Chocolate and Valentine's

Chocolate and Valentine’s Day

By Ruth Hall

I got this idea for a chocolate recipe when I bought this fondue pot on clearance. I read some of the suggested receipts for a chocolate dip to be used with small pieces of fruit and I tried it. It was a problem keeping the chocolate or the cheese fondue from burning and sticking to the pot. It gave me the idea to use some chocolate bars or the milk chocolate rabbit I put in the freezer from Easter.  I just added olive oil or any type of cooking oil just enough to make it a smooth consistency. Put it in the microwave for 30 seconds or less. Be sure to watch it so it doesn’t burn. Cut up some of my favorite fruit-strawberries, apples, oranges, etc. The fondue pot came with skewers for this purpose of dipping the fruit in the mixture, but they aren’t really necessary. Now you have your own hand-dipped chocolate fruit for a dessert or snack. If you don’t care to make your own, most super markets have the chocolate dip ready -made in a jar.

According to Martha Stewart,Healthy Living-Red wine and dark chocolate are heart-healthy . Rich in antioxidants and polyphenols,wine and chocolate (in moderation) may rein in blood pressure and lower heart disease.  1 piece (3/4 ounce) dark chocolate and 1 glass (3 ounces) red wine. Serves 1

Per Serving

192 Calories, 4 G Saturated Fat

O G Unsaturated Fat, 3 M G Cholesterol,

15 G Carborhydrate, 3 M G Sodium,

1 G Protein, 2 G Fiber

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 

History of Chocolate

Since Valentine’s Day is just around the corner, I thought I should look into some facts on one of the favorite gifts for Valentine’s Day-chocolate. There are few foods people feel as passionate about. Chocolate unlike many other things is an “American Invention”. The spread of cacao trees started during the age of Colonialism, as did the spread of cacao beans and chocolate itself. Christopher Columbus was the first European to come in contact with cacao. On August 15, 1502, on his fourth and last voyage to the Americas, Columbus and his crew encountered a large dugout canoe near an island off the coast of what is now Honduras. The canoe was the largest native vessel the Spaniards had seen. It was “as long as a galley” and was filled with local goods for trade-including cacao beans. Columbus had his crew seize the vessel and its goods, and retained its skipper as his guide.

Later, Columbus’ son Ferdinand wrote about the encounter.  He was struck by how much value the Native Americans placed on cacao beans,saying:

“They seemed to hold these almonds [referring to the cacaos beans} at a great price: for when they were brought on board ship together with their goods, I observed that when any of these almonds fell, they all stopped to pick it up, as if an eye had fallen.

What Ferdinand and the other members of Columbus’ crew didn’t know at the time was that cocoa beans were the local currency. In fact, in some parts of Central America cacaos beans were used as currency as recently as the last century.

While it is likely that Columbus brought the cacao beans he seized back to Europe; their potential value was initially overlooked by the Spanish King and his court. Twenty years later, however, Spanish Conquistador Hernando Cortez is said to have brought back three chests full of cacao beans. This time the beans were recognized as one treasure among the many stolen from the conquered Aztecs.

Health Benefits of Chocolate

Chocolate is a psychoactive food. It is made from the seeds of the tropical cacao tree,Theobroma Cacao. The cacao tree was named by the 17^th century Swedish naturalist, Linnaeus. The Greek term theobroma means literally “food of the gods”. Chocolate has also been called the food of the devil; but the theological basis of this claim is obscure.

Cacao beans were used by the Aztecs to prepare a hot, frothy beverage with stimulant and restorative properties. Chocolate itself was reserved for warriors, nobility and priests. The Aztecs esteemed its reputed ability to confer wisdom and vitally. Taken fermented as a drink, chocolate was also used in religious ceremonies. The sacred concoction was associated with Xochiquetzal, the goddess of fertility. Emperor Montezcima allegedly drank 50 goblets a day.  Aztec taxation was levied in cacao beans. 100 cacao beans could buy a slave. 12 cacao beans brought the services of courtesan.

The celebrated Italian libertine, Giacomo Casanova (1725-1798), took chocolate before bedding his conquests on account of chocolates’ reputation as a subtle aphrodisiac. More recently, a study of 8000 male Harvard graduates showed that chocoholics lived longer than abstainers. Their longevity may be explained by high polyphenol levels in chocolate. Polyphenols reduce the oxidation of low-density lipoproteins and thereby protect against heart disease. Such theories are still speculative.

Origins of Valentine’s Day

The history of Valentine’s Day-and its patron saint-is shrouded in mystery. But we do know that February has long been a month of romance. St. Valentine’s Day, as we know it today, contains vestiges of Christian and ancient Roman tradition. So, who was Saint Valentine and how did he become associated with this ancient rite? Today, the Catholic Church recognizes at least three different saints named Valentine or Valentinus,all of whom were martyred. One legend contends that Valentine was a priest who served during the third century in Rome. When Emperor Chaudeus II decided that single men made better soldiers than those with wives and families,he outlawed marriage for young men-his crop of potential soldiers. Valentine, realizing the injustice of the decree, defied Claudeus and continued to perform marriages for young lovers in secret. When Valentine’s actions were discovered,Claudeus ordered that he be put to death.

While some believe that Valentine’s Day is celebrated in the middle of February to commemorate the anniversary of Valentine’s death or burial-which probably occurred around 270 A.D. – others claim that the Christian Church may have decided to celebrate Valentine’s  feast day in the middle of February in an effort to “Christianize’’ celebrations of the pagan Lupercalia festival. In ancient Rome, February was the official beginning of spring and was considered a time for purification. Houses were ritually cleansed by sweeping them out and then sprinkling salt and a type of wheat called spelt throughout their interiors. Lupercalia, which began at the ides of February,February 15,was a fertility festival dedicated to Faunus, the god of agriculture,as well as to the Roman founders, Romulus and Remus.

According to bing.com and web crawler.com Valentine’s Day began in Ancient Rome. February 14^th was a holiday to honor Juno,Queen of the Roman God and Goddesses. The Feast of Lupercalia started the next day. During these times boys and girls were segregated. However, the young people had a custom that began on the eve of the Festival of Lupercalia. The girl’s names were written on pieces of paper and inserted into jars. Each boy then drew a girl’s name from the jar and they were partners throughout the Festival. After being paired, the children would often continue to see each other throughout the year and on occasion even fell in love and got married.

Valentine’s Day greetings became popular during the middle ages. During that time period, lovers sang or spoke their sentiments. Paper and written Valentine’s became popular at the end of the 15^th Century. The oldest Valentine that exists today was made during this era and is on display in the British Museum.

Works Cited

The Smartest Snacks Healthy Living February 2011 p 151 marthastewart.com/apps

Spadaccini J.The Sweet Lure of Chocolate,Exploratorium Magazine online,Volume 23,Number 3,retrieved January 26,2011 www.exploritorium.edu/exploringexploring-chocolate/

Chocolate-Directory of Chocolaters-Psychoactive Food retrieved January 26,2011 www.chocolate.org/

Valentine’s Day –History.com Articles Video Pictures and Facts dogpile.com retrieved February 3,2011 ,www.history.com/topics/valentines-day

Valentine’s Day Origin bing.com and web crawler.com retrieved February 3,2011 www.essortment.com/all/valentines day-rmhv.hlm

Ruth Hall