Hot chocolate

Hot chocolate, also known ashot cocoaordrinking chocolate, is a heateddrinkconsisting of shaved or meltedchocolateorcocoa powder, heatedmilkorwater, and usually asweetener. It is often garnished withwhipped creamormarshmallows. Hot chocolate made with melted chocolate is sometimes called drinking chocolate, characterized by less sweetness and a thicker consistency.
The first chocolate drink is believed to have been created at least 5,300 years ago, starting with theMayo-Chinchipeculture in what is present-dayEcuador,and later consumed by theMayaaround 2,500–3,000 years ago. A cocoa drink was an essential part ofAztecculture by 1400 AD.The drink became popular in Europe after being introduced from Mexico in theNew Worldand has undergone multiple changes since then. Until the 19th century, hot chocolate was used medicinally to treat ailments such as liver and stomach diseases.
Hot chocolate is consumed throughout the world and comes in multiple variations, including the spicedchocolate para mesaof Latin America, the very thickcioccolata caldaserved in Italy andchocolate a la tazaserved in Spain, and the thinner hot cocoa consumed in the United States. Prepared hot chocolate can be purchased from a range of establishments, includingcafeterias,fast food restaurants,coffeehousesandteahouses. Powdered hot chocolate mixes, which can be added to boiling water or hot milk to make the drink at home, are sold atgrocery storesandonline.
Archaeologists have found evidence thatMayanchocolate consumption occurred as early as 500 BC, and there is speculation that chocolate predates even the Mayans.To make the chocolate drink, which was served cold, the Maya ground cocoa seeds into a paste and mixed it withwater,cornmeal,chili peppers, and other ingredients.They then poured the drink back and forth from a cup to a pot until a thick foam developed.Chocolate was available to Maya of all social classes, although the wealthy drank chocolate from "large spouted vessels" that were often buried with elites.An early Classic period (460-480 AD) Mayan tomb from the site of Rio Azul, Guatemala, had vessels with theMaya glyphfor cacao on them with residue of a chocolate drink.
Becausesugarwas yet to come to the Americas,chocolate was said to be anacquired taste. Chocolate was then a drink consisting of a chocolate base flavored withvanillaand other spices that was served cold.The drink tasted spicy and bitter as opposed to sweetened modern hot chocolate,andJosé de Acosta, a SpanishJesuitmissionary who lived inPeruand thenMexicoin the later 16th century, described chocolate as:
Within Mesoamerica many drinks were made from cacao beans, and further enhanced by flowers like vanilla to add flavor.This was a tribute to the Aztecs. The Aztecs, or Mexica, required conquered people to provide them with chocolate. Cups, gourds, cacao beans, as well as other things they acquired were listed inThe Essential Codex Mendoza.Cacao became used as a currency throughout Mesoamerica.The Aztecs used chocolate to show high status: it was a bad omen for someone low or common to drink chocolate.
Europeans' first recorded contact with chocolate was not until 1502 onColumbus'sfourth voyage.After its introduction to Europe, the drink slowly gained popularity. The imperial court ofEmperor Charles Vsoon adopted the drink, and chocolate became afashionabledrink popular with the Spanishupper class. Additionally, cocoa was given as adowrywhen members of the Spanish royal family married other European aristocrats.At the time, chocolate was very expensive in Europe because the cocoa beans only grew in South America.
Sweet-tasting hot chocolate was then invented, leading hot chocolate to become a luxury item among the European nobility by the 17th century.Even when the first Chocolate House (an establishment similar to a modern coffee shop)opened in 1657, chocolate was still very expensive, costing 50 to 75pence(approximately 10–15 shillings) a pound (roughly £45–65 in 2016).At the time, hot chocolate was often mixed with spices for flavor; one notable recipe was hot chocolate "infused with fresh jasmine flowers, amber, musk, vanilla andambergris."In the late 17th century,Sir Hans Sloane, president of theRoyal College of Physicians, visitedJamaica, where he was introduced to cocoa. He found it 'nauseous' but by mixing it with milk made it more palatable. When Sloane returned to England, he brought the recipe with him, introducing milk chocolate to England.The aristocratic nature of the drink led to chocolate being referred to as "the drink of the gods" in 1797.
The Spanish began to usejicarasmade of porcelain in place of the hollowed gourds used by the natives.They then further tinkered with the recipes by using spices such as cinnamon, black pepper, anise, and sesame. Many of these things were used to try to recreate the flavor of the native flowers which they could not easily acquire.Black pepper was used to replace chillies andmecaxochitl, cinnamon was used in place oforejuelas, sugar replaced honey.
In 1828,Coenraad Johannes van Houtendeveloped the first cocoa powder producing machine in theNetherlands.The press separated the greasycocoa butterfrom cacao seeds, leaving a purer chocolate powder behind.This powder was easier to stir into milk and water. By using cocoa powder and low amounts of cocoa butter, it was also possible to manufacturechocolate bars. The termchocolatethen came to mean solid chocolate rather than hot chocolate, with the first chocolate bar being created in 1847.
According to tradition, the Italian version cioccolata calda was first born inTurinaround 1560: to celebrate that the capital of theDuchy of Savoywas moved fromChambéryto Turin,Emmanuel Philibert, Duke of Savoyasked for a new beverage, and so this thicker, creamy version was created.
