Chocolate is a food product made from roasted and ground cacao pods, that is available as a liquid, solid or paste, on its own or as a flavoring agent in other foods.
The word "chocolate" comes from the Aztecs of Mexico, and is derived from the Nahuatl word xocolatl, which is a combination of the words, xocolli, meaning "bitter", and atl, which is "water".
When it was first introduced into European culture, chocolate referred to a bitter beverage, often with Chili pepper and/or Corn added. It became popular in Europe only after these ingredients were replaced with Vanilla and Sugar to make the beverage we now know as hot chocolate.
Chocolate is a common ingredient in many kind of sweets. It is made from the fermented, roasted, and ground seeds of the tropical cacao tree. The substance yielded is intensely bitter. This substance is usually sweetened and the sweetened product is referred to as chocolate.
Unsweeted chocolate, or baking chocolate, is simply chocolate with nothing added. It has a very bitter flavor so is not often eaten plain, but it is used in baking.
Dark chocolate has no added milk, but does have sugar added, and is sometimes called plain chocolate. The U.S. government calls this Sweet Chocolate and requires 15% concentration of chocolate liquor. European rules specify 35% cocoa solids.
Researchers in Scotland and Italy say dark chocolate has much better anti-oxidant properties than milk chocolate - and much like drinking red wine in moderation, it may help protect against heart disease and cancer.
Bittersweet and semi-sweet chocolates are dark chocolates with high percentages of cocoa liquor (bittersweet having more than semi-sweet) and added sugar. They have a bitter flavor and are mostly used for cooking, but can be eaten plain. The two are interchangeable in most recipes.
Milk chocolate is chocolate with milk and sugar added. The U.S. government requires 10% concentration chocolate liquor. European rules specify a minimum of 25% cocoa solids.
White chocolate is a confection based on cocoa butter and sugar, but not the cocoa solids.
Cocoa powder is an unsweetened chocolate with most of the cocoa butter removed and pulverized into a powder, making it more convenient for cooking since melting is not required.
Chocolate chips are small chunks of sweet chocolate, often sold in a round, flat-bottomed teardrop shape, usually 1 cm in diameter.
Food produced from the seed of theobroma cacao
Chocolate is a food product made from roasted and ground cacao pods, that is available as a liquid, solid or paste, on its own or as a flavoring agent in other foods.
The word "chocolate" comes from the Aztecs of Mexico, and is derived from the Nahuatl word xocolatl, which is a combination of the words, xocolli, meaning "bitter", and atl, which is "water".
When it was first introduced into European culture, chocolate referred to a bitter beverage, often with Chili pepper and/or Corn added. It became popular in Europe only after these ingredients were replaced with Vanilla and Sugar to make the beverage we now know as hot chocolate.
Chocolate is a common ingredient in many kind of sweets. It is made from the fermented, roasted, and ground seeds of the tropical cacao tree. The substance yielded is intensely bitter. This substance is usually sweetened and the sweetened product is referred to as chocolate.
Unsweeted chocolate, or baking chocolate, is simply chocolate with nothing added. It has a very bitter flavor so is not often eaten plain, but it is used in baking.
Dark chocolate has no added milk, but does have sugar added, and is sometimes called plain chocolate. The U.S. government calls this Sweet Chocolate and requires 15% concentration of chocolate liquor. European rules specify 35% cocoa solids.
Researchers in Scotland and Italy say dark chocolate has much better anti-oxidant properties than milk chocolate - and much like drinking red wine in moderation, it may help protect against heart disease and cancer.
Bittersweet and semi-sweet chocolates are dark chocolates with high percentages of cocoa liquor (bittersweet having more than semi-sweet) and added sugar. They have a bitter flavor and are mostly used for cooking, but can be eaten plain. The two are interchangeable in most recipes.
Milk chocolate is chocolate with milk and sugar added. The U.S. government requires 10% concentration chocolate liquor. European rules specify a minimum of 25% cocoa solids.
White chocolate is a confection based on cocoa butter and sugar, but not the cocoa solids.
Cocoa powder is an unsweetened chocolate with most of the cocoa butter removed and pulverized into a powder, making it more convenient for cooking since melting is not required.
Chocolate chips are small chunks of sweet chocolate, often sold in a round, flat-bottomed teardrop shape, usually 1 cm in diameter.
Food produced from the seed of theobroma cacao