The Cocoa Saga *Part II* Mink's Testimony

I followed Samuel Mink into his car. As I sat in the passenger side of the black Honda Civic, I turned to Samuel Mink.

“Mr. Mink, now tell me what is going on here.” Samuel put one hand on the wheel ahead of him and he turned his head to face me.

“Call me Samuel.”

“Okay, Samuel, what’s going on?” I was getting impatient. Samuel sensed my annoyance and began his case.

“I know it was asking a lot of you by Dr. Smith to just pick up a leave to Sri Lanka, however the recent events that have occurred there are highly uncommon. There has been some new plant life discovered there and it seems it is highly deadly if consumed or touched.” He had my attention. I shifted in my seat as he continued.

“Now new plant life is common to be found in the Amazon forest of South America, but Dr. Smith and some of his colleagues agreed that this new finding seemed peculiar in that the present location of it isn't a commonplace for new species to develop. In addition, this new plant life can be so deadly that an entire village was wiped out in a matter of days.”

“Wiped out!?” I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. What kind of plant could wipe out a village? “Why haven’t I heard this on the news or through other botanist channels?” I asked distressed by the revelation.

“Partly, because the government has asked not to inform the public at large, and partly, because once the public knows, the United States military will try to take over investigating. And we know that when the US military takes over, sometimes the hope of explaining natural causes is not possible.” Samuel gave me that knowing look seeming to say that I knew what he meant. The US involvement in past natural revelations had led to a prevention of allowing researchers to conduct studies. Sometimes, it led to obliteration of the natural occurrence at hand, also known as containment, if the results of testing were in any way not in favor of the US military findings.

“Listen, I know Dr. Smith said he needed you all summer, but this might take only a few days. At minimum I need your help in identifying and classifying this new plant life. The sooner we have a professional botanist on location, the sooner we can have safety measures in place. Please, can you join me?” Samuel seemed genuine in his request.

I sighed as I felt the botanist’s desire to discover new natural plant life burn inside me. I knew I could not say no to him.

That evening I was on a flight to Sri Lanka with Samuel Mink.

To be continued…

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*Scholarship Sundays* - The Cacao Tree

{Starting today, the beginning of every week will have a little bit of enlightenment which I call will Scholarship Sundays. All things related to the history, the science and any other relevant information regarding chocolate will be presented for your awareness.}

The Cacao Tree (Theobromo Cacao)

Chocolate is made from the cocoa bean, which grows on tropical cacao trees. Originally from South America, the agriculture of the theobromo cacao has been spread throughout the world.

The cultivation is also in regions such as the Caribbean, parts of Asia and Africa. The majority of the world’s chocolate comes from farms in Africa’s Ivory Coast (Cote D'Ivorie) and Ghana, where cacao tree farms are cultivated for mass production.

The tree grows best under a shade of other taller trees. It enjoys constant warm temperatures, therefore cannot be grown more than 10-15 degrees away from the Equator.

It was the Mayan’s who first realized the versatility of the cacao tree when they were able to make the first chocolate drink from grinded cocoa beans. Only the sovereign had the privilege to drink the delicious chocolate drink.
The Mayan people also used the cocoa beans from the tree as currency in their day-to-day life.

The cacao tree, or theobromo cacao is literally translated in latin to ‘food of the gods’. Whoever named the tree was definitely a chocolate lover!

Delicious God!

I have been asked what the word shakti means on numerous occasions since starting this chocolate blog.

Shakti is taken from the Sanskrit language, a basis for numerous dialects in India, much like Latin is a basis for the romance languages of English and French. Shakti direct translation is power or strength.

While the word shakti itself is foreign to the English language, the impact it has is astounding in Hindu belief structures. Be it describing a divine deity* in Hinduism or the practice of yoga, the word shakti is used in various ways to display the connections of power, energy and the universe.

My goal is to show, how incredibly strong a substance chocolate has become in our society. From learning about techniques on tempering dark chocolate, to the science of a cacoa tree and the cocoa beans, I plan to incorporate and introduce common and not so common ideas into this blog. Along with some creative writing, I am hoping you will stop by on a regular basis with comments, questions, and/or requests.

By the way, if you are interested in getting some chocolate deities, I would highly recommend Chocolate Deities. As you can see by the picture taken from the site, that God looks good enough to eat!

Happy blogging!

What is The Cocoa Saga?

It is a short story that will be installed every Friday evening until the end of the summer.

What does this have to do with Chocolate Shakti?

Not only will you be embarking on a journey with the fictional character of Dr. Sonia Jeevan, but you will be learning about Eastern cultures in the process. Yes, chocolate will play a role in the story, but I cannot tell you how. Come back every Friday to find out!

The Cocoa Saga – A Story *Part I*

The Chairman, Dr. Drake Leat, stood at the head of the room as everyone anticipated the final award of the night. “And the National Botanist Award for excellence in discovering, naming and categorizing new plant life goes to Dr. Sonia Jeevan.”

