Path: senator-bedfellow.mit.edu!bloom-beacon.mit.edu!news.kei.com!eff!usenet.ins.cwru.edu!wariat.org!junior.wariat.org!mkidd
From: mkidd@junior.wariat.org (Monee C. Kidd)
Newsgroups: rec.food.chocolate,rec.food.cooking,rec.answers,news.answers
Subject: Chocolate Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Followup-To: rec.food.chocolate
Date: 7 Jul 1995 04:47:12 GMT
Organization: Akademia Pana Kleksa, Public Access Uni* Site
Lines: 688
Approved: news-answers-request@MIT.EDU
Expires: 6 Aug 1995 17:00:00 GMT
Message-ID: <3tie8g$8g4@wariat.wariat.org>
Reply-To: mkidd@wariat.org
NNTP-Posting-Host: junior.wariat.org
Summary: This posting contains a list of Frequently Asked Questions (and their
        answers) about chocolate. It deals with eating, cooking with and buying
        chocolate.
X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.2 PL2]
Xref: senator-bedfellow.mit.edu rec.food.chocolate:2162 rec.food.cooking:173858 rec.answers:13148 news.answers:48012

Archive-name: food/chocolate/faq
Posting-Frequency: monthly
URL: http://www.qrc.com/~sholubek/choco/faq.htm

"Life is like a box of chocolates...you know exactly what you're gonna get if
you bother to look at the inside of the lid where a full description of the
chocolate assortment can be found. Thus montelimars can be distinguished from
strawberry creams and you can avoid almond clusters with ease..."             
                                                                  

                        ~ Posted by Quin (pha2kvq@south-02.novell.leeds.ac.uk)
     


   THE (UN)OFFICIAL REC.FOOD.CHOCOLATE LIST OF FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS


This FAQ is posted on the sixth day of every month. The most recent copy of
this document can be obtained via anonymous FTP as
rtfm.mit.edu:/pub/usenet/news.answers/food/chocolate/faq. If you do not have
access to anonymous FTP, you can retrieve it by sending email to
mail-server@rtfm.mit.edu with the command "send
usenet/news.answers/food/chocolate/faq" in the message.


=== CONTENTS ===            (* = sections changed since last edition)

 0.  The Not-So-Fine-Print

 1.  General
 1.1 What is chocolate? 
 1.2 What is the history of chocolate?
 1.3 How is chocolate made?
 1.4 What kinds of chocolate are there?
 1.5 What is this white, blotchy stuff on my chocolate bar?
 1.6 I just bought a whole bunch of chocolate. Can I freeze some to eat later?

 2.  Cooking with chocolate
 2.1 What is tempering?
 2.2 What is couverture?
 2.3 What's the best chocolate to use for melting?
 2.4 I was melting some chocolate, and suddenly it changed from a shiny,
smooth liquid to a dull, thick paste. What happened?
 2.5 How do I make chocolate covered strawberries?
 2.6 Where can I get some recipes for chocolate?
 2.7 I saw a recipe for Chocolate _____ on the newsgroup a while back. Can
someone repost it?

 3.  Chocolate resources
 3.1 Stores and Catalogs
 3.2 Net resources
*3.2.1 World Wide Web Resources
 3.2.2 E-mail Resources

-=-=-=-=-

0. The Not-So-Fine Print
        This document is intended to provide answers for some common questions
posted to rec.food.chocolate. It is by no means comprehensive. Discussion on
any topic discussed in this FAQ is certainly encouraged. Additions or
corrections are always welcome.
        This document was compiled by Monee Kidd <mkidd@wariat.org>, to whom
questions, comments, queries, concerns, additions, corrections and/or
deletions should be directed. Flames should be directed to dev/null. Most
answers were gathered from posts to rec.food.chocolate. Many thanks to the
many people who help make this FAQ a reality. In addition, some background
information was shamelessly lifted from The World Book Encyclopedia [(c) 1983.
so what it's an old version, I know]. All internet sites (e-mail, telnet, WWW
and otherwise) were up and running at the time this FAQ was released.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-


1.  General

A reader of the old alt.food.chocolate once asked:

        "I would be very much obliged if someone could tell me how a food that
has been associated with acne, headaches, obesity and many a trip to the
dentist has managed to attract so much favorable attention."

Why *does* this sweet confection have so many admirers? Perhaps we should
start at the beginning...

