The history of chocolate

When most of us hear the word chocolate, we picture a bar, a box of bonbons,
or a bunny.The verb that comes to mind is probably "eat," not "drink," But for about 90 percent of chocolate's long history,
it was strictly a beverage, and sugar didn't
have anything to do with it.
When most of us hear the word chocolate, we picture a bar, a box of bonbons,
or a bunny.The verb that comes to mind is probably "eat," not "drink," But for about 90 percent of chocolate's long history,
it was strictly a beverage, and sugar didn't
have anything to do with it.

.
The Latin name for the cacao tree,
means "food of the gods."

Many modern historians
have estimated
that chocolate has been around
for about 2000 years,
but recent research suggests that it may be even older.
Many modern historians
have estimated
that chocolate has been around
for about 2000 years,
but recent research suggests that it may be even older.

Both the Mayans and Aztecs believed the cacao bean had magical, or even divine, properties, suitable for use in the most sacred rituals of birth, marriage
and death.

Sweetened chocolate didn't appear until Europeans discovered
the Americas Legend has it that the Aztec king
Montezuma welcomed the Spanish
explorer Hernando Cortes
with a banquet that included drinking chocolate,
Chocolate didn't suit the foreigners'
tastebuds at first –one described it in his writings
as "a bitter drink for pigs" –
but once mixed with honey or cane sugar, it quickly
became popular throughout Spain.

By the 17th century, chocolate was a fashionable drink throughout Europe, believed to have nutritious, medicinal and even aphrodisiac properties . But it remained largely a privilege of the rich

Portuguese poet Fernando Pessoa once wrote, “There is no metaphysics on earth like chocolate.”

Hershey’s produces over 80
million chocolate Kisses--every day.
Hershey’s produces over 80 million chocolate Kisses--every day.

The English chocolate company Cadbury made the first chocolate bar in the world in 1842.

In the film Psycho, Alfred Hitchcock used Bosco chocolate syrup for blood in the famous shower scene.

Dark chocolate has been shown to be beneficial to human health, but milk chocolate, white chocolate, and other varieties are not.

The Catholic Church once associated
chocolate with heretical behavior, including blasphemy, extortion,
witchcraft, seduction,
as well as being an observant Jew.

There are actually zero cacao solids in white chocolate.

One chocolate chip can give a person enough energy to walk 150 feet.

Chocolate Helps You Live Longer
Research proves that candy eaters live almost a year longer than those who abstain.

Chocolate Makes You Feel Great
Chocolate is part of a healthy, balanced diet and it makes you feel great!