A booming round of applause surrounded me as I stood up. I grabbed my purse and made my way to the podium on the stage as I felt a flush of hotness grab hold of my cheeks. I was not expecting the award at all.

“Thank you so much,” I said as I held the statue of the Curcuma longa (turmeric) plant firmly in my hand. The Curcuma longa plant symbolized the exclusive National Botanist Organization (NBO). “I am proud to be selected by the NBO to receive this award and it is with great pleasure I accept it.”

Later in the evening, Dr.David Smith, my biggest inspiration and the most famous botanist in the world approached me.

“Dr. Jeevan, congratulations,” he said as he moved his hand forward for a handshake. His forehead gleamed with perspiration and shone against the assembly room lighting. He kept looking over his shoulder trying to act natural. I tried not to stare as I took his hand.

“Thank you so much, Dr. Smith.”

“I heard you will no longer be studying plant life in Northern Africa?”

“No, I am taking a break for the summer before I begin my professorship at SUNY Stony Brook.”

Dr. Smith pulled on his collar uncomfortably. I had a sense he was about to say something unusual.

“Dr. Jeevan,” he whispered as he leaned in, “I need to speak to you about an urgent matter in which I need your assistance. Would you be able to call me tomorrow to arrange a meeting?” He handed me his card discreetly. As I took the card, he quickly walked off before I could question him further.

* * * * * * * *

The next day I was sitting in Dr. Smith’s office waiting for him as I caught up on my reports. Just as I was finishing reviewing the first report the door opened behind me.

“Thank you so much for coming on such short notice, Dr. Jeevan. No, please stay seated. We are waiting for one more person.”

Just as he ended his sentence a knock was heard on his door. “Come in,” Dr. Smith said as he leaned into his chair.

I turned around to see a sharply dressed man in his mid 30’s. His thick brown hair looked like it needed a haircut. He sat down in the chair next to me after giving me a quick nod and turned his attention to Dr. Smith.

“Dr. Jeevan, this is Mr. Samuel Mink, he is a journalist covering regions in Asia. I brought you hear to ask for a favor from you. There has been some unusual occurences happening in Sri Lanka, and I seeing that you are the most intellectual of plantlife in tropical regions, I would like to send you with Mr. Mink down to Sri Lanka and across Asia for the summer to investigate the unusual plant findings. I would of course cover your expenses and pay you for your time.”

“Why me?” I asked suddenly. I did not understand why he was asking me of all people.

“Simply put, I know you are not closely tied to too many in the NBO,” Dr. Smith said frankly. “You will be working on matters relevant to the world, and your findings can change the course of human history. This is not going to be a simple task, but more of a mission— “

Suddenly the phone rang. Dr. Smith picked up the phone and in an instant hung up. “You both need to leave the office right now,” he said jumping to his feet. He looked directly at me and then said, “You’re flight to Sri Lanka leaves tonight. Mr.Mink will fill you in on all other details. But now you must go!”

He pushed me out of the office, and then a moment later Samuel Mink was pushing my back towards the staircase.

“What about the elevator,” I asked, but already he had me in the stairwell going down the stairs.

When we finally got to the 1st floor, down 6 flights of stairs, I stopped and turned to Samuel Mink before he could push me again.

“Just what do you think you are doing!?” I exclaimed.

“You don’t understand,” Samuel Mink said as he directed me to follow him to the parking lot. “You are involved in a top secret exploration project now.”

“I didn’t sign up for this,” I said, feeling dizzy suddenly. I stopped and leaned by a tree.

“Listen, I think that Dr. Smith did not give you an adequate explanation and I can fill you in on all the details if you give me a chance.” Samuel Mink suddenly looked worried I was not going to go to Sri Lanka with him.

“Then tell me right now,” I said looking around. No one was in the lot except for us. “ I cannot even think about going halfway across the world today, if I don’t get more details!”

“Ok, it’s not safe here ok? Come let’s sit inside the car.” I eyed him suspiciously, afterall I just met the man. “I am not dangerous, believe me!” he said as he pulled out his New York Times Reporter badge. He opened the passenger door to his SUV and looked pleadingly to me.

“Just 5 minutes of your time and the decision whether or not to go is yours,” Samuel Mink said pleadingly.

To be continued…….

When you lose your favorite pizza place to a fire...

Today's post has nothing to do with chocolate.

It has to do with my favorite pizza place, Napoli Pizza, located in Queens NY. After my husband came home from work, we decided to go grab a slice at Napoli's. To my horror and dismay, the place was boarded up. A fire had burned the entire store completely.

Now I am not sure how to explain how much I loved the pizza there, but I will try. The moment I found out about the disaster I felt like my heart was ripped out. It was as though my best friend died. I never considered my favorite pizza place as a friend until now. Looking back, I went to Napoli's more than I saw my friends and family!