-=-=-=-=-

1.1 What is chocolate? Where does it come from?

        Chocolate is a food made from the seeds of a tropical tree called the
cacao. These trees flourish in warm, moist climates. Most of the worlds cacao
beans come from West Africa, where Ghana, the Ivory Coast and Nigeria are the
largest producers.  Because of a spelling error, probably by English traders
long ago, these beans became known as cocoa beans.

-=-=-=-=-

1.2 What is the history of chocolate?

        (Excerpted with permission from the Godiva WWW site)

* In 600 A.D. the Mayans migrated into the northern regions of South America,
establishing the earliest known cocoa plantations in the Yucatan. It has been
argued that the Mayans had been familiar with cocoa several centuries prior to
this date. They considered it a valuable commodity, used both as a means of
payment and as units of calculation. 

* Mayans and Aztecs took beans from the "cacao" tree and made a drink they
called "xocoatl." Aztec Indian legend held that cacao seeds had been brought
from Paradise and that wisdom and power came from eating the fruit of the
cacao tree. 

* The word "chocolate" is said to derive from the Mayan "xocoatl"; cocoa from
the Aztec "cacahuatl." The Mexican Indian word "chocolate" comes from a
combination of the terms choco ("foam") and atl ("water"); early chocolate was
only consumed in beverage form.

* Christopher Columbus is said to have brought back cacao beans to King
Ferdinand from his fourth visit to the New World, but they were overlooked in
favor of the many other treasures he had found. 

* Chocolate was first noted in 1519 when Spanish explorer Hernando Cortez
visited the court of Emperor Montezuma of Mexico. American historian William
Hickling's History of the Conquest of Mexico (1838) reports that Montezuma
"took no other beverage than the chocolatl, a potation of chocolate, flavored
with vanilla and spices, and so prepared as to be reduced to a froth of the
consistency of honey, which gradually dissolved in the mouth and was taken
cold." The fact that Montezuma consumed his "chocolatl" in goblets before
entering his harem led to the belief that it was an aphrodisiac. 

* The first chocolate house was reputedly opened in London in 1657 by a
Frenchman. Costing 10 to 15 shillings per pound, chocolate was considered a
beverage for the elite class. Sixteenth-century Spanish historian Oviedo
noted: "None but the rich and noble could afford to drink chocolatl as it was
literally drinking money. Cocoa passed currency as money among all nations;
thus a rabbit in Nicaragua sold for 10 cocoa nibs, and 100 of these seeds
could buy a tolerably good slave." 

* Chocolate also appears to have been used as a medicinal remedy by leading
physicians of the day. Christopher Ludwig Hoffmann's treatise Potus Chocolate
recommends chocolate for many diseases, citing it as a cure for Cardinal
Richelieu's ills. 

* With the Industrial Revolution came the mass production of chocolate,
spreading its popularity among the citizenry. 

* Chocolate was introduced to the United States in 1765 when John Hanan
brought cocoa beans from the West Indies into Dorchester, Massachusetts, to
refine them with the help of Dr. James Baker. The first chocolate factory in
the country was established there. 

* Yet, chocolate wasn't really accepted by the American colonists until
fishermen from Gloucester, Massachusetts, accepted cocoa beans as payment for
cargo in tropical America. 

* Where chocolate was mostly considered a beverage for centuries, and
predominantly for men, it became recognized as an appropriate drink for
children in the seventeenth century. It had many different additions: milk,
wine, beer, sweeteners, and spices. Drinking chocolate was considered a very
fashionable social event. 

* Eating chocolate was introduced in 1674 in the form of rolls and cakes,
served in the various chocolate emporiums. 

* Nestle (The History of Chocolate and Cocoa, p. 3) declares that from 1800 to
the present day, these four factors contributed to chocolate's "coming of age"
as a worldwide food product: 
1. The introduction of cocoa powder in 1828; 
2. The reduction of excise duties; 
3. Improvements in transportation facilities, from plantation to factory; 
4. The invention of eating chocolate, and improvements in manufacturing
methods. 

* The New York Cocoa Exchange, located at the World Trade Center, was begun
October 1, 1925, so that buyers and sellers could get together for
transactions. 

* In 1980 a story of chocolate espionage hit the world press when an
apprentice of the Swiss company of Suchard-Tobler unsuccessfully attempted to
sell secret chocolate recipes to Russia, China, Saudi Arabia, and other
countries. 

