Chocolate – the food of love?

“Forget love, I’d rather fall into chocolate” Deanna Troi in Star Trek – Next Generation

Who can resist the sweet intoxicating smell or soft, silky touch – not forgetting that amazingly satisfying taste? There's really nothing like opening up a box of chocolates and popping one in your mouth, and while the chocolate we enjoy today is far different to the one discovered 2000 years ago, it seems it’s always had a reputation of luxury and indulgence.

The Maya first discovered the secret of the Cacao tree sometime between AD 250-900. After harvesting the seeds they fermented, roasted and grinded them into a thick paste. Then they added water, chilli peppers, cornmeal and other ingredients to create a frothy chocolate drink. The Aztecs learnt about cacao from the Maya and it came to play an important role in their society – especially in their religious ceremonies. They also believed that chocolate had certain beneficial qualities including heightened virility. 

During the Spanish conquest of Mexico, the Spaniards observed the importance that the Aztecs placed on cacao and began shipping the seeds back home. Instead of mixing it with chilli, however, they added cinnamon, spices and sugar. The Spanish kept their chocolate drink a secret for over 100 years, but once the rest of Europe tasted it, it became the greatest fad to hit the continent. It remained unchanged until the 1700s, when the Industrial Revolution saw the invention of various machines including ones that made the processing easier, one that extracted coco butter and one that pressed the chocolate paste into a solid form. From here changes came thick and fast. J S Fry and Sons is credited as creating the first solid chocolate in the mid 1800s, while in 1875 Daniel Peter and Henri Nestlé teamed up to introduce condensed milk to it and their smooth, creamy ‘milk chocolate’ rapidly became a popular favourite. Then in 1879, Rodolphe Lindt developed the chonching machine, which churned the paste, giving the chocolate its now well-known smooth consistency. During the early part of the 20th century, new machinery, new lands for cacao-growing and other societal factors have ensured that chocolate’s popularity continues to grow.

Throughout all of its history, chocolate has been regarded as a wondrous food. From the ancient societies who believed it came from Paradise and gave regenerative and mental powers, to the 14th-century Europeans who saw it as the ultimate luxury. Today it’s often seen as a symbol of love and passion. This could be because of the many chemicals in its make-up that are said to have mood-altering effects – though scientists are still trying to determine their impact – or because it just tastes so decadently good. But whatever the reason, there’s no denying that chocolate always seems to hit the spot every time – well at least for this chocoholic anyway! 

Fresh Flowers

There’s nothing that cheers the soul and warms a room better
than a big bunch of fresh flowers.

Story by Justyna Lupa

Whether it’s red roses for a Valentine or a bunch of vibrant gerberas to brighten a friend’s dreary day, flowers have always been a perfect way to let someone know you care about them.

Meanings
Flowers have been used as a means of communicating feelings for hundreds of years with different blooms conveying a variety of messages. This language of flowers developed almost to an art form in the Victorian era and it’s still practised today with the meanings attached to many flowers universally known.

The rose in particular is the flower to which we attribute most meaning and each colour variation of this beautiful bloom sends its own message. Red roses symbolise love and romance, and they are the flower of choice for lovers – especially on Valentine’s Day. Yellow roses are shared between friends but beware – they can also mean jealousy.

Floral craft
Flowers are special to a number of crafts and are used in countless ways. Lavender is just one that finds its way into many lovely projects, in both its forms of fresh and dried flowers.

There are many ways to preserve flowers for use in craft but the easiest is to air-dry them which works particularly well for roses and lavender. Simply cut off all the stems that have been in water because they may rot, then hang the flowers upside down in a well-ventilated area out of direct sunlight, and leave them until they have dried completely.

The dried flowers can then be used as embellishments on frames and boxes or even left in a vase. They can also be used, either crushed or whole, in potpourri arrangements along with dried leaves and some natural oils for added scent.

Arranging bouquets
When cutting your own flowers for a bouquet, use sharp scissors or a knife and cut the stems at an angle. Remove the leaves from the lower part of the stem that will be below the water line. Flowers with woody stems such as gerberas and poppies will last longer if their stems are seared with a flame for a few seconds.

Arrange your flowers in a vase starting with the main flowers. Then work around these with the supporting blooms and insert the ones with small fragile stems last – that way they will be held up by the others and won’t fall into the water. Be sure to change the water regularly.

My love is like a red, red rose
That’s newly sprung in June
Robert Burns
(1759 -1796)