Monday, Sept 2,1985/The Battalion/Page 9D — •fegr : .'.j ' ^ -if ^Delicious chocolate-alcohol confections provide an alluring ‘adult’ combination ed that be jkins.apic i shoulalx k a foldin lit and pep Hitter disli ks (a 20tli ios for coli amper 1 you bej ble the By WENDY JOHNSON Reporter Food critic Bert Greene says choc- for an'oU* ate ' s most versatile flavor he Inows. It blends with other flavors In creative ways. bill of fare I Every chocolate lover has his fa- s Book oil on te combination, some sump- in 18bi Lous, others outrageous. Consider s elaboratt jhese unlikely couplings. Sauerkraut flair whet Idded to chocolate cake batter gives .ess. Ihecake a coconut-like texture. Ditto with chocolate zucchini bic.td Choc llate cakes made with tomato sauce |iie extra moist and fudgy. Fanatics Iven boast of chocolate chip bagels pd chocolate potato chips. Some of the more traditional com- inations sound more appealing, ow about chocolate and mint? The off of the chocolate-alcohc in Europe. Many fruits with chocolate >1 confections made ions fori u ludes, it >eef, ajoini bs of lamb four roat e ham, oi n pies, wl lium-sizefL I • , • | w . Bool, crisp mint play; six ^arm, smooth chocolate to create an Interesting union. Or chocolate and offee? The slight edge of bitternes lends a rather "adult" touch to this to sugges ied," a » 1 tarts, dio- - believe i tier. e$ its I Chocolate and alcohol is another adult" combination. Think about ating a chocolate rum ball at Christmas, or biting into a liqueur- rilled chocolate. The warm, spirited punch explodes on the tongue and is somehow smoothed by the choco late. Chocolate can be combined nith cognac, rum, whiskey and many ilavored dessert liqueurs, such as ibmaretto. ram, bull dresses in gone, th oo. y birthdar box of 61 olden bool s Chocob id "Thing! endchoco- e’s mybej viss choco; oa powdfl M&Ms. : that sun colate COD' t, eat choc Mary Newton, owner of Prioriteas in College Station, says that of the ieveral flavors of chocolate truffles tier store carries, Amaretto is proba bly the most popular. But European chocolates con- taming any alcohol other than small mounts of flavor extracts can't be imported to the United States. Con sequently, says Gordon Young wiit- ing in National Geographic, we are missing out on some of the best at a lot ol combine naturally The tartness of oranges, for example, enhances the richness of chocolate. Raspberries and cranberries have the same ef fect, creating appealing color combi nations as well. Chocolate has also been paired with bananas, pears, and prunes and other dried fruits. Certain chocolate-fruit combina tions are classic. The Black Forest cake is named in honor of the Black Forest region of Germany because that is the home of kit sch, the cherry brandy that gives it its characteristic flavor. The chocolate cake, fruit tilling, and whipped topping all are laced with cherry flavoring. And did you know that dipping spoonfuls of Wendy’s Frosty in Dr. Pepper brings out the cherry flavor in the soda? The famous Viennese Sacher tone owes much of its unique Davor to the apricot jam spread between its layers and just beneath its dark choc olate icing. It was created in 1832 by a 16-year-old apprentice chef in the court of the imperial Chancellor of Austria. Rights of bakers to claim theirs as “original” were the subject of a seven-year lawsuit. There is an oft quoted rule that says chocolate and wine must never, ever be served at the same table. This was laid to rest, however, ear lier this year when a panel of wine makers, cooks and chocolate lovers gathered in California to sample wines and chocolate desserts and re port on favorable combinations. They decided that chocolate and wine could be served together with delicious results if a few guidelines were followed. "Since chocolate's richness tends to coal the palate, it can mask other flavors, including those of wine," Barbara Lant;, a food searcher and writer tor Chocolatier magazine. “It’s intensity dominates light bodied wines and causes wines with a low sugar content to taste tart and bitter. T herefore, when choos ing a wine to serve with a chocolate dessert, it is a good idea to consider the sugar content and fruitiness of the wine as well as the sweetness and flavor of the chocolate and other in gredients in the dessert.” The chocolate and cream combi nation is big these days. Cookies 'n Cream ice cream is Blue Bell’s sec ond best seller, according to Jennif er Eckermann, public relations assis tant at the Brenham creamery. Sec ond only to Homemade Vanilla, Cookies ’n Cream is joined near the lop by Caramel Turtle Fudge and Dutch chocolate. Chocolate, graham crackers and marshmallows remind us all of scouting and campfires. Heavenly Hash and Rocky Road further the chocolate-marshmallow combination with the addition of nuts. Rocky Road is the most popular fudge fla vor at the MSC Sweet Shop. Lots of people