* By the 1990s, chocolate had proven its popularity as a product, and its
success as a big business. Annual world consumption of cocoa beans averages
approximately 600,000 tons, and per capita chocolate consumption is greatly on
the rise. Chocolate manufacturing in the United States is a
multibillion-dollar industry. According to Norman Kolpas (1978, p. 106), "We
have seen how chocolate progressed from a primitive drink and food of ancient
Latin American tribes -- a part of their religious, commerce and social life
-- to a drink favored by the elite of European society and gradually improved
until it was in comparably drinkable and, later, superbly edible. We have also
followed its complex transformation from the closely packed seeds of the fruit
of an exotic tree to a wide variety of carefully manufactured cocoa and
chocolate products. Beyond the historical, agricultural and commercial, and
culinary sides to chocolate, others: affect on our health and beauty, and
inspiration to literature and the arts." 

-=-=-=-=-

1.3 How is chocolate made?

        Workers cut the fruit of the cacao tree, or pods open and scoop out
the beans. These beans are allowed to ferment and then dry. Then they are
cleaned, roasted and hulled. Once the shells have been removed they are called
nibs. Nibs are blended much like coffee beans, to produce different colors and
flavors. Then they are ground up and the cocoa butter is released. The mixture
of cocoa butter and finely ground nibs forms a free-flowing substance known as
chocolate liquor. From there different varieties of chocolate are produced.

-=-=-=-=-

1.4 What kinds of chocolate are there?

        Depending on what is added to (or removed from) the chocolate liquor,
different flavors and varieties of chocolate are produced. Each has a
different chemical make-up, the differences are not solely in the taste. Be
sure, therefore, to use the kind the recipe calls for, as different varieties
will react differently to heat and moisture.

        * Unsweetened or Baking chocolate is simply the cooled and hardened
version of chocolate liquor. It is used primarily as an ingredient in recipes,
or as a garnish.

        *Semi-sweet chocolate is also used primarily in recipes. It has extra
cocoa butter and sugar added. Sweet cooking chocolate is basically the same,
with more sugar for taste.

        * Milk chocolate is chocolate liquor with extra cocoa butter, sugar,
milk and vanilla added. This is the most popular form for chocolate. It is
primarily an eating chocolate.  

        * Cocoa is chocolate liquor with much of the cocoa butter removed,
creating a fine powder. It can pick up moisture and odors from other products,
so keep cocoa in a cool, dry place, tightly covered.

        * White chocolate is somewhat of a misnomer. In the United States, in
order to be legally called 'chocolate' a product must contain cocoa solids.
White chocolate does not contain these solids, which leaves it a smooth ivory
or beige color. White chocolate is primarily cocoa butter, sugar, milk and
vanilla. There are products on the market that call themselves white
chocolate, but are made with vegetable oils instead of cocoa butter. Avoid
these cheap imitations. White chocolate is the most fragile form of chocolate;
pay close attention to it while heating or melting it.

        * Decorator's chocolate or confectioner's chocolate isn't really
chocolate at all, but a sort of chocolate flavored candy used for things such
as covering strawberries. It was created to melt easily and harden quickly,
but it isn't chocolate. If you want quick and easy, use decorator's chocolate.
If you want the real thing, use real chocolate and patience.

-=-=-=-=-

1.5 What is this white, blotchy stuff on my chocolate bar?

        A white, filmy residue on chocolate is called a bloom. It occurs when
some of the cocoa butter in the chocolate separates from the cocoa solids,
usually when the chocolate is stored in a warm area. If you buy a chocolate
bar and find it has bloomed, don't let the sales person convince you the taste
has not been altered.

-=-=-=-=-

1.6 I just bought a whole bunch of chocolate. Can I freeze some to eat later?

        Freezing chocolate isn't such a great idea. When you freeze it, then
thaw it out, it will have a greater tendancy to bloom. Chocolate is best kept
at around 68-72 degrees Farenheit, the temperature of a nice pantry or dark
cabinet. Kept at this temperature, chocolate (assuming it isn't covering fruit
or other perishables) has a shelf life of about a year.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

2. Cooking with chocolate

        Chocolate is a very tricky food to cook with. Temperatures that are
too high can scorch it, temperatures too low can cause it to harden unevenly.
It must be watched very carefully. But if you can master the art, you can
create some breathtaking desserts. Below are some things to know about cooking
with chocolate.

