The Food of the Gods: A Popular Account of CocoaHead, Brandon
History
The Food of the Gods: A Popular Account of Cocoa
Head, Brandon
Cocoa
Between cocoa and chocolate there are essential differences. Both are
made from the cocoa nib, but whereas in cocoa the nibs are ground
separately, and the butter extracted, in chocolate sugar and
flavourings are added to the nib, and all are ground together into a
paste, the sugar absorbing all the superfluous butter. If good quality
cocoa is used, the butter contained in the nib is all that is needful
to incorporate sugar and nib into one soft chocolate paste for
grinding and moulding, but in the commoner chocolates extra cocoa
butter has to be added. It is a regrettable fact that some
unprincipled makers are tempted to use cheaper vegetable fats as
substitutes for the natural butter, but none of these are really
palatable or satisfactory in use, and none of the leading British
firms are guilty of using such adulterants, or of the still more
objectionable practice of grinding cocoa-shells and mixing them with
their common chocolates.[14]
Flavouring is introduced according to the object in view; vanilla is
largely employed in this country, though in France and Spain cinnamon
is used, and elsewhere various spices. Willoughby, in his "Travels in
Spain" (1664), writes:
"To every three and a half pounds of powder they add two pounds
of sugar, twelve Vanillos, a little Guiny pepper (which is used
by the Spaniards only), and a little Achiote[15] to give a
colour. They melt the sugar, and then mingle all together, and
work it up either in rolls or leaves."
Another writer says: "The usual proportion at Madrid to a
hundred kernels of cocoa is to add two grains of Chile pepper,
a handful of anise, as many flowers--called by the natives
vinacaxtlides, or little ears--six white roses in powder, a pod
of campeche,[16] two drachms of cinnamon, a dozen almonds and
as many hazel-nuts, with achiote enough to give it a reddish
tincture; the sugar and vanilla are mixed at discretion, as
also the musk and ambergris. They frequently work this paste
with orange water, which they think gives it a greater
consistence and firmness."
[Illustration--Black and White Plate: Bournville Village: Laburnum Road.]
When the chocolate is sufficiently ground it is put into a stove to
attain the correct temperature, and is then passed on to a
moulding-table, where it is pressed into tin moulds, and shaken till
it settles. After passing through a refrigerating chamber, the
contents of these moulds are ready as cakes of hard chocolate for
putting up in the well-known blue "Mexican," or the dark-red "Milk,"
packets.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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