10 January

 

NATIONAL BITTERSWEET CHOCOLATE DAY

Chocolate lovers, rejoice! National Bittersweet Chocolate Day on January 10th gives you the excuse to indulge in some chocolate satisfaction. (National Bittersweet Chocolate with Almonds Day is celebrated on November 7th.)

Chocolate comes from the seed of the tropical Theobroma cacao tree. Cacao, which has been cultivated for at least three millennia, is grown in Mexico, Central America, and Northern South America. The earliest known documentation of the use of cacao seeds is around 1100 BC. The cacao tree seed has an intensely bitter taste and must be fermented to develop the flavor.

Once the seeds have been fermented, the beans are then dried, cleaned, and roasted. After roasting, the shell is removed to produce cacao nibs. The cacao nibs are then ground into a cocoa mass which is pure chocolate in rough form.  Usually, the cocoa mass is liquefied then molded with or without other ingredients. This is called chocolate liquor. The chocolate liquor may then be processed into two components: cocoa solids and cocoa butter.

Bittersweet chocolate is chocolate liquor to which sugar, cocoa butter, and vanilla have been added. It does have less sugar and more liquor than semisweet chocolate. However, the two of them may be interchangeable when baking.

Studies have revealed that there are certain health benefits from eating bittersweet chocolate in moderation, such as lowering blood pressure and helping to protect the heart.

HOW TO OBSERVE BITTERSWEET CHOCOLATE DAY

Bittersweet chocolate offers many ways to celebrate. We can go in so many directions with bittersweet chocolate. Add a little to your baking or sprinkle a little in your morning coffee. Do you like pudding or chocolate chip cookies? This is the chocolate for you. The choice is up to you which delicious chocolate creation you make. However, once you decide, be sure to share your creations, too.

NATIONAL BITTERSWEET CHOCOLATE DAY HISTORY

National Day Calendar continues to research the origins of this delectable day while baking up some terrific treats. 

Chocolate FAQ

Q. Are bittersweet chocolate and dark chocolate the same thing?
A. Yes, though the amount of cacao may vary from product to product. Bittersweet chocolate must have a minimum of 35 percent cacao. It is also called semisweet chocolate.

Q. Is the amount of cacao important to a recipe?
A. Yes. More or less cacao can impact the texture so some desserts.

Q. Are there other days that celebrate bittersweet chocolate?
A. Yes.National Dark Chocolate Dayis on February 1st. 

1776

Publisher Robert Bell makes the first copies of Thomas Paine's Common Sense available for sale to the public. The 47-page pamphlet set in writing the reasons the Thirteen Colonies should become independent from the British Crown. Within days Bell issued a second printing with more than 100,000 sold that year. On July 4th, delegates ratified the Declaration of Independence.

1878

Senator A.A. Sargent (R-CA) introduces a resolution to the U.S. Senate to amend the Constitution providing women suffrage.

1947

After three years of research, Drs. Hubert Loring and Carlton Schwerdt from Stanford University announce the first successful isolation of the poliovirus. The National Foundation for Infantile Paralysis funded the breakthrough research that eventually led to the first successful polio vaccine developed by Jonas Salk.

Also

Cut Your Energy Day

Houseplant Appreciation Day

Oysters Rockefeller Day

Save the Eagles Day

Today' Thought

If you keep doing what you're doing,

You'll keep getting what you're getting.