Peruvian Chocolate

CHOCOLATE!!

This post is for my youngest son, Ben, who gave up eating chocolate for the past ten years after he learned of the horrors of young boys supporting this world craving. Now that he knows there is a source of organically grown, sustainable chocolate in Peru, I have to ship him a boatload! LOL!

7 steps to your very own chocolate concoction HERE'S WHAT YOU NEED TO DO:

1. First, find yourself a nice little tree - preferably from such areas like South America, Central America, Africa or Asia. Cacao trees avoid the sun and prefer to stay sheltered under larger trees. When you finally locate one, you will notice that cacao pods grow straight from the trunk and branches. Ripe pods are a deep orange and yellow hue. So, grab a machete and cut open a pod. One pod will yield enough seeds for you and a friend to each have one dark chocolate bar. After opening that pod, bundle up the seeds and pulp with whatever you can find lying around. A rag will do, but perhaps you should try using banana leaves as is tradition. Now you'll have to wait about 3-7 days depending upon the humidity. You want the beans to ferment completely, so use your own best judgment.
   Ok....got the pods....

This is Anita, the woman who takes care of me at the office. She saw the pod and wanted to help me make chocolate.

We didn't know to ferment the beans...

You can see the gelatinous gunk around the bean pods...
As soon as this process yields fermented beans, lay them out to dry in the sun. Stir consistently to ensure evenly dried beans. After the beans are conveniently dry, you can head home. No use staying in the jungle - dried cacao normally never does anyhow.





2. Your next task is to clean the beans of any leftover and unwanted gunk. Go ahead now and roast the beans. Try to stay at 250 degrees for between 30 minutes - 2 hours. Again, this process varies indefinitely: you're on your own. Finally shell the beans and discard the shells. This process is called winnowing when done by machine, but in your case you can do it just fine by hand. Pretty teeny insides, huh?
We decided to try cooking them in the microwave...
Yep...tastes like chocolate!








3. Now you have yourself some nibs - and if you didn't think the last part was complicated now's your chance to shine.

So start grinding. You need to grind the nibs to separate the chocolate liquor from the cocoa butter. No, sorry to tell you, it is not actually a liquor but rather just a name that the chocolate industry uses to talk about the liquid nibs yield when ground. Let us know how this works out for you.





4. Next, you're pretty much home free. Mix the desired amount of separated cocoa butter and cocoa liquor for creaminess, along with sugar and vanilla. If you're really into the milky stuff, by all means go ahead. We'll look the other way.

5. Really now, you should conch your chocolate. Conching is the process that will mix and smooth your concoction. Depending on your longevity, give this process at least a few hours of duration, but by all means continue on for a couple of days.

6. If you're into vanity, you'll want to temper your chocolate before cooling it, to ensure an even shine and luster. So, heat it up to 93 degrees, let it cool to 87, and bring it back up again. Repeat as necessary.

7. You have made your own chocolate! Now you just have to decide what shape you would like it to come in. Pour. Let harden. Eat. Enjoy the fruit of your labor. Good Job!
Yield 2 dark chocolate bars

Vickie suggests that you go to this link to buy Organic Peruvian Chocolate rather than try to make it on your own. She is going on an Amazonian Chocolate tour soon! More pics to come....wanna come along?
http://www.peruvianchocolate.com/