Cacao, better known as cocoa - Food of the Gods, divine food of the emperors, blessed by the Popes, on through the Europeans’ imperial quest for monopolies on mild drugs for high society, into respectability and common usage, and finally as candy – is the subject of both myth and science. The history of cacao can be traced to Venezuela, where it is believed to have been first cultivated. The Olmec civilization of 3500 – 2500 years ago consumed it as a beverage and it was used by their warriors to fortify them during marches and in battle. From there the cacao tree and its fruit spread to the Mayans and Aztecs, who saw its value as a food. Additionally, it became so highly prized and valued that it was also used as currency. The first European visitors to Central America were introduced to cacao as a drink prepared with toasted and ground cacao, a bit of maize, vanilla or chilies, and mixed with hot water. This concoction, although bitter, gave such a delightful buzz that in the 17th century the Swedish botanist Linnaeus first coined the phrase “food of the gods”, and thus the Latin name Theobroma. The 18th and 19th centuries saw the rise in popularity and use of cacao in Europe, along with the invention of processing techniques for cacao by those with names we are familiar with today – Van Houten, Joseph Fry, Henri Nestle, Rudolphe Lindt, Milton Hershey, and John Cadbury. These processes are today responsible for the cocoa butter, low fat cocoa powder, bitter or dark cocoa, and milk chocolate products with which we are familiar. There are some 22 varieties of Theobroma plant, but only Theobroma cacao is of commercial use in making cocoa. This variety can be divided into three groups: Forastero (an African cultivar and the good grade), Crillo (a Venezuelan variety and the better grade), and Trinitero (a hybrid of both Forastero and Crillo, grown in the Antilles and considered the best grade). A typical processing scheme is as follows: pod harvesting, seed removal, fermentation, drying of seeds, hot air roasting, crushing to produce nibs, then fine grinding to produce what is termed cacao liquor (or cocoa mass) with the solids having a particle size of approximately 100 microns. Correct fermentation and roasting are critical to flavor development. Cocoa butter is produced at this stage by mechanical pressing to separate the fat and solids. Adding ingredients to the cacao liquor such as additional cocoa butter, sugar, and or milk and performing additional grinding without heat (a process termed “melenging) or with heat (a process termed “conching”), produces the creamy sweet tastes associated with fine chocolate. This results in a (solids) particle size of less than 10 microns (a micron is about the size of a red blood cell). Recent chemical and medical studies on cocoa are revealing the reasons for the many suspected health benefits of cacao and cacao-derived products. The bioflavonoids and other components present in cacao have shown to be of some benefit for alertness and mental well-being, with a robust body of studies indicating cocoa can benefit the heart and cardiovascular system. Additionally, cocoa butter has a unique fatty acid profile, as well as containing natural antioxidants, making it a stable fat with certain health benefits, but remember that it does add calories! REFERENCES: Chocolate Manufacturers Association Ariefdjohan MW, Savaiano DA. Chocolate and cardiovascular health: is it too good to be true? Nutr Rev. 2005 Dec;63(12 Pt 1):427-30. Review. PMID: 16466080 Fisher ND, Hollenberg NK. Flavanols for cardiovascular health: the science behind the sweetness. J Hypertens. 2005 Aug;23(8):1453-9. Review. PMID: 16003167 Grassi D, et al. Cocoa reduces blood pressure and insulin resistance and improves endothelium-dependent vasodilation in hypertensives. Hypertension. 2005 Aug;46(2):398-405. Epub 2005 Jul 18. PMID: 16027246 Heo HJ, Lee CY. Epicatechin and catechin in cocoa inhibit amyloid beta protein induced apoptosis. J Agric Food Chem. 2005 Mar 9;53(5):1445-8. PMID: 15740021 Keen CL, et al. Cocoa antioxidants and cardiovascular health. Am J Clin Nutr. 2005 Jan;81(1 Suppl):298S-303S. Review. PMID: 15640494 Mao TK. Effect of cocoa flavanols and their related oligomers on the secretion of interleukin-5 in peripheral blood mononuclear cells. J Med Food. 2002 Spring;5(1):17-22. PMID: 12511109 Mao TK. Modulation of TNF-alpha secretion in peripheral blood mononuclear cells by cocoa flavanols and procyanidins. Dev Immunol. 2002 Sep;9(3):135-41. PMID: 12885154 Schroeter H, et al. (-)-Epicatechin mediates beneficial effects of flavanol-rich cocoa on vascular function in humans. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2006 Jan 24;103(4):1024-9. Epub 2006 Jan 17. PMID: 16418281 Steinberg FM. Cocoa and chocolate flavonoids: implications for cardiovascular health. J Am Diet Assoc. 2003 Feb;103(2):215-23. Review. PMID: 12589329 Young, Allen M. The Chocolate Tree: A Natural History of Cacao. Smithsonian Books (October 1994) | 
