CHOCOLATE!!

Food 6 Minutes

Today is International Chocolate Day!  Now everyone has their favorite, go-to flavor, but, how much do you actually know about the different kinds of chocolate? Do you know what differentiates semisweet from bittersweet? Or why white chocolate is softer than milk chocolate? It all comes down to how the chocolate is made and what ingredients are used to make it. Read on to learn about the varying flavors, compositions, and characteristics of each kind of chocolate.

Chocolate Liquor

Chocolate liquor, sometimes referred to as unsweetened chocolate, is the base of all types of chocolate. This thick, dark brown paste is created from cacao nibs, the inside of the cocoa bean. The nibs are finely ground to a smooth texture. When heated, this paste turns to a liquid that can be formed into bars or chips. Chocolate liquor is 100% cocoa, with no added ingredients. Under high pressure, this paste separates into cocoa butter and cocoa powder (also called cocoa solids). Despite the name, chocolate liquor does not actually contain alcohol.

White Chocolate

White chocolate is easy to identify because of its cream or ivory color. It is made by combining sugar, cocoa butter, milk, vanilla, and lecithin (an emulsifier that helps the ingredients blend together). These ingredients give white chocolate its sweet vanilla aroma. White chocolate often has a flavor profile that can be described as predominately sweet, with bold notes of sweetened condensed milk and vanilla. Good quality white chocolate will have a rich, soft, and creamy texture — a characteristic that comes from its cocoa butter base and high sugar and milk content.

White chocolate is unique because it does not contain any cocoa solids. The cocoa solids are what give chocolate it’s dark brown color and chocolatey taste that we all know and love. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) sets standards of classification for each kind of chocolate. According to their definition, in order for something to be considered white chocolate it must contain at least 20% cocoa butter and 14% milk, and no more than 55% sugar.

Many ask, “Is white chocolate, chocolate?” The answer is yes because it contains ingredients from the cacao bean. Not to be confused with the white-flavored or vanilla-flavored coating that is often found in sub-par products. Cocoa butter is expensive because it is in high demand by the cosmetics industry, for use in lotions and other beauty products. Therefore, companies often create a compound that substitutes other vegetable fats in place of the cocoa butter. These white chocolate-like substitutes can’t be officially called white chocolate because they often don’t meet the 20% cocoa butter requirement set by the FDA definition.

White chocolate, when stored properly, has a shelf life of about four months. While it is delicious to eat, white chocolate is also great for cooking, baking, and decorating. The dairy-forward flavor profile adds subtle richness to any dish, while still letting other flavors shine through. White chocolate’s color lends itself well to decorating cookies, cakes, and confections.

Milk Chocolate

Milk chocolate is a classic that we all know and love from childhood. With its light brown color, creamy texture, and sweet flavor, milk chocolate is widely regarded as the most popular type of chocolate. It is made by combining chocolate liquor (cocoa solids and cocoa butter) with sugar, and milk. Sometimes an emulsifier, such as soy lecithin, is added to enhance its smoothness. According to the FDA definition, milk chocolate must contain at least 10% chocolate liquor and 12% milk.

Break off a piece of milk chocolate and let the aroma fill the air. Enjoy the smell of caramelized sugar, vanilla, chocolate, and dairy. Then take a bite and let the flavor fill your mouth. Milk chocolate often has a flavor profile that can be described as sweet and chocolatey, with notes of cooked milk and caramelized sugar and a vanilla aftertaste.

Milk chocolate is considered to be a good middle of the road chocolate.  It is characteristically sweeter, with a softer texture than dark chocolate, but not quite as sweet and soft as white chocolate. When properly stored, milk chocolate has a self-life of about 16 months. Milk chocolate is a great choice for when you want a chocolate treat or gift everyone will enjoy.

Dark Chocolate

Dark chocolate, with its notable deep brown color, is the second most popular type of chocolate. It is sometimes referred to as black or semisweet chocolate and is noticeably less sweet than milk chocolate. In recent years, dark chocolate has surged in popularity thanks to a number of articles being published about the health benefits.

Dark chocolate is fairly simple in composition. It is typically made from two ingredients — chocolate liquor and sugar. Sometimes small amounts of vanilla and soy lecithin (an emulsifier) are added. According to the FDA definition, dark chocolate must contain at least 15% chocolate liquor but usually contains closer to about 50%. Most high-quality, dark chocolate does not contain added dairy and can be a great vegan-friendly chocolate. The lack of dairy and less sugar gives dark chocolate firmer texture than milk chocolate or white chocolate.  This is why a well-tempered piece of dark chocolate will have a nice snap when broken in half.

