Where it all began...

Let us start at the very beginning, with a brief history before the fun begins...

It is the sixth century, and hidden deep in the Amazon, grows the ‘Theobroma cacao’ plant. Its beans are used by the Aztecs and Maya cultures for royal and religious celebrations, being presented as offerings to honour the Gods. They created a drink by grinding the beans to a powder, adding other ingredients such as seeds or corn, and then mixing with water. (As demonstrated below). Another popular use was as a method of payment for taxes and other expenses. Merchants would very often trade cocoa beans for other goods, such as cloth, jade, and ceremonial feathers.

The word ‘chocolate’ originates from the Spanish ‘xocolātl’ which translates as bitter water. Specialists are unsure as to how it found its place in this language, but most believe that it derives from Nahuatl, the language of the Aztecs, from the word ‘chocolatl’ or ‘xocolatl’ taken from ‘xococ’ meaning sour or bitter, and ‘atl’ meaning water or drink. I have included a recipe for Mayan Hot Chocolate for you to try.

Ingredients:
- 4 cups of milk
- 1/2 cup of unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 tsp. of flour
- 1/4 cup of brown sugar
- 3 crushed cloves
- 1/4 tsp. of nutmeg
- 1 cinnamon stick which has been broken into pieces
- 1/4 tsp. of dried, crushed chilli peppers
- 2 tsp. of powdered sugar
- 1 1/2 tsp. of vanilla extract
- Corn starch

Begin by heating the milk on a medium-low heat. Then sift the cocoa powder and flour together. Slowly stir in enough hot milk to form a paste. Add the brown sugar, crushed cloves, nutmeg, cinnamon stick and crushed chilli peppers into the paste, and add the mixture to the remaining hot milk. To avoid the mixture from burning, remember to stir constantly. To thicken the hot chocolate, stir in a small amount of corn starch until you are happy with the consistency. You will need to remove the cloves and cinnamon off from the top of the mixture with a spoon. Then, add the vanilla extract and powdered sugar. All that remains is to serve the drink and enjoy.

Fast forward and the year is now 1502. During a voyage to the New World, explorer Christopher Columbus (1451-1506), is the first European to taste chocolate. Clearly he knew that he had discovered something incredible, as he returned home with cocoa beans. However, no one knew how they could be used, and so this resulted in them being dismissed in favour of more popular products.

In 1517, Hernan Cortes (1485-1547), a Spanish explorer who also desired to explore the New World, arrived in Mexico to learn about the riches of the Aztec empire. It was here that he was introduced to ‘chocolatl’ by the Emperor of Mexico, Montezuma (1466-1520). Cortes was so impressed that in a letter to King Charles V of Spain he described ‘chocolatl’ as:

"The divine drink which builds up resistance and fights fatigue. A cup of this precious drink permits man to walk for a whole day without food."

Chocolate began appearing all over Europe in the late 1500’s. It quickly became a very popular item, as it was considered to be ‘exotic’. The Europeans are believed to have used sugar and milk to create a sweeter substance which would take its place in people’s diets as a dessert. The recipe for chocolate drinks developed, and even in today’s society, it is possible to buy flavoured hot chocolate, mixed with different ingredients such as chilli, peppermint, marshmallow and caramel.

During the Seventeenth century, there was a significant rise in ‘Chocolate Houses’, which became home to many politicians, writers and socialites. They are believed to have rivaled Coffee shops, which also served chocolate beverages. Unfortunately, their popularity faded, and by the end of the Eighteenth century, they began to disappear. However, some were kept and used as gentlemen’s clubs.

In the Nineteenth century, and an emulsification process enabled John Cadbury to create a solid chocolate bar. His method remained unchanged until developments in the Industrial Revolution, where machines were created which could produce chocolate. It is also during this time that chocolate was being distributed worldwide. Today Africa is responsible for growing two thirds of the world’s cocoa supply. This short video highlights how successful the Cadbury brand has become, and how it has developed to become a worldwide organisation.