Bittersweet Chocolate Day 2025 is on Friday, January 10, 2025: when is the "chocolate day"?

Friday, January 10, 2025 is Bittersweet Chocolate Day 2025. Breakfast buffet: National bittersweet chocolate day – Eatocracy ... bittersweet chocolate day

The history of Bittersweet Chocolate Day is shrouded in the froth of a warm drink. That is to state no one must invest as well lengthy thinking regarding the history of delicious chocolate; it was produced eating.

Bittersweet delicious chocolate is dark delicious chocolate that is sweetened with walking cane sweets. It could have a touch of vanilla, yet never ever milk. It is thought to have happened due to the fact that the bitter taste of chocolate didn't match the European preference combination.

The word delicious chocolate is originated from "xocolātl" an Aztec word meanings "bitter water". Chocolate itself is originated from the hot frothy alcoholic beverage gave Europe from the Aztecs. It took about 200 years to find out how to strengthen it and for the very first delicious chocolate 'bar' to be produced around 1839.

So take a moment to offer bittersweet chocolate a try, yet bear in mind not to invest as well long thinking of its past.

January

3rd – National Chocolate Covered Cherry Day

8th – National English Toffee Day

26th – National Peanut Brittle Day

February

15th – National Gum Drop Day

19th – Chocolate Mint Day

March

3rd week – American Chocolate Week

19th – National Chocolate Caramel Day

24th – National Chocolate-Covered Raisin Day

April

12th – National Licorice Day

21st – National Chocolate-Covered Cashews Day

22nd – National Jelly Bean Day

May

12th – National Nutty Fudge Day

15th – National Chocolate Chip Day

23rd – National Taffy Day

June

National Candy Month

16th – Fudge Day

July

7th – Chocolate Day

15th – Gummi Worm Day

20th – National Lollipop Day

28th – National Milk Chocolate Day

August

4th – National Chocolate Chip Day

10th – S’mores Day

30th – National Toasted Marshmallow Day

September

13th – International Chocolate Day

22nd – National White Chocolate Day

October

National Caramel Month

28th – National Chocolate Day

30th – National Candy Corn Day

31st – National Caramel Apple Day

November

7th – National Bittersweet Chocolate with Almonds Day

December

7th – National Cotton Candy Day

16th – National Chocolate-Covered Anything Day

26th – National Candy Cane Day

28th – National Chocolate Day

29th – National Chocolate Day

Who made Chocolate? And where was Chocolate made?

A Brief History of Chocolate

Uncover the bittersweet story of this ancient treat and watch a VIDEO

By Amanda Bensen

When most of us hear the word chocolate, we picture a bar, a box of bonbons, or a bunny. The verb that comes to mind is probably "eat," not "drink," and the most apt adjective would seem to be "sweet." But for about 90 percent of chocolate's long history, it was strictly a beverage, and sugar didn't have anything to do with it.

"I often call chocolate the best-known food that nobody knows anything about," said Alexandra Leaf, a self-described "chocolate educator" who runs a business called Chocolate Tours of New York City.

The terminology can be a little confusing, but most experts these days use the term "cacao" to refer to the plant or its beans before processing, while the term "chocolate" refers to anything made from the beans, she explained. "Cocoa" generally refers to chocolate in a powdered form, although it can also be a British form of "cacao."

Etymologists trace the origin of the word "chocolate" to the Aztec word "xocoatl," which referred to a bitter drink brewed from cacao beans. The Latin name for the cacao tree, Theobroma cacao, means "food of the gods."

Many modern historians have estimated that chocolate has been around for about 2000 years, but recent research suggests that it may be even older.

In the book The True History of Chocolate, authors Sophie and Michael Coe make a case that the earliest linguistic evidence of chocolate consumption stretches back three or even four millennia, to pre-Columbian cultures of Mesoamerica such as the Olmec.

Last November, anthropologists from the University of Pennsylvania announced the discovery of cacao residue on pottery excavated in Honduras that could date back as far as 1400 B.C.E. It appears that the sweet pulp of the cacao fruit, which surrounds the beans, was fermented into an alcoholic beverage of the time.

"Who would have thought, looking at this, that you can eat it?" said Richard Hetzler, executive chef of the café at the Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian, as he displayed a fresh cacao pod during a recent chocolate-making demonstration. "You would have to be pretty hungry, and pretty creative!"

It's hard to pin down exactly when chocolate was born, but it's clear that it was cherished from the start. For several centuries in pre-modern Latin America, cacao beans were considered valuable enough to use as currency. One bean could be traded for a tamale, while 100 beans could purchase a good turkey hen, according to a 16th-century Aztec document.

Both the Mayans and Aztecs believed the cacao bean had magical, or even divine, properties, suitable for use in the most sacred rituals of birth, marriage and death. According to Chloe Doutre-Roussel's book The Chocolate Connoisseur, Aztec sacrifice victims who felt too melancholy to join in ritual dancing before their death were often given a gourd of chocolate (tinged with the blood of previous victims) to cheer them up.

Sweetened chocolate didn't appear until Europeans discovered the Americas and sampled the native cuisine. Legend has it that the Aztec king Montezuma welcomed the Spanish explorer Hernando Cortes with a banquet that included drinking chocolate, having tragically mistaken him for a reincarnated deity instead of a conquering invader. Chocolate didn't suit the foreigners' tastebuds at first –one described it in his writings as "a bitter drink for pigs" – but once mixed with honey or cane sugar, it quickly became popular throughout Spain.

By the 17th century, chocolate was a fashionable drink throughout Europe, believed to have nutritious, medicinal and even aphrodisiac properties (it's rumored that Casanova was especially fond of the stuff). But it remained largely a privilege of the rich until the invention of the steam engine made mass production possible in the late 1700s.

