Chocolate Ingredients

For decades, or perhaps even centuries now, chocolate has continued to be one of the favorite foods of people living across the globe. Contrary to the common belief, it is not just children who are absolutely crazy about chocolate; several grown up men and women too just can seem to resist this sweet treat. In fact, chocolate lovers around the world usually take a lot of pride in admitting to their weakness for this sweet delight; there is also a special world that has been coined just to describe them, which is “chocoholics”. Many people choose to skip meals, just so that they can eat chocolate instead. This sweet delight has also been incorporated into many recipes across the world, which is why dishes like chocolate fondue, have become a hot favorite with many people.

This is also probably why chocolate is regarded as a suitable gift for most people, on several occasions. There are hundreds of different types and brands of chocolate easily available in the market. Many of these varieties vary, mainly because of the difference in the chocolate ingredients used.

The reason for this wide variety is probably that different people have diverse tastes and this applies to chocolate too. For example, while some people may like sweet, milk chocolate, others may have a preference for dark and bitter chocolate. Similarly, there are many people who prefer plain chocolate, while there are others who prefer additives like nuts, or even flavorings, such as vanilla or hazelnut. Not only is it possible to get chocolate of different tastes, there are also several different textures that are available in chocolate. For example, certain varieties of chocolate could be soft, or flakey, while others could be hard or chewy. In most cases, this wide variety of chocolate include three basic chocolate types, dark chocolate, milk chocolate and white chocolate. While the methods of preparation are more or less the same, the main difference likes in the chocolate ingredients used for each of the three types of chocolate. The chocolate ingredients list for each type of chocolate is different.

Dark chocolate ingredients

Dark chocolate is a very popular type of chocolate, which is made without the use of any milk solids. The main dark chocolate ingredients list consists of cacao beans, sugar and soy lecithin (an emulsifier to preserve the texture of chocolate). At times, nuts, dried fruit, or flavorings, such as hazelnut or mint may also be added to the dark chocolate ingredients list, in order to enhance the taste of chocolate. Due to the fact that there is no milk present in this dark chocolate, it usually has a chalky or a dry texture, with a bitter aftertaste, since its flavor is a lot stronger than regular chocolate. Dark chocolate is one of the favorites with many people, especially adults. Fortunately, it is easily available in most supermarkets and grocery stores today. People can choose to buy dark chocolate, based on its cocoa solid percentages. The choices usually range from anywhere between 30% & 70%, with 30% dark chocolate being relatively sweeter. As the percentage increases, so does the bitterness. Despite the fact that it is possible to get dark chocolate quite easily, there are many people who prefer to make it at home, using their own ingredients. The proper way to make dark chocolate is to roast cacao beans, remove their husk and grind them, so that the chocolate liquor can be extracted. However, there are many people who make do with cocoa powder instead. Given below is one of the easier recipes of dark chocolate:

Ingredients:

• 2 cups of cocoa powder
• 1 cup of water
• Cocoa butter to taste
• Sugar to taste

Preparation:

• Heat the water in a pan and add the sugar to it, stirring it till the sugar melts.
• Add the cocoa powder to the boiling water and mix it well, to prevent lumps from forming. However, the mixture should not be watery.
• Once the mixture thickens, pour it into moulds and refrigerate it

White chocolate ingredients

White chocolate is a popular type of chocolate made from cocoa butter, milk solids and sugar. It is much sweeter in taste, as compared to regular and bitter chocolate. In fact, there are several people who claim that white chocolate is not really a type of chocolate, since it does not include the two main ingredients required for chocolate, which are chocolate liquor and chocolate solids. However, the slight hint of chocolate which is present in white chocolate comes from one of its main ingredients, cocoa butter.

It is fairly easy for a person to make white chocolate at home, as long as they have access to the white chocolate ingredients list, as well as a wet grinder. Given below are the ingredients and method of preparing white chocolate:

Ingredients:

• Cocoa butter, 16 ounces
• Milk solids (powder), 14 ounces
• Soy lecithin, 1 teaspoon
• Sugar, powdered, 14 ounces

Preparation:

• Melt the cocoa butter in a pan, till it gets creamy and soft
• Once the melted cocoa butter cools a bit, pour it into a wet grinder and switch it on.
• Soon after the wet grinder starts rotating, pour in the milk powder, lecithin and sugar
• The mixture should churn in the wet grinder, for at least 6 to 7 hours, or till the chocolate reaches the desired consistency
• Pour the white chocolate mixture into moulds and place them in a refrigerator for at least 24 hours, allowing them to set

It is a well known fact that caffeine is present in certain foods and beverages, which include tea, coffee, aerated drinks and chocolate. In fact, there may be many people who avoid eating chocolate on a regular basis, mainly because they are concerned about the content of caffeine in their favorite food. In case a person is supposed to avoid caffeine for any reason, it is absolutely important for them to check what the chocolate ingredients caffeine content for each brand of chocolate is, before consuming it.

Submitted on January 16, 2014