Candy Dish Blog

Andy McCormick of The Hershey Company paid a visit to Ghana farming villages late last fall. A report on his experiences was published yesterday in the Lancaster, PA newspaper and we thought you might like to read it.

Nearly 20 years ago Andy was a Peace Corps volunteer in rural Ghana where he taught science and English and coached a high school basketball team. During Andy’s tenure from 1982-84 the schools operated only half of the time because of lack of food. Medical clinics were shuttered and the government was unstable. “There were hungry children everywhere,” he notes.

Much has changed since 1982, according to Andy. Now Ghana is blessed with international business investment, highway projects and opportunities to attend schools throughout Ghana. Andy has kept in contact with a former student, Adjei, who is a skilled rice farmer with several employees to help with planting, weeding and harvesting his five acres. Adjei and his family grow most of their own food, including the potato-like cassava, plantains, mangoes, pine nuts, okra and tilapia, a fish which is a great source of protein for his family and others.

His house is fortified against malaria-carrying mosquitoes and his five children attend school in the village. Still, the family home does not have electricity and nor does the family own a car or even a bicycle.

Adjei and his family live a life similar to cocoa farming families in Ghana. Life has improved greatly but hardships remain. Like Hershey, NCA supports a program through Family Health International in support of educational efforts to control malaria infections. Malaria is the most frequent cause of consultation and hospitalization in Ghana. NCA’s program also works to educate cocoa growing communities on causes and prevention of HIV/AIDS, as 17 percent of all confirmed cases of AIDS in Ghana are individuals involved in the agriculture sector.

Throughout cocoa growing areas of Ghana there are ongoing efforts to educate community members on better farming methods to improve crops as well as to ensure safe labor practices, preventative health measures, and better more accessible school education. These efforts are sponsored by NGOs such as the World Cocoa Foundation and the International Cocoa Initiative, the government of Ghana, the U.S. and European governments, and individual chocolate and cocoa companies.

Let us know if you or your company are involved in efforts to assist cocoa growing communities. We’ll be happy to let our blog readers know.

Cocoa Grower by SidewalkSundays.

Angela D’Urso of Echo Pilot published a great recipe for a low-calorie cocoa sauce. D’Urso says she learned about the positive health benefits cocoa can offer while in pastry school. She talks about the antioxidant properties as well as the iron and potassium content. In short, it’s clear that she loves all things cocoa.

And just to reward the world, she offers a low-calorie coca sauce recipe. Here are the ingredients to make about a quart of the good stuff:

• 1 cup cocoa powder
• 2 cups water
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup semisweet Baker’s chocolate or chips

To get the steps to make it (yes, it’s more complicated than mixing it all together with sunshine and love), go read the article.

Chocolate Sauce by gelskitchen.

Thanks to Savory Seattle for publishing this recipe. It feels like the right weather to have lamb. The gamey flavor makes it a perfect dish for days like this, when we are entering into the time of cold weather. Adding the deep, rich flavor of cocoa and the nutty crunchiness of cocoa nibs must be a heck of a great way to enjoy it.

We have talked about cooking with cocoa nibs before, as well as Jacques Torres’ cocoa nib salmon. Nibs and lamb? A new one on us, but we are very open minded!

Ingredients:
2 medium shallots, minced
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
4 6-ounce lamb chops
salt
1 to 2 tablespoon’s olive oil
1/2 to 3/4 cup zinfandel or syrah
1/4 cup low-sodium beef broth
1 teaspoon mustard (I used Walla Walla Sweet mustard)
2 tablespoons Cocoa Nibs
pinch of sugar

You will have to go to the original page to get the full recipe.

Have you cooked with cocoa nibs? How did it turn out for you?

Cocoa Nibs by Caro’s Lines.

Cocoa adds an extra flavor dimension to a classic angel food cake. Serve this accompanied with a scoop of Chocolate Ice Cream, Chocolate Sorbet, or drizzled with Hot Fudge Sauce. Fresh fruit is also a good accompaniment. The cake travels well, too, so pack some slices in with your next picnic.

Makes one 10 X 3 ½-inch cake, 14 to 16 servings

• 1 cup sifted flour
• 3 tablespoons unsweetened natural cocoa powder, sifted
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 1 ½ cups superfine sugar
• 12 large egg whites, at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
• 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract

Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 325°F.