-=-=-=-=-

2.1 What is tempering? How can I temper chocolate at home?
       

        In order for chocolate to cool into a hard candy and not a mushy goo,
it must be tempered. This is a process where the chocolate is slowly heated,
then slowly cooled, allowing the cocoa butter molecules to solidify in an
orderly fashion.  The following is a pretty thorough method for tempering at
home: (credit to Pete Lockhart, pete@teleport.com)

Frankly, I've had decent luck with microwave ovens for melting the chocolate. 
It's an iterative process of nuking, stirring, nuking, stirring, etc.  But I
like the idea that the chocolate is not getting steamed as it is with a double
boiler.  You might try 15 seconds increments on high for a pound of chocolate.
 Keep an eye on the time as the chocolate gets into its melt; you may want to
ramp it down some what.

However, for either nuking or using a double boiler, it's not a bad idea to
break up the chocolate into little pieces.  For a double boiler be careful not
to have the water boiling or touching the bottom of the upper vessel.  It
sounds from your description like you might have the heat cranked up too much,
even given convection from the bottom vessel to the top.  Be patient.  Dark
chocolate can be taken up to about 115 degrees F and milk chocolate can be
taken up to 110 degrees F.
                                                               
Once you've gotten a complete melt, letting the chocolate cool slowly while
stirring it or working it will encourage the cocoa butter to arrange itself in
a way that is particularly useful for making candy. This is 'tempering' the
chocolate.
Turns out that cocoa butter molecules can arrange themselves in a variety of
ways [six that I know of] and it is these different arrangements that
determine the melting temperature of the chocolate.  The respective melting
temperatures range from about 60 degrees F to about 97 degrees F. The one
you're looking to get is the most stable form, and has a melting temperature
of 93 - 95 degrees F.  Which is good, because it means that your chocolate
will tend to be that way, as long as you're patient.  It also means that the
chocolate is going to feel delightfully cooling in your mouth.

So, you've taken your chocolate up to 110 -115 degrees, and that has had the
effect of breaking up [melting] all of the cocoa butter molecules. Now you
want them to arrange themselves in a stable arrangement; but you also want to
manipulate the chocolate now that it is a liquid.

There are a couple of strategies for encouraging the cocoa butter into its
stable arrangement.  As mentioned above, stirring it or working it with a
spatula will tend to bring about the proper 'crystallization' of the cocoa
butter molecules.  Another technique is to 'seed' the molten chocolate by
putting in little pieces of solid chocolate.  The molten cocoa butter then
will do a kind of follow-the-leader and arrange itself after the fashion of
the solids.  Which is what you want.  The hazard with seeding your chocolate
is that you might get little air pockets associated with the solid pieces.  I
tend to just stir the chocolate.  

Traditionally, small batch chocolate is tempered on marble slabs.  Just pour
it on and work it with a spatula until it becomes kind of slushy-mushy.  I
don't use a marble slab, I use a bowl that I can pop back into the microwave
if I need to.

The next tricky step is to maintain enough heat to keep the chocolate molten,
but not heat it up so much that it forgets how to arrange itself. This is
where the 85 - 90 degrees F comes in. [I think the heating pad idea sounds
cool].  The marble slab will retain some of the heat.  Be careful about using
the same vessel in which you heated the chocolate.  I know it's convenient,
and that's what I do, you just gotta be more careful about over heating the
chocolate.   

Overheating the chocolate will make the cocoa butter separate from the cocoa
solids, and that's a bad thing. Indication that you're overheating the
chocolate is either chocolate bloom in the hardened chocolate or out and out
separation of cocoa butter in the chocolate soup.

-=-=-=-=-

2.2 What is couverture?

        Couverture is a special kind of chocolate that has more cocoa butter
than regular chocolate, anywhere from 33% to 38% for a really good brand. This
type of chocolate is used as a coating for things like truffles ("couverture"
is French for "covering") There are two ways of coating candies, either by
hand dipping into melted chocolate or enrobing, gently pouring chocolate over
the treat.

-=-=-=-=-

2.3 What's the best chocolate to use for melting?

(from a post by from Pete again)

_Cook's Illustrated_  Nov/Dec ['94] issue contains an article by Bishop and
Meldrich that ranks the following chocolates in the following order.  The
evaluation was by a dozen or so refined Californian palates, so it should
work for you.

