Saturday, April 26, 2014

Some Fun Facts About Chocolate

By Elba Fenwick


Movies have been made about it, songs and books have been written about it and even Peanuts creator Charles M. Schulz once quipped that while all we might need is love, "A little chocolate now and then doesn't hurt." This special food cheers us up and even provides some health benefits. If you are one of the millions of chocolate lovers on this planet, enjoy the following facts about this popular treat.

While sweet treats often are considered quite unhealthy, dark chocolate actually can be beneficial for our bodies. The antioxidants in dark chocolate have been show to improve the health of our cardiovascular system and reduce blood pressure. Some studies suggest that a small amount of dark chocolate can help keep a person from becoming diabetic. There are also studies that suggest that chocolate can improve memory and other cognitive functions.

Chocolate in some ways is similar to coffee. This food is produced using the seed of the cacao tree. The seeds by themselves are quite bitter, and they must be fermented in order to develop a richer flavor. After the fermentation process is complete, the beans are dried and roasted. Then the shells are removed and the remaining part is known as a cacao nib. This is the part that is ground up to make cocoa and chocolate.

Although, it was first produced in Central America and Mexico, most of the world's cocoa now is grown in Africa. Aztecs and Mayans drank chocolate but without any sugar or fat, and it was a fairly strong and bitter drink. Europeans were the first to add the sweet stuff and turn it into a confection. John Cadbury, of the famous Cadbury company, created the world's first chocolate bar around 1842, and the Cadbury brand still is going strong today.

Most of the world's chocolate bars and candies are produced by American companies, and Mars, Nestle, Mondelez International are the three top chocolate producers, while Hershey is also one of the world's Top Ten chocolate producers. Cadbury, still a hugely popular brand is part of Mondelez International. Candy bars such as Snickers, Kit Kat and Milky Way are some of the most popular chocolate treats sold each year, but many people prefer a more gourmet approach to their chocolate and opt for more upscale chocolatiers for their chocolate fix.

If you are searching for some of the world's most amazing specialty chocolates, consider browsing the offerings from Chocolate Pizza Company. Handmade chocolate pizzas are their main specialty, and each of these pizzas is handmade and packaged in a real pizza box. The pizzas come in dark, milk and white chocolate varieties, and Chocolate Pizza Company also offers a myriad of other sweet treats such as truffles, chocolate-dipped potato chips, almond bark, pecan clusters, Peanut Butter Wings and much more. The wings are a special Chocolate Pizza Company invention, a mix of creamy peanut butter and crispy potato chips dipped in melted dark or milk chocolate.




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