The owner of the store, Napoli - we called him, knew us well. We were regulars from the moment we moved there. In fact, Napoli knew us before we became parents to our baby boy! Anytime we called him to order a pie, he would say, 'The usual? Cheese pie with extra tomato sauce?' And we would be delighted he remembered and wait anxiously by the door. He was the neighborhood guy that waved and smiled when you walked by. His pizza tasted better than anything you could find in Manhattan. In fact, I had just been thinking of calling Zagat to refer them to him since he is, or rather was, a hidden treasure in Queens, NY.

I guess sometimes when you take things for granted, you don't realize how important and how much it impacts your daily life until it's gone. To those of you reading this out there: Sometime this week please go to your favorite place and enjoy your favorite meal and think of me. Cherish every bite and savour every moment, because you just don't know if it will be there tomorrow.

Brownie-holics

This evening, after much pestering from my husband, I set out to make a much anticipated batch of brownies. At our house, making a tray of yummy brownies has become a weekly affair, and my brownie-holic husband was starting to get cravings so strong I had to head straight to the kitchen to help him get his fix. There’s no hurt in feeding the addiction. Why you ask? Well, the aphrodisiac nature of chocolate in the brownies certainly helps brighten the day, doesn’t it? *Wink*

Besides, making brownies never feels like a chore to me. Crack a few eggs, mix in all the ingredients, whip it up with the electric mixer and then you have yourself a delicious bowl of brownie batter ready for cooking!

So what do I do while I wait for my brownies to come out of the oven? Lick the leftover batter on the bowl, of course!

I love brownies; it is the perfect combination of cake and chocolate in a moist little package. A friend of mine makes them so spectacular I wonder why she doesn’t have her own show on the Food network. You can check her blog out at: http://virtualfrolic.blogspot.com.

By the way, you were wondering where I got the recipe for aphrodisiac brownies, right? Well, check out Cucina Bella’s blog at http://cucinabella.blogspot.com/ under Aphrodite's Brownies. Not only does she know her desserts, she knows her cooking too!

Decadent Dark Chocolate

I have always been a chocolate loving girl. A classic picture of me as a child is sitting in an amusement ride at Hershey Park with my face smeared with remnants of Hershey Kisses. My parents made the mistake of offering me chocolate flavored Ovaltine when I was only a toddler. After tasting the sensual flavors that tickled my taste buds, I refused to drink any glass of milk without my delectable chocolate. Since then the love affair has never ceased.

For a long time, my preference was always milk chocolate. The milkier, the better, I always thought. I held this belief up until the day of my chocolate tasting assignment for my Professional Chocolatier Certification Program. I had hand picked my chocolate choices from the local Whole Foods Market, with a wide range of dark specialty couvertures.

My test subjects ranged in couvertures from France, Belgium and Venezuela. The first one from Venezuela, named El Rey, was especially potent in bitterness. I had mistakenly picked up bittersweet dark chocolate and my taste buds were not accustomed to the strength of flavor. However, the texture was certainly an even melt in your mouth feeling. And the aroma was so strong; my test subjects all could smell the powerful aroma before I even moved the test pieces into the room they were sitting.

Next, the Belgium favorite, Callebaut was passed around. This time I had chosen right, and it was the semisweet dark chocolate I had intended on getting. The flavor reminded me of upscale chocolate chips from the grocery store. The taste though was truly delicious. The complexity of dark chocolate was starting to become clear as I ventured to roll the chocolate with my tongue.

Finally, Valrhona, the exquisite and legendary couverture from France made way to the table. The scent was not quite as forthcoming as the previous ones, however the texture once inside my mouth could only be described as silky. The way the chocolate melted was so even, that while rolling my tongue with the chocolate it seemed as though I had an even stream of sensuous liquid cascading inside my mouth. This semisweet chocolate was so delicious, I had to have a second piece. Later I used the rest of the pieces to whip up some mint truffles, which needless to say were truly phenomenal.

Why did I experiment with couverture chocolate? Picking the gourmet, more expensive chocolates was to be sure I was getting the best quality for my money. The more cocoa butter in chocolate, the higher the quality.

Now, dark chocolate not only makes for great truffles, but can also enhance your health. According to http://www.wikipedia.com/:

Dark chocolate, with its high cocoa content, is a rich source of the flavonoids epicatechin and gallic acid, which are thought to posess cardioprotective properties. Cocoa possesses a significant antioxidant action, protecting against LDL oxidation, even more so than other antioxidant rich foods and beverages. Some studies have also observed a modest reduction in blood pressure and flow mediated dilation after consuming approximately 100 g of dark chocolate daily.

Now for those of you out there looking for an excuse to eat chocolate, you have one right here. Stick to dark chocolate though and remember anything is good but only in moderation!