*Highly Recommendd*
Van Leer Bittersweet Chocolate #1121-115 (approx $4.00/lb)
   -- Chocolate Gallery @ 212-675-2253
Ghiradelli Semi-Sweet (approx $6.40/lb)
   -- Ghirradelli @ 800-877-9338
Callebaut Bittersweet (approx $9.00/lb)
   -- Williams-Sonoma @ 800-541-2233
Merckens Yucatan Classic Dark (approx $4.20/lb)
   -- A Cook's Wares @ 412-846-9490

*Recommended*
Guittard Gourmet Bittersweet
Hawaiian Vintage Bittersweet
Nestle's Semi-Sweet
        
*Not Recommended*
Vairhona Le Noir Gastronomie Bittersweet
Lindt Surfin
Baker's SemiSweet Baking
Hershey's Semi-Sweet Baking
 
-=-=-=-=-

2.4 I was melting some chocolate, and suddenly it changed from a shiny, smooth
liquid to a dull, thick paste. What happened?

        As discussed before, chocolate is very sensitive. Any slight variance
from the instructions can cause disastrous results. What you have described
here is called seizing. Seizing can happen for several reasons:

        1. The chocolate is burned. Even temperatures that aren't too hot for
your finger can be too hot for chocolate. When melting chocolate, keep the
heat low and keep stirring, especially for milk and white chocolates.

        2. A *small* amount of moisture has been added. Chocolate is very
finicky about liquids. Even the moisture from a damp spoon can contaminate a
batch of melting chocolate. This is what happens after a while to chocolate
fondue - moisture from strawberries or cheese can ruin the texture. Be careful
if you are melting pure chocolate by itself to keep everything very dry.

        3. Cool liquids have been added. Another oddity about chocolate: small
amounts of liquid can spoil melted chocolate, but large amounts are o.k., so
long as the liquid is warmed to match the temperature of the melted chocolate.
If you add cold cream or milk, for example, the chocolate will begin to
solidify and you'll end up with a mess.

Regardless of how your chocolate gets seized, you'll have to throw it out and
start again. There is no way to "un-seize" and remelt chocolate once it has
been contaminated in this way.

-=-=-=-=-

2.5 How do I make chocolate covered strawberries?

        Covering strawberries is not an easy task, but if you exercise a
little patience, you can come up with an excellent dessert treat. The main
thing to remember: Make sure the strawberries are _DRY_. Remember, even the
slightest moisture can ruin an entire batch of chocolate. If it's a real humid
day, wait until tomorrow, you'll have better success.
        Prepare a cookie sheet or other flat surface with wax paper, small
enough to fit into your refrigerator. Lay your *dry* strawberries out on a
plate. Cut up the chocolate into small pieces; this will enable it to melt
faster at a lower temperature. Then 1) place it in a plastic bowl and
microwave it on medium power for a few seconds at a time, stirring gently
until it is melted, or 2) place the chocolate in a plastic bowl and suspend it
in gently simmering water, stirring gently, or 3) place the chocolate in the
top of a double boiler. Never place chocolate directly in a pan over heat.
Holding each strawberry by the stem, dip it into the chocolate and place it on
the wax paper. Watch that your chocolate does not get too hot, or it will burn
and seize. Place the finished strawberries in the refrigerator and allow them
to cool. This is probably the best place to keep them; unless you are sure
you've tempered your chocolate well, the chocolate will melt at room
temperature. Some people choose to add a bit of baker's wax or parafin to the
chocolate. This is an edible substance that also helps to keep the chocolate
solid at room temperature. Purely a subjective move, not necessary.

-=-=-=-=-

2.6 Where can I get some recipes for chocolate?

There are dozens of cookbooks for sale that dedicate themselves entirely to
chocolate. This list is therefore by no means comprehensive.

        * _365 Great Chocolate Desserts_ by Natalie Haughton. (Harper Collins
1991) A whole year of chocolate desserts! What more could you ask for? The
recipes here are designed for the busy, working woman, so they are relatively
simple and inexpensive to prepare.

        * _Chocolate Classics_ by Barbara Grunes and Phyllis Magida. (Contempo
Books 1993) This is a small book that contains recipes on a variety of levels
of difficulty, along with some of the history and folklore surrounding
chocolate.
        * _Chocolatier_ This isn't a book, but a magazine - new chocolate
information every month! Each issue has recipes in it, as well as tips and
other tidbits of interest to the chocoholic. A year's subscription can be had
for $19.95 (add $6.00 overseas) and can be requested at: Chocolatier Magazine;
Dept A92; P.O. Box 333; Mt. Morris, IL  61054 - or if you're too anxious to
wait for snail-mail, send your request off to chocolatier@godiva.com.

