Chocolate, from history to recipes

Chocolate, from history to recipes

The emergence of Chocolate
It is impossible to define the origin of chocolate with a date. Presumably, the Olmec, the Maya and the Aztecs long familiar with cocoa, the raw material for chocolate, for they emigreerdern to the northern regions of South America. Already 600 years ago, the Maya, Olmec and Aztec already familiar with cocoa. Cocoa is obtained by modifying cocoa beans. These cocoa beans are actually the seeds of the cacao tree. The Aztecs and Maya wore the cocoa to their gods, paid it and used it to count. To drink, supplemented with herbs such as vanilla and chilli peppers, the combat fatigue. This is logical because the cocoa beans contain caffeine. The Aztecs also believed that drinking cocoa drinks would bring wisdom and knowledge.

Chocolate and sweet delicacy
Although chocolate more and more publicity to get started, it was a spicy drink to the nuns of Oaxaca, in Mexico, in the 16th century thought to add sugar. By the end of the 16th century, chocolate was in increasing quantities exported to European countries where, with the sugar instead of chillies there, in very appreciated by the wealthy class. The Spaniards discovered that by adding sugar to the chocolate paste and no fluid, it could also bake cookies. Despite the fact that the Spaniards tried the recipe of chocolate to keep secret, which they managed for more than a century, but it leaked out to the rest of Europe that real chocolate factories soon appeared.

Where does cocoa come from?
Cocoa trees are tropical plants that grow in the countries around the equator: Mexico, Domunicaans Republic, Colombia, Ecuador, Venezuela, Brazil, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Nigeria, Cameroon, Indonisia, Malaysia and Papua New Guinea. Of these countries ensures Ivory Coast for more than 40% of cocoa production in Ghana subsequent by almost 20% and Indonesia with a small 15%.

How cocoa is processed?
The base product of chocolate is the cocoa bean. These beans are local farmers harvest twice a year on the cocoa plantations. These farmers make sure the beans are dried and fermented on site. The various "buying stations" are the cocoa beans from local farmers and bought vermengeld.

The beans are then roasted in a tunnel running at a temperature of 140 ° C. The duration of the roasting, the taste of cocoa and chocolate is also influenced. Then the beans are broken and the 'peel' them blowing away. The nib, what remains of the beans are ground into a thick paste. It may be two directions. The paste can be used as cocoa mass, you can paste the presses in large cylindrical presses the fat out of it what is called cocoa butter. This one has two ingredients needed to make chocolate. If one chooses the option of pressing, we obtain the residue pressed together large blocks of dry mass. These can be ground into cocoa powder back.

How is chocolate made?
Chocolate is a combination of cocoa butter and cocoa powder. Depending on the type of chocolate are also milk (skimmed or whole milk powder), sugar, emulsifiers, vanilla or vanillin added. The more cocoa mass is added to a chocolate, how bitter the chocolate will be and the darker the view. In dark chocolate powder is no added sugar or butter and cocoa mass and cocoa. For white chocolate cocoa mass is then not used but only cocoa butter, sugar and milk (and any flavorings and emulsifiers). Hence it is popularly called sometimes said that white chocolate is not real chocolate.

Technical
The ingredients are first mixed making it a fairly hard paste them. This goes in large rolls. These are really great units that heavy cylinders together tighten. If this continues the pasta particles broken and crushed. This creates a dry mass after a preset period of rollers has a fineness between 20μm and 40μm. This dry mass (by means of a belt) to a conche transported where it is heated. The conching temperature and duration will determine the properties of the chocolate. The duration of the process can take between 6 hours and 24 hours to complete.

Solid
Often hot chocolate and held by the major suppliers of liquid tankers delivered. If the chocolate you want "fixed" to be, one must temper the chocolate. Tempering is necessary to the flavor, color and texture of the chocolate agreeable. If chocolate cools, crystals are released from the butter. If the chocolate is not tempered properly, he will solid matte white spots and get no sound and not crunchy. The temper is nothing more than the controlled vand to cool the chocolate. As liquid chocolate was 50 °, then it must be cooled to below about 20 ° and at different intervals so that the chocolate is not suddenly going to 20 °. Once the chocolate has to be this 20 ° weather slowly warming up to about 28 °. After the chocolate may be cast in a form as they choose.

A chocolate recipe
Easy butter truffles

* Something is always appreciated, good looks but is not difficult to make, are butter truffles. You can play with dark chocolate, white chocolate and milk chocolate. This recipe for white chocolate.
* Warm 250g white chocolate. Or you can do it au bain marie, but note that there is no water in your chocolate is, either you do it in the microwave, but then you watch that makes you very quiet and sufficiently stirring so the chocolate does not burn. Heat 125g butter until it also is pliable but not liquid. Let the liquid chocolate, stir through, cool to 28 °
* Add the butter and chocolate together and stir until smooth and shiny mass spraying balls on a sheet of greaseproof paper. Put it in the refrigerator for several hours.
* If the spheres are sufficiently stiffened, melt chocolate and make your back now chocolate flakes. Heat the chocolate until it is liquid and cool back down. Roll the balls in the first and after the liquid chocolate flakes. Allow several hours to set back and present your homemade truffles among many cheers.