The flavor profile of dark chocolate can vary widely based on the cocoa content of the chocolate. It is often slightly-sweet and chocolatey, with notes of baked brownie, red fruit, and brown spice (think cinnamon or allspice). Due to its chocolate-forward flavor profile, dark chocolate is great for baking when your recipe needs a rich, chocolatey flavor. Dark chocolate’s widely-acclaimed health benefits make it a favorite snack among health-conscious consumers. When properly stored, it has a shelf-life of about 20 months.

Bittersweet Chocolate

Bittersweet chocolate has gained a lot of traction recently as people started to learn more about cacao and cocoa percentages. This kind of chocolate, sometimes referred to as extra-dark chocolate, rose to popularity when people began claiming that you should eat dark chocolate with a cocoa content of 70% or more, in order to get the most health benefits. The recent rise in bean-to-bar chocolate makers and craft chocolate has also lead to an increase in awareness and popularity of higher cocoa content dark chocolate.

Semisweet and bittersweet chocolate share the same FDA definition, and must contain more than 35% chocolate liquor, although they generally contain at least 50% cocoa liquor. Bittersweet chocolate is typically 66% cocoa content or higher (the added sugar usually less than one-third of the total content).

Like its name indicates, bittersweet chocolate is often a little more bitter than semisweet dark chocolate. The chocolate’s flavor profile can vary greatly, depending on where the cacao is grown – some can be fruit-forward or have a deep earthy flavor, while others can have flavor notes of baked brownies. Bittersweet and semisweet are interchangeable when baking, depending on the recipe and personal taste preferences. Substituting bittersweet chocolate will give your recipe a deeper, less sweet chocolate flavor. Extra-dark chocolate, when properly stored, has a shelf-life of about 20 months.

Cocoa Powder

Cocoa powder is created when chocolate liquor is separated under high pressure, and the resulting cocoa solids are crushed into a powder. Unsweetened cocoa powder is essentially 100% cocoa.

There are two types of cocoa powder, natural cocoa and dutch-processed cocoa. Natural cocoa is lighter brown in color and has a strong chocolate flavor that is often acidic. Dutch cocoa is natural cocoa that has been alkalized to neutralize the acidity. The dutch-process gives the cocoa powder a deep, warm color and slightly milder flavor.

Unsweetened cocoa, especially dutch cocoa is great for baking. Unsweetened cocoa can be added to spice rubs and moles to give the dish a richer, more complex flavor. Dutch-processed cocoa is often used when making hot chocolate, because the extra process allows the powder to easily blend with liquids. When stored properly, unsweetened cocoa can have a shelf-life of about 18 months.

Ruby Chocolate

In 2017, ruby chocolate was discovered by Belgian chocolate maker, Barry Callebaut.  With its red-pink hue, this distinctive chocolate is noticeably different than its other chocolate counterparts.  It is not colored white chocolate, but rather a color derived from a specific type of cacao — the ruby cocoa bean (a bean typically grown in Ecuador, Brazil, and the Ivory Coast.) Because this is a relatively new discovery (and the exact cacao making process developed by Barry Callebaut is proprietary), there is no standard FDA definition.

Made from 47.5% cacao content and 26.3% milk, ruby cacao has flavors of intense fruitiness and fresh sour notes. This trendy new type of cacao is great for creating bold, fruit-forward chocolate treats and colorful Instagram-worthy chocolate confections. When stored properly, ruby cacao can have a shelf-life of about 12 months.

PLEASE NOTE:  Chocolate Bloom is a harmless gray coating on chocolate caused by rapid changes in humidity or temperature.  It doesn’t affect flavor or melting properties.  I personally never had chocolate long enough to see it bloom…lol.

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Published by pat frederick

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161 thoughts on “CHOCOLATE!!”

  1. Liked by 1 person

    1. I read a couple of articles about their stock dropping a lot but nothing specifically about bankruptcy. This article is from 2020 so I don’t know what the status is now…..

      EXCERPT:

      “- Beyond Meat’s legal dispute with Don Lee Farms is heating up after two judges ruled in Don Lee’s Favor this week.
      – Beyond Meat CFO Mark Nelson is individually named in the fraud claims.
      – Investors are finally forced to confront Beyond Meat’s unnerving legal issues.