        * _Cocolat_ by Alice Medrich. (Warner Books 1990) Named for the
decadent chocolate restaurants in Berkley, California, and elsewhere, this
book will remind you why cooking is often times referred to as 'culinary art'.
The recipes in this book require a master's touch, but if you can create these
confections, your guests and family will love you for days.

        * _Death by Chocolate_ by Marcel Desaulniers. (Kenan Books 1992)
Straight from the famous Trellis Restaurant to your kitchen, this book
contains finished products that could be works of art. A variety of skill
levels are required, and tips from the chef accompany each recipe.

        * _Mrs Fields' I Love Chocolate Cookbook_ by Debbi Fields. (Time-Life
Books 1994) Another cookbook for the working mother, filled with treats to
delight children and grownups alike.

-=-=-=-=-

*2.7 I saw a recipe for Chocolate _____ on the newsgroup a while back. Can
someone repost it?

        Each month the recipes posted on rec.food.chocolate, rec.food.cooking
and rec.food.recipes are archived and sent out via a mailing list. To join
this read-only mailing list, send e-mail to mkidd@wariat.org. You can also
request back issues from that same address by sending the message "send
chocolate-recipes (month)", or by checking at the WWW site at
http://www.qrc.com/~sholubek/choco/start.htm. Issues are available from
January 95 to the present.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

3. Chocolate resources

        So you've learned a lot about chocolate and now your mouth is
watering. You want chocolate, and you want it now. Well, here are a few places
to turn for instant chocolate gratification.

-=-=-=-=-

3.1 Stores and catalogs

        * Bernard Callebaut Chocolates
          based in Calgary, Canada, recently opened their 
          first US branch, in Seattle. 
          1-800-661-8367  
          (206) 822-8889 (in Seattle)
Excellent Belgian chocolate; try some of their assorted chocolates
At Christmas, ask for a box of their chocolate-covered cherries


        * Belgian Chocolatier Piron
          509 Main Street
          Evanston, IL  60202
          (708) 864-5504


        * Chocolates and More
          15203 Southwest Freeway
          Sugarland, TX  77478
          Voice: (713) 565-5656
          Fax:   (713) 565-1616

          Neuhaus, Leonidas, etc.
          Friendly service, overnight shipping


        * Pink Whale Chocolatiers                                             
          P. O. Box 1247                                                      
          Pacifica, CA 94044                                                  
          1 800 239 8102                                                      
                                                                              
Wonderful, hand-dipped chocolate from the San Francisco Bay Area. They have
monthly specials (like truffles in a moon shaped chocolate "box", and the most
incredible fillings in their assortments.  All  original, all handmade.  The
best.                                           


-=-=-=-=-

3.2 Net resources
        Why leave your computer screen? Is there anything more exciting than
having chocolate delivered right to your door?

-=-=-=-=-

3.2.1 World Wide Web:
        Ultimately all these sites are connected through different WWW pages.
But then again, that's the beauty of The Web! New sites are cropping up daily,
those listed were up and operational at the time of publication.

        * Ann Hemyng Candy, Inc.'s Chocolate F A C T O R Y -
          http://mmink.com/mmink/dossiers/choco.html                          
       
          From Bucks County, Pennsylvania, you can place an order to this fine
chocolate establishment via e-mail, phone, or fax.


     ** Black Hound - http://www.ovation.net/blackhound/default.htm
          Black Hound is a premier chocolate truffle maker, baker of unique
cookies, cakes and nut products. All our products are made by hand in small
batches from the finest natural ingredients.    

        * Chocolate home page - http://www.ios.com/~shag/chocolate.html
          An obvious lover of chocolate has gathered on this home page a
listing of several online companies that can ship chocolate to you. 

     ** Chocolate Recipes - http://www.astro.umd.edu/~sgeier/chocolate.html
          If you can't find the recipe you're looking for in the
rec.food.chocolate archives list, check out this site! Or, if you just can
never have enough chocolate recipes, browse through the ones that are here.

        * Griffin Chocolates - http://branch.com/chocolate/griffin.html 
          This company uses the finest European chocolates to produce various
novelty gifts. You can order on line, or send for their $2.00 color catalog.