appreciate the crunchy addition that nuts make to chocolate. Chocolate is combined with peanuts, walnuts, hazelnuts, pe cans, almonds and coconut. The but tery, burnt sugar taste of caramel is often combined with nuts and choc olate to make a triple treat. Who doesn’t enjoy a chewy, chocolate Turtle or a Snickers bar now and then? Reeses peanut butter cups attest to the success of peanut butter and chocolate. Remember the old “you- got-peanut-butter-on-my-chocolate" commercials? The Baby Ruth candy bar (named af ter Grover Cleveland’s youngest daughter, not the baseball player) also has the peanut butter- chocolate combination. In College Station, Thomas Sweet’s chocolate makc l r Melissa White says peanut butter is the most popular flavor of all the shop’s mel- taways. Meltaways are sqiuares of chocolate with various ilavorings added. They are supposed to melt in your mouth. In Mexican cooking, chocolate is used as a flavor enhancer for non sweet dishes. It is added to mole, a chili-based sauce for poultry and other main dishes. The French use this same method in some prepara tions of rabbit. Cocoa is a traditional ingredient in pumpernickel loaves; it adds deep color but barely affects the taste. For some chocolate lovers, only the perfection of chocolate with chocolate will do. Swensen’s has in troduced a new group of ice cream sundaes that caters to these people. Chocolate toppings and sauces are piled on top of chocolate ice cream. Probably the favorite combination of all is chocolate and, well, cookie. Who doesn’t like them? The choco late chip cookie has been popular since its inception in 1930. Experi menting in the kitchen of the Toll House Inn in Pennsylvania one day, owner Ruth Wakefield added choco late chunks to some cookie batter, expecting the chocolate to melt and run through the cookies. To her sur prise, the chocolate stayed in chunks. The cookies were very pop ular with the inn’s guests and word spread to the Nestle Chocolate Com pany, which created a special bar of semisweet chocolate scored into tiny sections. It was sold with a special tool for separating the sections. Later, Nestle made semisweet mor sels especially for the Toll House cookies and printed the recipe on the pack of each package. There are many variations on the original rec ipe but the battle still rages as to which recipe produces the Absolute Best Chocolate Chip Cookie. ( a w* *9+#^ , T Photo by BILL HUGHES The combination of chocolate and wine have long been consid ered taboo. But that myth was laid to rest earlier this year when winemakers, cooks and chocolate lovers met in California. Their verdict: chocolates are great with wine as long as the taste of the sweets don’t overpower the wine’s flavor. In addition to wine, al cohol is another popular mixer for chocolate lovers. The warmth of the spirited liquid offsets the coolness of the sweet chocolate. n writes Barbara Lang, a toocl re- oweet s cnocoiate maxer Melissa Best Lnocoiate Lrnp Lookie. Researchers dispel the myths of chocolate By WENDY JOHNSON Reporter Chocolate has been shrouded in mystery since its discovery. 1 he lit- fral translation of its scientific name is “food of the gods." Whether you live to eat it or can live without it. one thing is certain: chocolate affects people. And contemporary re searchers are finding some scientific bases for many of the myths sur rounding chocolate. The Spanish, who discovered chocolate, kept it to themselves for almost a century. In the early 1600s, the secret began spreading through out Western Europe. “Like the Aztecs, many Europeans considered it an aphrodisiac," says Dr. Rudolph Sprungli, chairman of the board at Lindt & Sprungli, a Swiss chocolate manufacturer. “Oth ers believed that chocolate calmed levers, cured chronic dyspepsia, and prolonged life. But not everyone agreed. A British doctor believed it to be poison ... because it tasted much too good to be medicine.” The aphrodisiac claim may not be too lar off. Modern analysis reveals small amounts of the chemical phe- nylethylamihe in chocolate. This chemical is naturally . produced in the brain and apparently increases when people fall in love. Maybe that’s why chocolate is thought to comfort the lovelorn. Although chocolate began in the New World, Europeans eat more chocolate nowadays than Americans. Switzerland heads annual consump tion at about 22 pounds per person. In the U.S. we consume from 2 to 10 pounds per person. Americans also prefer sweeter tasting chocolate than the rest of the world. Craig Claiborne of the New’ York Times writes, “Food cravings en compass everything from such mun dane fare as peanuts, pickles and wa termelon to the more sophisticated delights of oysters, caviar and cham pagne. Of all the foods on earth, however, it may be true that a crav ing for chocolate is the most univer sal." Researchers claim that our bodies have “nutrition intuition.” When your body needs a