Appleseeds articles from February 2006

Appleseeds archives from February 2006

The chocolate belt.(Where in the World?)
February 1, 2006... Where in the world does chocolate come from? Take a look at this map and you'll see the "chocolate belt"; it circles the globe between 20 degrees north and 20 degrees south of the equator. (Mmm, nice and warm!) This is where cacao trees grow....

A short, sweet history of chocolate.
February 1, 2006... No one knows exactly when and how the delights of chocolate were first discovered. Some scientists believe that the Olmec people of southern Mexico were the first to plant cacao "farms." That might have been as long as 3,000 years ago. Others...

Living (and working) on a cacao farm.
February 1, 2006... You might think that kids who live on cacao farms get to eat a lot of chocolate. But you would be wrong. In fact, most of them are so poor that they have never tasted chocolate. Seventy percent of the world's cacao is grown in West Africa...

How many beans in a chocolate bar?
February 1, 2006... Have you ever read Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, by Roald Dahl? If so, you probably know that that's not what a real chocolate factory is like. All the same, there is something magical about making this delicious treat. Let's visit a real...

To eat or not to eat?(painting on chocolate)
February 1, 2006... What's your favorite thing to do with chocolate? Eat it? You might wonder, "What else would I do with it?" Some people say: "Create art with chocolate." Painter Sid Chidiac uses a mixture of white chocolate and food coloring to paint...

A chip off the old chocolate block.
February 1, 2006... Take a bite out of a chocolate chip cookie. Then imagine this: My name is Ruth Graves Wakefield. Now, you might not know who I am, but I do have a claim to fame. Let's just say that without a bit of quick thinking on my part, milk and...

Milton Hershey and his chocolate school.(Biography)
February 1, 2006... Do you know about the school in Hershey, Pennsylvania, built by chocolate? Its founder was Milton Hershey; you've probably heard his name before. Hershey was born in September 1857 in Derry Township, Pennsylvania, a dairy farming region. His...

A strange tree.
February 1, 2006... Theobroma cacao is a most unusual tree. Wild cacao trees grow only in tropical rain forests. (Look at the map on pages 2-3 to see where.) They don't get too big--usually just 20 to 25 feet high. This is because they need shade from taller trees...

Chocolate: the happy food (or, take your medicine).(Column)
February 1, 2006... Listen in as Doctor Brown, an imaginary expert in chocolate science, gives chocolate information and advice to AppleSeeds writer Janet Buckwalter... "I want you to drink a cup of hot cocoa every day," my doctor said with a wink. "Made...

Brownie math.(By the Numbers)
February 1, 2006... Yes, you can have your chocolate and do math with it, too. Unsweetened cocoa powder gives this brownie recipe its rich chocolate flavor. But cocoa powder alone tastes bitter. Sugar adds just enough sweetness. The other ingredients all play...

The three shades of chocolate.
February 1, 2006... Unsweetened chocolate is naturally bitter and tastes horrible by itself. But with a few important ingredients, its flavor goes from awful to awesome. So how are dark, milk, and white chocolate made? * Chocolate makers blend chocolate liquor...

So what's carob?
February 1, 2006... Carob, also known as locust bean, is a tree fruit. Like cacao, the beans are dried and ground into a powder. For people who are allergic to chocolate, carob may be a pretty good substitute. Carob has a flavor similar to that of chocolate, with...

Chocolate history mystery quiz.(Puzzle Power)
February 1, 2006... Uncover some chocolate history facts in this fun quiz. Unscramble the yellow letters in each question to find the answer. For example: What kind of cookies did I eat at lunch? The answer is chocolate; it's scrambled in the question: tcooealch...