Celebrate! - Fun Food Facts

Chocolate Candy Day

Chocolate candy is one of the most popular sweets in the world, no wonder it has its own holiday. The word "chocolate" comes from the word "xocoatl" or "chocolatl". Mayan "school" means hot or bitter, and the Aztec "atl" means water. Chocolate is made from the cacao plant. Before it was ever made into a sweet candy, it was ground into a beverage. In ruling class society, the beverage was used for medical purposes. Chocolate candy is a confection covered in chocolate, for example a chocolate truffle or a chocolate bar.

In 1828 technology was invented that allowed chocolate to be produced into a solid form. Thanks to the invention of Dutch chemist Coenraad Van Houten, we can enjoy chocolate in the form we have today. His hydraulic press made it possible to remove the cocoa butter from the cacao-producing a powder opening the way for the first chocolate confections. In 1847 cocoa butter, cocoa powder and sugar were combined by British chocolate company J.S. Fry & Sons to produce the first edible chocolate bar. Chocolate truffles were first made in France in the late 19th century. Chocolate truffles can be made with a great variety of fillings including chocolate ganache, nuts, caramel, cream, toffee, fudge, nougat, fruits, berries, marshmallow, and even liqueur. A chocolate bar is a form of confectionery packaged in a bar or log form and coated with chocolate. They are usually sized as a snack for one person. A chocolate bar can be solid, but more often chocolate bars contain various fillings such as nuts, caramel, fruit etc. Modern chocolate bars were first produced in the early 20th century.

Delicious chocolate will improve your mood, so don't be afraid to indulge yourself. Just don't go overboard as you can have too much of a good thing.