      When Beyond Meat (NASDAQ:BYND) went public last year, investors went wild. The stock delivered outstanding returns for those who got in on the ground level, and it seemed that the plant-based burger maker could do no wrong on Wall Street.

      Since touching $234 back in July, the stock has come down meaningfully, but at $120 per share, Beyond Meat is still priced for perfection. That’s about to change— the firm’s legal troubles threaten to tear down its vegan empire.

      When BYND went public, a tiny paragraph in its prospectus mentioned an ongoing legal battle between itself and former manufacturer Don Lee. Investors largely brushed this off— even in October when Beyond Meat’s earnings report showed a 174% increase in legal costs.

      After months of turning a blind eye to Beyond Meat’s mounting legal troubles, investors are finally being forced to confront reality— the company may be in big trouble. Danny Goodman, director of development at Don Lee Farms, told CCN.com that a judge has ruled in favor of Don Lee in the first of many claims.

      “The judge has ruled in our favor and has ordered Beyond Meat to pay in the first of several of our claims. They ruled Don Lee Farms proved the probable validity of its claim that Beyond Meat breached its manufacturing agreement. Beyond Meat’s CFO and others are now named individually for fraud.”

      Don Lee’s victory suggests the family-owned company’s case is valid, and that Beyond Meat may be up against a damaging legal battle in the year to come. According to Goodman, the trial date is set for May 18 this year.”
      ——————
      Time to Sell Red-Hot BYND Stock?

      So far, BYND stock hasn’t felt much of an impact from the Don Lee dispute. But with the firm’s CFO staring down a fraud suit and its flagship product being called into question, investors may want to consider cutting their ties.

      Things look like they’re going to go from bad to worse for Beyond Meat in the months ahead as details about the lawsuit emerge, so it may be time to jump ship.

      Disclaimer: This article represents the author’s opinion and should not be considered investment or trading advice from CCN.com. As of this writing Laura Hoy did not hold a position in any of the aforementioned securities.”

      https://www.ccn.com/beyond-meat-stock-is-in-big-trouble-as-fake-meat-cfo-faces-fraud-suit/

      Liked by 1 person

    2. This is from last month:

      Entire Article: “Beyond Meat (BYND) shares have lost much of their value in 2022 so far. The slide could easily continue as Beyond Meat has no documented net earnings to report.
      Investors should stay away from BYND stock as the losses might only get deeper.

      Beyond Meat (NASDAQ:BYND) is a company that’s based on an interesting concept that once captivated Wall Street. Yet, theory and practice are two different things. BYND stock can’t seem to get off the ground lately, and Beyond Meat’s lack of net earnings will probably continue to cause problems.

      This is a shame, as this fake meat producer once had potential. Back in May 2019, Beyond Meat’s initial public offering was the biggest U.S. IPO since 2000. Shares soared 163% on their first day of public trading.

      However, this initial burst of enthusiasm may have been based more on hype than hard data. Faux meat might be a high-conviction industry, but conviction hasn’t been enough to keep Beyond Meat’s shareholders in the green.

      BYND stock was worth over $200 at one point in time. At the beginning of 2022, shares were worth slightly more than $60. More recently, the stock traded in the low $30s.

      There’s definitely a lesson to be learned here. Buying a stock during the early burst of hype can be bad for your financial health. Too many traders were counting on the the alternative meat category to explode in the coming years. This still might happen, but there’s scant evidence of it in Beyond Meat’s financial results.

      CFRA analyst Arun Sundaram is an example of a Wall Street expert who’s puzzled by Beyond Meat’s business model, or more precisely, the company’s inability to implement this model: ‘I don’t really understand their strategy right now. They’re saying they have a vision where they’re introducing all kinds of plant-based meat products, but they don’t have the experience of scaling any individual product with the end goal of sustaining profits and cash flow.’

      If you really want to get a taste of Beyond Meat’s problems, just check out the company’s most recently issued quarterly results. For the quarterly period ended April 2, 2022, Beyond Meat reported $109.46 million in revenue. Meanwhile, the company’s cost of goods sold was $109.27 million.

      In other words, for the quarter, Beyond Meat’s gross profit was minuscule. Shockingly, just the cost of goods sold ate up most of the company’s quarterly revenue. It gets even worse, though.