NOTE: There is more to learn at the source below.

truffles chocolate trouble..??

Chocolate Truffles

Ingredients:

For the ganache

Generous 2 cups (18 ounces; 500 grams) heavy cream

21 ounces (600 grams) bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped

Generous 1/4 cup (2 ounces; 60 grams) Grand Marnier or Stoli Razberi vodka (optional)

To enrobe the truffles

18 ounces (500 grams) bittersweet chocolate, tempered

18 ounces (500 grams) white chocolate, tempered

To garnish the truffles

2 cups (8 ounces; 230 grams) Dutch-processed unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted

2 1/2 cups (9 ounces; 250 grams) shredded sweetened coconut, toasted (see note, below)

About 2 cups (8 ounces; 230 grams) toasted nuts, finely chopped (see note, below)

Preparation:

Heat the heavy cream in a 2-quart heavy-bottomed saucepan until bubbles begin to form around the edge of the pan. Make sure that you have chopped the chocolate as finely as possible to allow it to melt quickly and easily. Place the chopped chocolate in a medium-size mixing bowl. Make a ganache by pouring about half of the hot cream over the chocolate and letting it sit for 30 seconds to melt the chocolate. Then slowly whisk until smooth and homogenous. Do not add all of the hot cream to the cold chocolate at once; the shock of the temperature extremes would cause the fat in the chocolate to separate. As the chocolate melts, you will see some elasticity if there is no fat separation. This means the chocolate still has an emulsion; the fat molecules are still holding together. If the ganache separates, it loses its elasticity, collapses, and becomes very liquid. I use a hand-held immersion blender to ensure a smooth ganache and to keep the emulsion of the chocolate. Add the remaining cream gradually and mix until all of the hot cream is incorporated and the ganache is smooth and homogenous.

If the ganache separates, it is very easy to fix. Simply add a small amount of cold cream and whisk well. This will bring the ganache back together. The ganache should be thick, shiny, and smooth. Add the desired flavoring and mix until fully incorporated. Pour the ganache onto a plastic wrap-covered baking sheet and spread evenly with a rubber spatula. Cover the ganache with plastic wrap and allow it to cool for at least 4 hours at room temperature. I usually make the ganache at the end of the day and let it cool overnight. As it cools, it will thicken and set.

When the ganache has cooled to the consistency of toothpaste, scrape it into a pastry bag fitted with a 1/2-inch plain tip. Do not stir the ganache when you do this. Incorporating air by stirring will cause the ganache to harden. Pipe 1-inch-diameter mounds spaced 1 inch apart on a parchment paper-covered baking sheet. To pipe the mounds, hold the pastry bag at a slight angle and allow the tip to touch the parchment as you begin to pipe. Once you have formed the mound, stop squeezing and lift the tip straight up, leaving a small tail on the top of each mound. You can also use a spoon and drop small mounds of ganache onto the baking sheet. Let the truffles harden at room temperature for a couple of hours (or in the refrigerator for 15 minutes), until they are hard enough to roll with your hands.

When I roll the truffles, I usually wear surgical gloves. The gloves are not mandatory but if you do not use them, be sure your hands are very clean. To roll the mound into a ball, place a truffle between both palms, squeeze slightly, and roll between your hands. The truffles will look nicer if they are as round as possible. When all the truffles are rolled into balls, they are ready to be coated. If they have become too soft, place them in the refrigerator for 1 to 2 hours until they are firm enough to dip.

You can use either a dipping fork or your hands to dip the truffles in chocolate. To use the fork, drop the truffle into the bowl of tempered chocolate and then retrieve it with the dipping fork. Hold the fork over the bowl for several seconds to allow the excess chocolate to drip back into the bowl. Gently scrape the bottom of the fork against the side of the bowl to remove any excess chocolate and roll the dipped truffle in the desired garnish. Place on a parchment paper-covered baking sheet. If you use your hands, dab some chocolate in the palm of one hand. Roll the truffle in that palm to completely coat it with chocolate. Place the enrobed truffle on the baking sheet. Repeat for the remaining truffles. This method is very quick but it can also be extremely messy.

When all of the truffles have been coated once, repeat the enrobing procedure. This is necessary only when you enrobe the truffles by hand rather than with a fork. The truffles are usually more evenly coated when dipped with a fork. As soon as each truffle gets a second coating, immediately roll it in the desired garnish. You need to do this before the chocolate sets or the topping will not adhere. At this stage, it is good to have a friend help because it is hard to dip and roll at the same time. Place the truffles on a clean parchment paper-covered baking sheet and allow them to set, about 5 minutes.

The truffles will keep for up to 2 weeks at room temperature, when stored in an airtight container.

Notes:

If you decide to roll the truffles by hand, it is important to make sure your hands are cold. A good trick is to dip your hands in ice water for a few seconds and then dry them. Do this immediately before rolling the truffles. If your hands are too warm and the truffles begin to melt while you are rolling them, redip your hands in the ice water, dry them, and proceed.

To toast coconut: Preheat the oven to 400°F (204°C). Spread the coconut on a baking sheet and place in the oven for about 3 minutes. Remove from the oven and stir to keep the sugar in the coconut from burning. Return to the oven and toast until golden brown, about 3 more minutes. Remove the baking sheet from the oven and cool on a wire rack.

To toast nuts: Preheat oven to 300°F (148°C). Spread the nuts evenly on a baking sheet and place in the oven. Toast for about 30 minutes, until they are golden brown. You will be able to smell the nuts when they are ready. A good test is to break a nut in half and check to see if it is light brown on the inside. Toasting nuts brings out their natural flavor. Remove them from the oven and allow to cool completely on the baking sheet on a wire rack.

hope this helps. good luck.

ps. the secret is tempering the chocolate this recipe will help.