The True History of Chocolate - From Ancient Origins to Modern Delights | Perfect for Chocolate Lovers, Gifts & Culinary Inspiration
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Product Description
"A beautifully written...and illustrated history of the Food of the Gods, from Olmecs to present-day developments."―Chocolatier. This delightful and best-selling tale of one of the world's favorite foods draws upon botany, archaeology, and culinary history to present a complete and accurate history of chocolate. The story begins some 3,000 years ago in the jungles of Mexico and Central America with the chocolate tree, Theobroma Cacao, and the complex processes necessary to transform its bitter seeds into what is now known as chocolate. This was centuries before chocolate was consumed in generally unsweetened liquid form and used as currency by the Maya, and the Aztecs after them. The Spanish conquest of Central America introduced chocolate to Europe, where it first became the drink of kings and aristocrats and then was popularized in coffeehouses. Industrialization in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries made chocolate a food for the masses, and now, in our own time, it has become once again a luxury item. The second edition draws on recent research and genetic analysis to update the information on the origins of the chocolate tree and early use by the Maya and others, and there is a new section on the medical and nutritional benefits of chocolate. 100 illustrations, 15 in color
Customer Reviews
A fascinating and fact-filled account of the history of chocolate from its Mayan origins to its reception in Europe during the early 1500s, the changing nature of its production and marketing to the present day and the major players in this - religiously, socially and culturally. This is such an engaging and interesting read. Filled with information about early Meso-America and an unflinching portrait of the Conquistadors and their role in the later dissemination of chocolate, never mind the cultural atrocities perpetrated on the people they encountered in South America, the book then travels to Europe and the reader learns of the role this rich and heady drink played among first, the cultural elite, before finding its way to the stomachs and hearts of the masses. The role of slavery is touched upon and my only critique is I would have liked to read more on this. Otherwise, this book is the seminal book on the history of the product we've come to know and mostly, love devouring.