      Due to a variety of expenses, Beyond Meat incurred a quarterly net loss of $100.46 million. That’s substantially worse than the year-earlier net loss of $27.27 million. Thus, Beyond Meat’s financial hole only got deeper, and as a result, some traders may have chosen to sell BYND stock.

      Beyond Meat had its day in the sun on Wall Street, but that was three years ago. Today, investors have every reason to be frustrated with Beyond Meat’s poor results. Holding and hoping, therefore, simply isn’t a viable strategy when it comes to BYND stock. It makes sense to stay away and find other stocks to satisfy your appetite for profits.

      (On the date of publication, neither Louis Navellier nor the InvestorPlace Research Staff member primarily responsible for this article held (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article.)

      https://investorplace.com/2022/08/bynd-stock-will-only-leave-a-bad-taste-in-your-mouth/

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  4. gatesofhell named in lawsuit of wrongful death in India…
    FTA
    An Indian court ordered Bill Gates, the Indian government and the Serum Institute of India — the world’s largest vaccine manufacturer — to provide formal responses relating to a case filed by the father of a woman who died after receiving AstraZeneca’s Covishield COVID-19 vaccine.

    The High Court of Judicature at Bombay set a Nov. 17 deadline for the responses and scheduled a hearing for the same day.

    In a lawsuit filed in February, Dilip Lunawat alleged his daughter, Snehal Lunawat, died March 1, 2021, of complications arising from the Covishield vaccine. He is seeking compensation of ₹1000 crores (approximately $126 million).

    According to the lawsuit, Lunawat “lost his elder daughter. His loss can neither be explained in words nor can be compensated in terms of money. Only some sort of succour can be done by awarding compensation.”

    Defendants in the case include Adar Poonawalla, CEO of the Serum Institute; Bill Gates, in his role as partner in the development of the Covishield vaccine; the Indian Ministry of Health and Family Welfare; the Indian State of Maharashtra; India’s drug controller general; the former director of the All India Institute of Medical Science and others.

    A lawyer representing Gates reportedly appeared before the High Court to accept the notice.

    https://childrenshealthdefense.org/defender/bill-gates-indian-government-lawsuit-snehal-lunawat-death-astrazeneca-vaccine/

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    1. this is the picture they were discussing on tcth–REALPOTUS retruthed it…showing him wearing flag and Q pins…and they’re not allowed to discuss Q on tcth…
      interesting

      Liked by 1 person

  6. The Bee: “WASHINGTON, D.C. — Jen Psaki has started her first day at a completely new job where she will be doing the exact same thing she’s always done by acting as a mouthpiece for the Biden Administration. Psaki says she’s excited to try something new while also changing nothing at all.

    “I just have butterflies in my stomach. It’s all so new and different here,” said Jen Psaki walking into the MSNBC offices. “I feel like I don’t know what to say, I guess I’ll just do what I always do and spin the news to run cover for Democrats. That’s what I was hired for, right?”

    According to sources, all of Jen Psaki’s onboarding training designated for new hires was waived for her. MSNBC staff agreed there was nothing left that they had to show her, as she had already proven herself skilled at blandly delivering Democrat talking points from a notebook as White House Press Secretary.

    Jen said that she was pleased she didn’t even have to change out her badge. She just scanned her same badge from when she was White House Press secretary and walked right in and got right to work. “I will have to get used to mindlessly reading from a teleprompter instead of mindlessly reading from a 3-ring binder, but I am excited that I don’t have to worry about my hair getting sniffed constantly!” said Psaki.

    At publishing time, Jen grew a little nervous speaking from behind the newsdesk for the first time, but then she took a deep breath and just imagined that the newsdesk was a podium instead.”

    Liked by 1 person

    2. GENEVA — In order to both prod the human population as a whole to sample alternative food sources as well as capitalize on the annual fall craze, officials at the World Economic Forum in Switzerland unveiled their plan to introduce new pumpkin spice-flavored crickets.

      “We continue to believe the future of the human race depends on finding more sustainable — and not at all disgusting in any way — sources of food,” said Gustaf Weisenheimer at a press conference announcing the new flavor. “And while crickets are wonderfully delicious by themselves, we wanted to do something very special for the fall season.”