particular nutri ent, it tells your mind to eat certain foods that will provide it with the missing nutrient. We usually don't recognize these needs on a conscious level, but according to nutrition professor Brian Morgan at Columbia Univer sity, we crave certain foods because we’ve learned over the years that they relieve the physical symptoms we get when we re low on a partic ular nutrient. This begins to explain why people crave chocolate when they are depressed or need a quick pick-me-up. Women are especially subject to food cravings because of the many changes their bodies go through during the month. The hormone progesterone lowers blood sugar lev els, causing mild fatigue. Women may tend to crave sweets because they produce quick energy, combat ing the fatigue. Many women crave all carbohydrates, not just sweets, be cause they raise the levels of the Yuppies eat light and work out Mon day through Friday but spend week ends relaxing, and eating lavishly. Chocolate is one of their guiltiest pleasures. The premier chocolatier in most minds is the Belgian-based Godiva. It's class all the way at Godiva. They even make many of their own satin or velvet covered boxes. The Camp bell’s Soup Company now owns the “Like the Aztecs, many Europeans considered it an aphrodisiac. Others believed that chocolate calmed Levers, cured chronic dyspepsia, and prolonged life.” —- Dr. Rudolph Sprungli, chairman of the board at Lindt & Sprungli, a Swiss chocolate manufacturer ' brain’s chemical, serotonin, the body’s natural tranquilizer. Cookies, cakes, bread and pasta, for example, release insulin, which increases tryp tophan, a nutrient. Tryptophan con verts to serotonin, which gives a feel ing of well being. Sometimes we crave foods just for the emotional comfort they provide. Remember how chocolate milk or chicken soup helped you feel better when you were sick? Sociologists say America is becom ing a nation of dietary ambiguity. firm and has continued to support local management traditions and methods in Europe. Former Godiva president Peter Gaffinel said “It is no simple matter to open a new shop in a European town; people there al ready have their favorite confectio naries. We must lure them in with better chocolates, top Quality dis plays, and very personalized servi- Most of the Godiva chocolates bought in the U.S. are made here. Chocolates containing alcohol can not be imported f rom Europe. Campbell owns the U.S. affiliates of Godiva, too, but marketing meth ods differ here. The chocolates must be glamorized and uniquely pro moted. There was a time when an American could have a box of Go diva chocolates delivered by a woman in a flesh-colored body stocking on a horse, surrounded by minstrels — for about S3,()()0. Godiva joins Whitman as one of the few companies that includes a map on the inside lid of the box so you can tell what kind 'of center you’ll be biting into. Chocolate has even been the sub ject of international intrigue. In 1980, a chocolate espionage case in volved an employee at the Souchard Tobler plant who stole some secret chocolate recipes and tried to sell them at the Russian, Chinese and Saudi embassies. Chocolate seems to have an almost magical power to cause emotional extravagance. But it can produce an other response.: guilt. Doesn’t choco late cause cavities? Make your face break out? Make you fat? No, on the first two counts. The Tooth Report, a dental jour nal, says Boston’s Forsyth Dental Center has found a substance in chocolate that blocks a bacterial en zyme that converts sucrose into dex.- tran, a sticky form of sugar that leads to plaque build up and cavtti<5»: They’re trying to isolate this pro tee? live substance, also found in tea, ccxU fee and unsweetened fruit juice>r which they believe may be similar nS tannins. Although teenagers have loiig been warned against chocolate as^a complexion-killer, most dermatology ists today agree that it doesn’t ti iggeC breakouts. An important study (ur this relationship was conducted Jt the University of Pennsylvania. Acne patients were divided into two groups and f ed two types of identical looking candy bars. One group g their acne conditions. On the third count, as with anV food, if you gorge yourself on choco late and lead a sedentary life, of course you will gain weight. Modera tion is the key. . Chocolate does have an ef fect on people. Heed this advice from a Spectator article in England over 200 years ago: “I shall advise my fair readers to be in a particular manner careful how they meddle with ro mances, chocolates, novels, and the like inflamers ...” from J\rt to ^oology WE HAVE BOOKS FOR EVERYONE! 5 times the selection of the average bookstore at half the publisher’s price. 3828 TEXAS AVENUE Bryan, Texas MAGAZINES 846-2738 we buy and sell anything printed or recorded open 7 days a week 10am-9pm Mon.-Sat • noon-9pm Sun. 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