Drinking Chocolate: History and Recipe

Long before chocolate was turned into solid form (and the origins of the solid bar of chocolate vary, depending on who you ask), it was enjoyed as a drink, from the Americas to Europe. But this is no mere ‘hot cocoa’ we’re talking about. Drinking chocolate has all sorts of depth of flavor, as well as a reputation as a symbol of power that, throughout history, was most often enjoyed by society’s elite.

This long and storied history all starts in Central America, where the Mayas turned cacao beans into a liquid, and according to the late Chef David Sterling of our Yucatan cooking vacation in Mexico, blended in spices like allspice and achiote (also known as annatto) and other ingredients like vanilla, chile, honey, and salt. It was also here where it first started to be seen as a drink of the “elite.” After all, cacao beans were also used as a form of currency. As such, cacao and chocolate were ‘prestige’ items that were expensive and seen as a luxury.

While there were various chocolate drinks, one things both the Aztecs and Mayas could agree on was that their chocolate should have some ‘foam’ on top. They did this — as depicted in the photo to the right — by blending it back and forth between two containers. Nowadays, instead of foam atop our hot chocolate, we often use a marshmallow!

But Mexico wasn’t the only place where drinking chocolate was enjoyed. When chocolate traveled to Spain int he 17th centuries, it remained a luxury item only enjoyed by the elites, who also added milk and sugar to the mix. Other additions to the tasty beverage followed, including black pepper and cinnamon, to create a variety of flavor combinations.

Over in Italy too, the drink spread in popularity, and it’s thought – according to one story – that it was Catherine Michelle of Spain who introduced it to the Italian court. Following that visit, as the story goes, the royal Savoy family often enjoyed it as an afternoon snack, and today drinking chocolate is still quite popular in Piedmont, particularly Turin.

But drinking chocolate is a favorite throughout Italy as well, including Sicily, in no small part due to the fact that it was once under Spanish rule. Modica, for one, is famous for their chocolate, which is made straight from cacao and doesn’t have any added soy lecithin or cocoa butter.
What’s your favorite way to drink chocolate?