Imperialism Chocolate History

In Belgium, chocolate is more than a business; it is part of the culture. The Mother-of-four set up by a widowed in her own home, the outlet has become such a symbol of success that the Belgian Prime Minister, Guy Verhofstadt, took their chocolates on a recent trade mission to the US. One other Brussels chocolatier boasts the US president as a customer. Chocolatier Mary displays a photo of George W Bush lingering over its praline counter during a visit to the Belgian capital.

Belgium's love affair with chocolate dates from 1857 when Jean Neuhaus left his native Switzerland to set up shop in Brussels.
His grandson, also known as Jean Neuhaus, created the first filled chocolate, which he named 'praline', and his wife invented the type of box, or ballotin, in which Belgian chocolate is still sold. Chocolate-making really took off in the late nineteenth
century, aided by Belgium's acquisition of the Congo which gave easy access to African cocoa fields. Now, under Belgium chocolates there are many Internationally-known brands which include Neuhaus and Godiva at the luxury end and Leonidas and Guylian in the cheaper price bracket.

Consequently, Belgium's chocolate industry is as varied as it is big.
With a population of around 10million, Belgium produces 172,000 tons of chocolate a year and has more than 2,000 shops. Moreover it supports 290 chocolate-makers, 140 of which have fewer than five employees and seem to customers more like somebody's quaint front room than world-renowned businesses. Passion Chocolate is the prime example of such small-scale operations. "Most of the exports are going to the US and the most spectacular growth is in the internet sales," Mary's owner, Michel Boey, says.
"We began selling via the internet in 2001 and, from zero; exports are now about 15 per cent of our sales." For big factory producers like Guylian, the figures are even higher.

"Chocolate is a little bit of magic for the Belgian."

Over a thousand years ago somewhere in Central America, an Aztec Indian picked an odd, football-shaped fruit from the trunk and branches of a medium size, smooth-barked tree of the rainforest. Maybe the fruit, encased in a hard fibrous pod, was past its prime the normally refreshing white pulp slightly fermented, and the almond like seeds, or beans, dried out. Possibly the Indian splits the seed, or tosses the entire fruit, into the fire to cook. As the beans roast he was captivated by the aroma that we now associate with hot cocoa, freshly baked chocolate cake or hot fudge, perhaps this is the birth of humankind's millennia-old love affair with chocolate.
Chocolate was considered to be a cure for many illnesses and to provoke passion as well as tasting good during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries although it was still too expensive for people not in high society. The cocoa bean today is still in high demand of its sweet chocolate uses, as well as cocoa butter, cocoa powder and cocoa paste. The wastes of the chocolate making process are also being looked at for their potential uses; these include cocoa pulp and pod husks. In earlier times the cocoa pulp was also used as a beverage by South American natives.
The correct establishment of the cocoa tree into plantations is important in obtaining the desired yields of the cocoa bean. Shade trees are also essential for the cocoa tree survival and for its growing in the desired shape and height. The final important factor in plantation establishment and management is water management and properly constructed infield drainage The plants start to bear fruit at 18 ö 30 months after planting, After the pod has been harvested it is cut open and the beans are extracted. After this the beans are dried under the sun or using a mechanized drier, then the beans are stored. The beans are then roasted, graded and ground. Cocoa butter is removed from the resulting chocolate liquor either by being pressed or by the Broma process. The residue is what is known as cocoa powder.

Chocolate liquor is blended with the butter in varying quantities to make different types of chocolate or couverture. Then The conching process produces cocoa and sugar particles smaller than the tongue can detect. Then in tempering process uniform sheen and crisp bite of properly processed chocolate are produced which are the result of consistently small cocoa butter crystals produced by the tempering process.

Chocolate is very sensitive to temperature and humidity.
Ideal storage temperatures are between 15 and 17 degrees Celsius (59 to 63 degrees Fahrenheit), with a relative humidity of less than 50%.

Belgian Chocolate is an extremely popular ingredient, and it is available in many types. Different forms and flavours of Belgian Chocolate are produced which can be obtained by varying the time and temperature when roasting the beans.
Dark Chocolate is chocolate without milk as an additive. It is sometimes called "plain chocolate". or sweet chocolate", and requires a 15% concentration of chocolate liquor. European rules specify a minimum of 35% cocoa solids has to be mixed in it.
Milk Chocolate is chocolate with milk powder or condensed milk added. EU regulations specify a minimum of 25% cocoa solids in it. Unsweetened Chocolate is pure Chocolate liquor, also known as bitter or baking chocolate. The unadulterated chocolate with pure, ground, roasted chocolate beans impart a strong, deep chocolate flavour. With the addition of sugar, however, it is used as the base for cakes, brownies, confections, and
cookies.
Semisweet Chocolate is often used for cooking purpose. It is a dark chocolate with high sugar content.
Bittersweet Chocolate is chocolate liquor (or unsweetened chocolate) ro which sugar, more cocoa butter, licithin, and vanilla have been added. It has less sugar and more liquor than semisweet chocolate.
Other than these flavours such as mint, orange, or strawberry are sometimes added to Belgian Chocolate. Belgian chocolate bars frequently contain added ingrediants such as peanuts, nuts, caramels, or even crisped rice.