Chocolate, a delight at the heart of the year-end celebrations. (Credit: Avdeyukphoto/Bigstock)
Central to Mesoamerican civilizations, where it was both a ritual drink and a form of currency, cacao arrived in Europe as an aristocratic luxury imbued with a sensual aura.
It became accessible in the 19th century through Van Houten’s press, enabling the production of modern cocoa powder and chocolate bars. Initially sought after by women and children as a tonic, chocolate was later adopted as a military ration for its nutritional value.
Over time, it found its masters, museums and festivals, and has now become a social media sensation. It has even sparked its own “wars” over the percentage of cacao required to earn the chocolate label.
Health, pleasure, rituals, conflicts: chocolate says a great deal about our lives. It is hardly surprising, then, that it inspires poets, writers and artists. For this selection, we decided to combine recipes and words.
"Eat your chocolates, little girl, eat your chocolates!
Listen, aside from chocolate, there is no metaphysics in the world.
Listen, all religions teach nothing better than confectionery."
Fernando Pessoa, in "Tobacco Shop, other poems"
To feel like a child again, we suggest Rajah Farah's chocolate birthday cake recipe.
"Life is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're gonna get."
Tom Hanks in Forrest Gump
This chocolate Pavlova recipe is exactly what you need to impress your guests.
"Shoot them if they didn't bring the chocolates."
Zoe Forward in Under a Wicked Moon
Playful, easy and super quick to make: Andrea Boueiz's chocolate chestnut cake.
"The greatest tragedies were written by the Greeks and Shakespeare… neither knew chocolate."
Sandra Boynton in Chocolate: The Consuming Passion
To step off the beaten path, for a little adventure, because you have to dare in life, here is the recipe for a soft chocolate tart with rosemary, herbed fleur de sel.
"I wanna stuff some chocolate in my face!"
Anna in Frozen, aka The Snow Queen
Eaten in front of the TV, straight from the jar: Karine Zablit's chocolate mousse.
"What you see before you, my friend, is the result of a lifetime of chocolate."
Attributed to Katherine Hepburn
"How did you like the chocolate factory, Charlie?"
From Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl.
And finally, a real, decadent chocolate cake recipe from Sandy's Kitchen, Sandra Boghos Letayf.
Still not satisfied? Find all our chocolate-based recipes by Lebanese chefs here.
