cacao beans roasting is something intoxicating and truly delicious. Close your eyes and you'll easily dream up images of bittersweet chocolate creations. There's no limit. It arguably is better than roasting coffee!

More processing follows … but for now, that's where this post ends. More from when the beans are winnowed … but I can't help saying this: Chocolate, food of the gods. Fitting, isn't it? No wonder I love chocolate, don't you?

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