10]
62. COCOA and CHOCOLATE are made from the fruit of the cacao, or
chocolate, tree. This tree is native to Mexico, where cocoa was first
used as a beverage, but it is also grown in South America and the West
Indies. The fruit of this tree was named _cocoa Theobroma_, which means
"food for the gods," because of its excellent flavor. The original
natives of Mexico and Peru used cocoa in place of money. When the
Spanish invaded these countries, they learned its use and took it back
to Spain, where it is still a popular beverage. In many localities in
Spain it became a fashionable morning drink, but it was also served at
other times.
63. PRODUCTION OF COCOA AND CHOCOLATE.--The fruit of the cacao tree is
in the form of pods from 6 to 10 inches in length and 3 to 4 inches in
diameter. These pods are filled with a white, pulpy mass in which are
embedded from twenty to forty seeds about twice the size and very much
the shape of kidney beans. Fig. 10 shows the three stages of the
treatment through which the seeds are put before they can be used for a
beverage. After they are removed from the pod, they are fermented and
then dried, when they appear as at _a_.
Pages:
402
403
404
405
406
407
408
409
410
411
412
413
414
415
416
417
418
419
420
421
422
423
424
425
426