A distinction is sometimes made between "hot cocoa", made from cocoa powder (ground cacao beans from which much of the cocoa butter has been removed),and "hot chocolate", made directly from bar chocolate, which already contains cocoa, sugar, andcocoa butter.Thus, the major difference between the two is the cocoa butter, the absence of which makes hot cocoa significantly lower in fat than hot chocolate while still preserving all the antioxidants found in chocolate.
Whipped cream and marshmallows are frequently added to hot chocolate.Theobrominefound in thecocoa solidsis fat soluble.Cocoa beanscontain significant amount of fats, butcocoa powderis usually defatted. However, adding fat to defatted cocoa powder will increase itsbioavailability.
Rum is added to hot chocolate to make aLumumba.
Today, hot chocolate in the form of drinking chocolate or cocoa is considered acomfort foodand is widely consumed in many parts of the world.  European hot chocolate tends to be relatively thick and rich, while in the United States the thinner instant version is consumed more often.  InNigeria, hot chocolate is referred to as "tea" even though it is not actually ateadue to the Nigerian custom of referring to drinks consumed in the morning as "tea".Many regions have distinctive additives or toppings, ranging frommarshmallowand whipped cream to cheese.
In mainland Europe (particularly Spain and Italy), hot chocolate is sometimes served very thick due to the use of a thickening agent such as cornstarch.One of the thick forms of hot chocolate served in Europe is theItaliancioccolata calda.
Hot chocolate withchurrosis a traditionalbreakfastin Spain. This style of hot chocolate can be extremely thick, often having the consistency of warm chocolatepudding.In the Netherlands, hot chocolate is a very popular drink, known aswarme chocolademelk. It is often served at home or in cafes. In France, hot chocolate is often served at breakfast time. Sometimes sliced bread spread with butter, jam, honey, orNutellais dunked into the hot chocolate.
InGermany, hot chocolate made by melted chocolate (Heiße Schokolade Wiener Art) is distinguished from those made from powders (Trinkschokolade).It is often served with whipped cream on top.
Even further variations of hot chocolate exist. In some cafes in Belgium and other areas in Europe, one who orders awarme chocoladeorchocolat chaudreceives a cup of steaming white milk and a small bowl of bittersweet chocolate chips to dissolve in the milk.OneViennesevariant,Heiße Schokolade Wiener Art, contains an egg yolk for thickness.
In the United States and Canada, the drink is popular in instant form, made with hot water or milk from a packet containing mostly cocoa powder,sugar, and dry milk.This is the thinner of the two main variations.It is very sweet and may be topped withmarshmallows,whipped cream, or a piece of solid chocolate. Hot chocolate was first brought to North America as early as the 17th century by the Dutch, but the first time colonists began selling hot chocolate was around 1755.Traditionally, hot chocolate has been associated with cold weather and winter in the United States and Canada.
Hot chocolate mixed with espresso or coffee under the name ofcaffè mochais sold in coffee shops around the United States and elsewhere.  This particular name comes from the town Mocha, Yemen, where a specific blend of coffee with the same name is grown.
In Mexico, hot chocolate remains a popular national drink, often including semi-sweet chocolate,cinnamon, sugar, andvanilla.Hot chocolate of this type is commonly sold in circular or hexagonal tabletswhich can be dissolved into hot milk, water, or cream, and then blended until the mixture develops a creamyfroth. A 1942 article in the Chicago Tribune describes Mexican cinnamon hot chocolate as being traditionally served alongside a variety of sweet Mexican pastries,such aspan dulceorchurros.
InColombia, a hot chocolate drink made with milk and water using achocolateraandmolinillois enjoyed as part of breakfast with bread and soft, fresh farmer's cheese.  Colombian hot chocolate is often topped with a soft farmer's cheese or other mild cheese.Similarly, hot chocolate in Ecuador is often topped with cheese.
InPeru, hot chocolate can be served withpanettoneat breakfast onChristmas Day, even though summer has already started in the southern hemisphere.In addition, many Peruvians will add a sweet chocolate syrup to their drink.
TheArgentiniansubmarinois a hot chocolate drink made from adding a chocolate bar and sugar to hot steamed milk.
Also numerous documents reveal medicinal uses of cacao throughout Central and South America in which different components of the tree are still used today, in the late 20th and early 21st century, including cacao bark, fat, flowers, fruit pulp and leaves.
In thePhilippines, the native hot chocolate drink is known astsokolate. It is made fromtabliya(ortablea), tablets of pure ground roastedcacaobeans, dissolved in water and milk. Like in Spanish and Latin American versions, the drink is traditionally made in atsokolateraand briskly mixed with a wooden baton called themolinillo(also calledbatidororbatirol), causing the drink to be characteristically frothy.Tsokolateis typically sweetened with a bit ofmuscovadosugar and has a distinctive grainy texture.
Tsokolateis also known assuklatiinKapampangan;sikulateinMaguindanao; andsikwateorsikuwateinVisayan languages. All are derived from Spanishchocolate('chocolate').
Tsokolateis commonly consumed at breakfast with traditionalkakanindelicacies orpandesaland other types of bread. It is also popular duringChristmas seasonin thePhilippines.