Chocolate (PDF)

International Association of Culinary Professionals (IACP) 2010
Award Finalists in the Culinary History category.

Chocolate. We all love it, but how much do we really know
about it? In addition to pleasing palates since ancient times,
chocolate has played an integral role in culture, society,
religion, medicine, and economic development across the Americas,
Africa, Asia, and Europe.

In 1998, the Chocolate History Group was formed by the
University of California, Davis, and Mars, Incorporated to document
the fascinating story and history of chocolate. This book features
fifty-seven essays representing research activities and
contributions from more than 100 members of the group. These
contributors draw from their backgrounds in such diverse fields as
anthropology, archaeology, biochemistry, culinary arts, gender
studies, engineering, history, linguistics, nutrition, and
paleography. The result is an unparalleled, scholarly examination
of chocolate, beginning with ancient pre-Columbian civilizations
and ending with twenty-first-century reports.

Here is a sampling of some of the fascinating topics explored
inside the book:

* Ancient gods and Christian celebrations: chocolate and
religion

* Chocolate and the Boston smallpox epidemic of 1764

* Chocolate pots: reflections of cultures, values, and times

* Pirates, prizes, and profits: cocoa and early American east
coast trade

* Blood, conflict, and faith: chocolate in the southeast and
southwest borderlands of North America

* Chocolate in France: evolution of a luxury product

* Development of concept maps and the chocolate research
portal

Not only does this book offer careful documentation, it also
features new and previously unpublished information and
interpretations of chocolate history. Moreover, it offers a wealth
of unusual and interesting facts and folklore about one of the
world's favorite foods.