36 THE CHOCOLATE-PLANT. 



this " food for the gods," and rightly understood, it is possible to 

 make them more important articles of diet than they now are. 

 But since the large percentage of fat seems to require correspond- 

 ingly large quantities of sugar to render the beverage palatable, 

 and this very rich, sweet drink soon cloys if made strong enough 

 to be nutritious, it is, fortunately, possible to extract the larger 

 part of the fat without injury to the flavor so characteristic of 

 chocolate. In this form, called cocoa, less sugar and more milk are 

 needed, and the resulting beverage suits even delicate stomachs, 

 and is yet of high food value. 



It is the object of all cooking to render raw material more 

 palatable and more nutritious, and therefore more digestible. The 

 cooking of cocoa and chocolate is no exception to this rule. Cer- 

 tain extractive principles are soluble only in water which has 

 reached the boiling-point ; and the starch, which the seed contains, 

 is swollen only at this temperature. 



Chocolate or cocoa is not properly cooked by having boiling 

 water poured over it. It is true that as the whole powder is in 

 suspension and is swallowed, its food material can be assimilated 

 as it is when the prepared chocolate is eaten raw ; but in order to 

 bring out the full, fine flavor and to secure the most complete 

 digestibility, the preparation, whatever it be, should be subjected to 

 the boiling-point for a few minutes. In this all connoisseurs are 

 agreed. 