        * Godiva Chocolates
          http://www.godiva.com/
          A bright home page invites you in with this cheerful greeting:
"Welcome to a chocolate lover's playground." Here you can not only order
Godiva chocolates or a subscription to Chocolatier Magazine, but there are
excellent pages on the history of chocolate, and some recipes.

        * Hershey's Chocolate Gift Items 
          http://www.hersheys.flowerlink.com/html/hersheys/hersheys.html
          What would a summary of chocolate sites be without one from our
friends at Hershey's? You can order any of the 5 available gift items online,
or call their 24 hour order line (1-800-4-KISSES) to order more chocolate.
GIFs of the items are available for download.

        * I Need My Chocolate
          http://www.qrc.com/~sholubek/choco/start.htm#top
          This site has everything, links to chocolate trivia, vendors, places
to go, recipies - you name it..if it's chocolate, it's here. This site also
holds this FAQ and the ChocolateRecipe Archives. 

        * Joan and Annie's Brownies Home Page 
          http://www.cybermalls.com/cymont/joan/joan.htm
          Hmm, homemade brownies, right from your computer to your door. What
more could you want? These brownies are famous for their rich chocolate taste.
Buy them for yourself, or send a brownie gram to a friend.

        * Parenteaus Saskatoon Berry Chocolates Inc. 
          http://www.wimsey.com/xr-cgi-bin/sspick?/101956117@/Magnet/shop/
psb/product.html
           Yes it's a mouthful of a URL! This site is filled with products
made with saskatoon berries (and you know what those are right??). Teas,
jellies as well as chocolates. You can order here or call the 800 number.

        * Pink Moment Sweets
          http://199.35.37.1/pink/
          A variety of chocolate treats and novelty gifts are available for
order from this company named for the sunset that basks this Southern
California area eachi night. Various gifts for personal and corporate use are
available.

        * Seattle Chocolate Company
          http://www.halcyon.com/IMG/seattle.html
          The Seattle Chocolate Company specializes in chocolate truffles,
flavored with various liquors. Again, you can order here online or you can
call or fax your order in.

     ** Springs of Life - http://eMall.com/springs/Cupboard/choc.html 
           Fat free chocolate?!?! Does it exist? It does at Springs of Life!
Their web site contains many delectable treats that are perfect for diabetics
or those who want to remove sugar from their diet. Selections include toffee,
chocolate fudge gooey, and the ever popular turtle

        * Sophisticated Chocolates
          http://branch.com/sophisticated/
          This company specializes in chocolate covered fruits, gift baskets,
sugar-free chocolates and more. Several catalogue items are displayed, a phone
number is available for ordering.

        * Toucan Chocolates
          http://branch.com/toucan/toucan.html
          Chocolate with a healthy splash of environmental conciousness.
Toucan Chocolates provides several varieties of chocolate as well as nuts and
toffee. A form page is available for ordering.

     ** Yahoo Chocolate Site    
          http://www.yahoo.com/Entertainment/Food/Chocolate
          This site provides links to 18 different chocolate vendors, as well
as other WWW pages.

-=-=-=-=-

3.2.1 E-mail:

        * Chocolate Express
          ChocExpres@aol.com
          Sending your snail mail address to this company will get you a flyer
with information on ordering chocolates from Ghirardelli, Lindt, Hebert and
more.
        * _Chocolatier_ Magazine
          chocolatier@godiva.com
          You can order _Chocolatier_ Magazine via e-mail. Send for info.


        * EuroSweets
          EuroSweets@aol.com
          Dash your snail-mail off to the good folks at EuroSweets and you'll
receive a free color flyer detailing many delectable selections including
chocolates and truffles from Switzerland, France, Belgium, and England, both
individual items and gift boxes. They also sell gift baskets of European
chocolates and other sweets, with selections from Cadbury's, Callard & Bowser,
Cavendish & Harvey, Daintee, Droste, Ferrero Rocher, Fry's, Italo-Suisse,
LaVosgienee, Lutti, Lindt, Pierre Koenig, Quality Street, Rademaker, Terry's,
Tobler, Wilkinson's, and others. You can place an order with them this way or
by phone at 1-800-552-0282 or fax at 1-512-502-0281.



--
               <(*)>                  | Ask your sysop for rec.food.chocolate!
"Life is like a box of chocolates...  |The *new* sweetest newsgroup on the Net
You never know what you're gonna get" |
               <(*)>                  |    Monee C. Kidd, mkidd@wariat.org