Chocolate…it’s a treat, it’s a bean, it’s a PLANT?

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Chocolate is not just a sweet glorious ray of edible
sunshine, Chocolate IS A PLANT!  It’s
been a 3,000 year journey from the biological roots of chocolate, to today’s
wild chocolate innovations….

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Montezuma

When Montezuma met the Spanish conquistadores in 1519, he intended to overwhelm them with a lavish display of royal hospitality.  To impress, the emperor of six million people brought out fifty golden jugs of one of his most potent weapons – chocolate.  However, what he served to the awed Spanish was not at all like the sweet chocolate we enjoy today. The cacao plant (Theobroma Cacao) is native to the Amazon region, and Montezuma was serving up an elite tradition of chocolate that had begun 3,000 years before the Spanish arrival.  The Spanish experienced a drink made of the beans of the cacao pod, ground and mixed with water, vanilla, chile, and cornmeal, which had been poured back and forth at a height to create an enticing, bitter, melt-in-your-mouth froth.  In an instant, the global obsession with chocolate was born.

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Cacao seedpods

Chocolate can now be found anywhere in the world, and it’s easy to forget that under the bright wrappers and diverse flavors, chocolate comes from a plant with a very powerful chemical profile.  The cacao tree and its precious seedpods only grow in equatorial regions of the world, and produce a bean that is much more than just tasty.  Cacao beans are psychoactive, with multiple compounds capable of stimulating the production of neurotransmitters in the brain.  Through their bitter and frothy beverage, Mesoamericans were the first to enjoy the stimulating effects of Theobromine, a chemical in cacao that is very similar to caffeine.  Theobromine increases blood flow, inducing a feeling of mental alertness, vigor, and overall well-being. On top of this dynamic duo, cacao also has Tryptophan and Phenylethylamine, among many other compoundsTryptophan assists in the creation of the “feel-good” neurotransmitter Serotonin.  Phenylethylamine assists with the creation of another happiness-inducing neurotransmitter, Dopamine.  These delightful neurotransmitters, plus a surprising number of antioxidants and anti-inflammatory compounds, can help explain humankind’s passionate three-thousand-year love affair with chocolate.

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Cacao beans

The cacao beans that furnish this phytochemical feast are actually quite challenging to grow, and need just the right conditions and lots of care to fight the diseases and pests that typically attack them.  There are three main varieties of cacao bean available today, and within each variety there are several, often  genetically different, hybrid strains.  Relatively hardy Forestera beans make up 85 percent of the world’s chocolate.  Most prized, rare, and delicate are Criollo beans, which provide 3% of the world’s chocolate.  The hybrid of Forestera and Criollo is known as Trinitario, which was created in the 18th century when a hurricane nearly caused the Criollo variety to go extinct.  Although Criollo plants are not productive on a scale that can meet global demand, they produce flavors and aromas that are more complex and rich.  Much like wine, Criollo can be described as having notes of fruit, tobacco, or caramel.  Criollo was the preferred variety of the Aztec and Maya, and most likely the one that the Spanish enjoyed as part of Montezuma’s hospitality.

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Truffles

Go to the supermarket today, and in the candy aisle you will see an array of chocolate worthy of an Aztec Emperor.  If you wish, you can pay a kingly fortune for the best of it  — the Guinness World Record holder is about 650 dollars for ONE 80-gram bar made of some of the rarest beans on earth! The West African nation of Cote d’Ivoire  produces 2/5ths of the worlds Forestera.  By contrast, most Criollo beans today come from small farms in Venezuela or Madagascar.  Since the very best beans are so rare and precious, the cost for the finest chocolate in the world can be incredibly high.  The world record holder, “La Chuorsa,” is put out by Swiss Chocolatier Attimo, using beans from a small 400 year old family farm in Venezuela.  To add to the flavor profile (and price) even further, it is enhanced with orange flavor and another expensive and rare ingredient, saffron.  If 650 dollars for one bar is a bit rich for your blood, there are other adventures in chocolate flavors out there.  For a mere 250 dollars you can purchase a chocolate truffle with a genuine fungus truffle inside!  Compartes Chocolates in California gets high ratings for creativity with less expensive bars of flavors like “Avocado & Chips,” “Fruity Pebbles,” and “Donuts and Coffee.”  An Aztec Emperor would surely recoil at the sweet, milky flavors of chocolate today, but that is the beauty in the biology of chocolate.  Cacao’s pleasing array of phytochemicals and rich flavors practically guarantee an enjoyable experience.  Whether taken bitter by an emperor or sweet by an excited trick-or-treater, on the molecular level, chocolate is sure to satisfy your brain and not just your sweet tooth.  

Sources:

An Introduction to the Science of Chocolate
A General history of Chocolate
The different types of Cacao
Africa and the Global Cocoa Trade
Farmer harvesting, fermenting and roasting Cacao beans
The Neurochemistry of Chocolate
Scientific Paper on the Health Benefits of Chocolate
Attimo Chocolate Company
Compartes Chocolate Company
Strange Chocolate Flavors from Around the World

The Science of Chocolate

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Happy #NationalChocolateDay!

