Did you know that 7th July is celebrated as the world chocolate day? Observed since 2009, many believe world chocolate day marks the anniversary of when chocolate was introduced to Europe in the 1550s! Nevertheless, it is now celebrated worldwide with bakeries and patisseries creating unique chocolate-made goodies! 

We all have been enjoying the joys of chocolate from a young age, but do you know how its history? While if you talk about chocolate, you must imagine bars, truffles, or something to eat, in truth chocolate, has been essentially a beverage for 90% of its existence without the addition of any sugar in it. It’s the best-known food that no one knows anything about!

Many have traced the origin of the word “chocolate” to the Aztec word “xocoatl” referring to a bitter drink brewed from cacao beans. Many believe the earliest linguistic evidence of chocolate consumption stretches back three or even four millennia, to pre-Columbian cultures of Mesoamerica such as the Olmec!

What we have now is a much-adulterated version. Sweetened chocolate didn't appear until Europeans discovered the Americas and sampled the native cuisine. Legend has it that the Aztec king Montezuma welcomed the Spanish explorer Hernando Cortes with a banquet that included drinking chocolate, having tragically mistaken him for a reincarnated deity instead of a conquering invader. He didn’t like it that much- hard to believe now! So this chocolate day, we have a recipe for you that you can make at home and create your own chocolate, let's begin-

Ingredients- 

• 70g cacao butter
• 2.5 tbsp sugar
• 4 tbsp raw cocoa powder
• Vanilla extract
• Nuts of choice- chopped
• 1 tbsp dried berries

Method- 

1. Take the solid cocoa butter and shave it with a sharp knife (as fine as you can)
2. Melt the cocoa butter but don't let it bubble or brown. You can use the double-boiler method.
3. Add the sugar and vanilla extract to the melted butter and stir,
   Mix in the cocoa powder and any other remaining ingredients.
4. If you have a chocolate mould, use that or you can purr it in any shape of your choice. 
5. Remember to line any utensils to use with parchment paper. 
6. You can also garnish with silver or golden edible foil or glitter.
7. Chill in the freezer for 20 minutes or in the fridge for 45 minutes and then pop out of the container.
8. You can store it for more than a month or even gift it to your friends!

Happy chocolate day to you!