Today's Journal

Chocolate Country and Chocolate!

My nephew, Robin Blotnick, turned 31 yesterday.  Robin is a talented film maker living in New York City.  His first film, Chocolate Country,  has just been named a winner in Link TV's online short film contest at ViewChange.org in the Empowerment category.  The film tells the story of cacao farmers in a small village in the mountains of the  Dominican Republic.  Today, on the Huffingon Post, Robin blogs about the film. Of course, we are very proud of him!

Click here to see a 2 minute trailer for the film.

And now a few words about one of my favorite foods...Chocolate!

The ancient Mayans are thought to be the first to have discovered the magic of the cacao. They took the trees from the rainforest and planted them in their own backyards, harvesting and grinding the seeds into a paste. When the Aztec empire dominated Mesoamerica in 1400, they often used cacao seeds as Aztec money. In the ancient Mayan culture, the chocolate drink was enjoyed primarily by royalty.  The Aztecs priests, decorated soldiers and some merchants were permitted cacao. It was also used in religious ceremonies. This was a bitter beverage, with no sugar.

Chocolate was brought to Europe through Spain after Hernandez Cortes conquered Mexico in 1521.  Obviously, it was an instant hit!  Between 1759 and 1788, nearly 12 million pounds of chocolate were consumed each year in Madrid, Spain.  It was in Europe that sugar and cinnamon were added to the cacao.

And we continue to love chocolate!! Today, the average American eats 10-12 pounds of chocolate a year, the average Swiss eats 21 pounds. Several medical studies have found that eating moderate amounts of chocolate are actually good for your health!

Robin became interested in the Loma Guacenejo cooperative in the Dominican Republic after my brother, Joe, and his wife, Jill,  joined the Peace Corps a few years ago.  My brother helped the Loma Guacenejo cooperative become a profitable enterprise. Their chocolate, Taza Stone Ground Organic Chocolate, (which many refer to as "Joe's Chocolate") can be found at Taza Chocolate along with other fabulous organic chocolate confections.

On this cold and snowy January day,  I will  toast Robin and the cacoa farmers of the Dominican Republic...with a cup of Mexican hot chocolate.  To your health!