With today being National Chocolate Day and only 3 days from Halloween, we figured it would be appropriate to discuss the science of chocolate! Many of you may have noticed different terms on your favorite candy bars wrapper describing it as chocolate, cocoa, & cacao.

So what are the differences to these types of chocolates? They are actually all products of the same cacao plant harvested in warm tropical climates around the Equator. Around 70% of cacao is harvested from western Africa. Cacao looks like a football shaped melon. Inside are the cacao beans, that harvesters extract and allow to dry in the sun. Once the beans have dried they are shipped all over the world. When they arrive at their location, the beans are cleaned, stripped of their shells and the raw cocoa nib is now ready to be processed. The nibs are melted together and then ground down to make a cocoa powder. The cocoa powder gets sugar, lecithin and other ingredients added to it, melted all together and formed into blocks or bars.

Above: The Cacao Plant

Above: Dried Cacao beans

Above: Cocoa Nibs

Again wishing you all a very happy #NationalChocolateDay!

Sweeten Up Your Valentine’s Day with FUN Science!

Today, we’re celebrating the holiday of love with a  “hearty” dose of FUN science! Get ready to take a walk on the sweet side & discover if you’ve got the beat!

Don’t forget to scroll to the bottom of the post to find FUN  Valentine’s Day At-Home Science Experiments!

As always, We’d LOVE to hear how you spent your Valentine’s Day with Science! Click here to email us pictures & more!


To millions of American’s, Valentine’s Day means chocolate hearts, flowers & heart balloons, conversation hearts & even, heart cards. Matters of the heart have baffled humans since the dawn of time, with sonnets & entire books devoted to the meaning of love. But what about our actual hearts?

As we prepare to be immersed in heart-shaped imagery in the coming weeks, we wanted to investigate the mysteries of that vital organ that makes us tick – the human heart! It’s a fact that you can’t live or love without it & this month, we’re getting to the heart of the matter. Prepare to be amazed as we uncover some fascinating facts about our personal pumping machine! 

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Who says the kids at MIT only learn about quarks, electrons, and semiconductors? Turns out that for the past 6 years, a popular club at the prestigious school has celebrated the science of chocolate! 

In the spirit of the upcoming holiday, Valentine’s Day, we’re taking a walk on the sweet-side of science to find some decadent facts straight from MIT’s Laboratory for Chocolate Science.  Plus – check out the end for a delicious how-to video from the MIT Scientists with all you need to know for tea-infused chocolate truffles!

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Power of the Pulse! 

The heart. It’s amazing! Our heart is the key organ of our lives, pumping oxygen-rich blood to every part of our body. The rhythmic throbbing of your heart is called your pulse. Get Pumped as you explore the incredible power of the pulse & what makes us tick with this FUN at home experiment!

Click Here to Get Started & Download the How-To Guide!


Pumping Heart Model

The heart has long been the symbol of poetic love and a widely used symbol on Valentine’s Day. Our blood picks up the oxygen from our lungs. Our blood carries the oxygen all through our bodies and picks up the CO2 that we won’t use. Then it’s released from our blood into our lungs for us to breathe out.

Our heart is a huge muscle that pumps our blood all through our bodies. This model shows how the heart muscle can pump blood.You can make this model of a heart with your child to demonstrate how blood is pumped around the body. Why does our blood only pump in one direction? (answer: the valves close off and do not allow the blood back into the chamber it just came from.) You can see how to make a model heart here: http://www.smm.org/heart/lessons/lesson5a.htm.


Dancing Hearts

Good ‘ol baking soda and vinegar! These two substances react to form Carbon Dioxide. A solid (Baking Soda, or Sodium Bicarbonate) and a liquid (Vinegar, or Acetic Acid) react to form a gas!

Fill a tall, clear glass half full of water. Let your child drop in 2 or 3 little candy valentine hearts (conversation hearts). Observe the hearts. Now stir in a Tb of Baking Soda (sodium bicarbonate). Observe the hearts. Do you see any bubbles forming along the edges? Pour in a little Vinegar (acetic acid). Observe the hearts. Do you see any bubbles forming along the edges? Wait for a moment and you will see the bubbles form along the edges of the hearts…so many bubbles that they buoy up the heart so that it rises to the top of the water. The hearts will rise and fall. Why do the hearts fall? Why do they rise again?


Love Potion

Another round of Baking Soda and Vinegar to create a Carbon Dioxide explosion! You’ve probably all done this reaction at home, but put this Valentine’s Day twist on it for a lot of chemistry fun!

Pour a Tb of Baking Soda (Love Powder) into a tall, clear glass. We used a vinaigrette cruet because it looked more like a potion bottle. Drop in 2 drops of red food coloring. Have your child drop in one or two valentine candies (just for fun- they don’t effect the reaction). Now pour a tiny bit of vinegar (Valentine’s Day juice) into the bottle and swirl it all around quickly. Watch the liquid turn red and dissolve the solid baking soda. It will bubble slightly. Now pour a bit more vinegar into the bottle and observe the power of the Love Potion! Be sure to do this fun little experiment over the sink. 


Find even more science experiments that are perfect for Valentine’s Day! You can perform a color change reaction, make a chemical “beating heart”, prepare a special Valentine gift, and more!