      The announcement was met with a mixed response from the public. “I’m a nut for anything pumpkin spice-flavored,” said full-time mother and part-time goat farmer Annie Lupascu, “but crickets? No. That’s gross, no matter what spin you try to put on it.” Others weren’t entirely opposed to trying the new product. “Sure, I’ll try some crickets,” said Caitlin Anderson. “Honestly, I would probably eat a shoe if it was pumpkin spice-flavored.”

      There are rumors that this could be a sign of things to come. If the pumpkin spice flavor goes over well with consumers, the WEF has tentative plans to develop other popular cricket flavors, including cheddar & sour scream, flamin’ hot, and cool ranch crickets.

      At publishing time, officials were eagerly awaiting word regarding the public’s response while simultaneously denying the allegations that they are actually producing crickets because they are the favorite food of a cabal of secret lizard people overlords ruling the world behind the scenes.

      Liked by 1 person

    3. More Bee….”WASHINGTON — After weeks of unsuccessfully stoking Trump supporters towards violent action, the FBI has changed course, beginning internal discussions for executing a MAGA-style attack using FBI resources.

      “We are already at Defense Readiness Condition 3 – this means that if the extreme MAGA wing doesn’t act, we will bypass the plainclothes agent phase to DefCon 1, bringing out our biggest weapon: Ray Epps.” FBI Director Christopher Wray addressed a round table of defense ministers, eliciting scattered gasps when he invoked Ray Epps, the famous FBI asset with expertise in starting insurrections.

      The attempts to get “MAGA Republicans” to commit terrorism have escalated in recent weeks. The gentle initial prodding of the Mar-A-Lago raid failed to evoke a riot, and the prodding was then escalated to a speech by Biden with obvious fascist overtones attacking Trump supporters, finally culminating in the raiding of over 50 Trump ally homes last week. “If that doesn’t do it, what will?” said Wray.

      Critics have contended that there is no widespread evidence of the FBI’s history of supporting and propagating terrorism to justify crackdowns on the current administration’s political enemies. Ted Cruz, however, has asked pointed questions about FBI involvement in perpetrating the events of January 6, and Cruz asked Justice Department representatives whether the FBI was involved. The FBI has provided a comprehensive answer to Cruz, saying “Shut up.”

      At publishing time, several dozen military-age males with crew cuts had shown up in attendance to an “election justice” rally of Trump supporters but were sadly outed as Feds and given swirlies and wedgies.”

      Liked by 1 person

  7. they should not be allowed to cover their indiscretions in this manner!!!

    Liked by 1 person

  8. bad move manchin
    FTA
    Hang on a second, I just spit my drink out everywhere laughing.

    Let me get this straight. Joe Manchin, who betrayed Republican senators by breaking his word to them, actually expects those same Republican senators to give him their votes for his permitting reform bill because Democrats, who originally made this deal with him, won’t uphold their end of the bargain? That’s how he’s going to play this?

    You can only shake your head at the brazenness with which the West Virginia senator is operating. He really thinks he can just throw the mask back on and suddenly become a bi-partisan figure again. But that’s now how this works at all. Manchin had a chance to do the right thing, maintain his credibility, and not give into Joe Biden’s harmful policy proposals. Instead, he fed into his own delusions of grandeur in an attempt to appease a group of people who still hate him. That’s a bed he made and that’s the bed he gets to sleep in.

    This isn’t a difficult calculus. Manchin made his deal with Democrats and now they should be the ones to uphold it. It is not up to Republicans who got shanked in the back to rush in and save Manchin’s payoff from a deal the GOP didn’t want in the first place. The suggestion is ludicrous, and I sincerely hope Republicans in the Senate aren’t stupid enough to go along with this. They should support the Capito plan on permitting reform, and let Manchin enjoy his new best friends.

    https://redstate.com/bonchie/2022/09/13/joe-manchin-begs-republicans-to-save-his-bad-deal-with-democrats-n626807

    Liked by 1 person

  9. I am adding a short daily prayer to the board. I would invite each of you, if you wish, to also add one or maybe two of your own liking. I do not want to stifle anyone but please limit yourself to one or two religious postings. here’s one I found that I liked.

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        1. ohhhhhh….German chocolate cake is one of my favorites!
          I won the language bake off in high school, three years running with a homemade German chocolate cake…
          it wasn’t just a cake though–i made Hansel & Gretel out of cake, then a beer stein, and then a castle…

          Liked by 1 person

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