In a 1-quart bowl, thoroughly blend the flour with the cocoa powder, salt, and ¾ cup of the superfine sugar. Set this mixture aside. Place the remaining ¾ cup superfine sugar in a measuring cup near the mixer.

In the grease-free bowl of an electric stand mixer using the wire whip or in a mixing bowl using a hand-held mixer, whip the egg whites on low speed until they are slightly frothy. Add the cream of tartar and whip the egg whites until they begin to mound. While the egg whites are whipping on medium speed, slowly sprinkle on the remaining ¾ cup of superfine sugar, 2 tablespoons at a time, then continue whipping the whites until they are firm, but not dry. Blend in the vanilla, then remove the bowl from the mixer.

Sprinkle the dry ingredients over the whipped egg whites, 3 tablespoons at a time and gently fold them into the whites, using a long-handled rubber spatula.

Turn the batter into a 10 X 4-inch tube pan, preferably with a removable bottom. Use the rubber spatula to smooth and even the top. Tap the pan on the countertop gently a few times to eliminate any air bubbles.

Bake the cake in the preheated oven until it is golden brown, springs back when lightly touched, and a cake tester inserted near the center comes out clean, about 40 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and immediately invert it onto its feet, or hang it by the center tube over a funnel or the neck of a bottle. Leave the cake to hang for several hours, until it is completely cool.

To remove the cake from the pan, run a thin-bladed knife around the inside of the pan and around the tube. Gently loosen the cake from the edges and push the bottom of the pan up, away from the sides. Run the knife between the bottom of the cake and the bottom of the pan and invert the cake onto a plate, then reinvert, so it is right side up. Angel food cake is best cut with a serrated knife using a sawing motion.

The cake will keep at room temperature, well wrapped in plastic, for 3 days, or it can be frozen for up to 3 weeks. If frozen, defrost in the refrigerator for 24 hours before serving.

Recipe from CandyUSA.com.

Cocoa by elana’s pantry.

As you pass out treats to children in the U.S. who dress as ghosts and goblins on Halloween night you might be interested to know that cocoa farmers are finding ways to increase their incomes and provide better lives for their children.

Late last week Nestle, among the largest purchasers of cocoa beans in the world with operations in 32 countries, announced a  “Cocoa Plan” to help improve cocoa farmer profitability and cocoa bean quality.  The plan includes  providing farmers with better varieties of cocoa  trees, farmer education to help farmers become more profitable and buying co-ops to provide farmer services and allow group (more profitable) pricing for farmers.  Nestle will invest $109 million in these  ”sustainability initiatives” for the cocoa sector in the next decade.

To quote Nestle’s excellent new website on The Cocoa Plan, “Without farmers, there’d be no cocoa.  Without cocoa, there’d be no chocolate.  Cocoa farmers are the vital start-point and they can benefit considerably from our help.”

Nestle joins a growing list of companies making substantial commitments to cocoa farming.  Mars has announced that the company has pledged to purchase 100,000 tons of sustainably grown certified cocoa by 2020.  We did an earlier blog on Cadbury’s Fair Trade chocolate initiative in the U.K. where all Cadbury milk chocolate bars will be certified Fair Trade, increasing the amount of Fair Trade chocolate sold in the U.K. by 25 percent over 2008.

The World Cocoa Foundation last week announced the launch of its Cocoa Livelihoods program in Ghana.  The program, funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and 12 chocolate companies, is expected to improve the livelihoods of nearly 60,000 farmers in Ghana over the next 5 years.  “Making real progress against hunger and poverty starts with small farmers,” explains Richard Rogers of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

The goals of these initiatives are similar; they work to ensure that cocoa farm families have greater opportunities for economic development.  Along the way they encourage access to quality education for children and adults.  It’s a good goal for children of cocoa farmers, farmers themselves, the cocoa companies and consumers of chocolate everywhere.

Cocoa Beans by Nestlé.

Yesterday we invited Washington, DC area food and lifestyle reporters to see our new Georgetown offices, share a meal with us and exchange information about trends in candy, chocolate, cocoa and gum.

There was much conversation around our community table. The chocolate and cocoa related conversation went like this:

• Top rated entree of the day: Cocoa, rosemary and soy marinated tenderloin of beef. This dish was proof that cocoa is a welcome addition to the entire dinner table, not just dessert.
• Chocolate is America’s favorite flavor (vanilla is #2) with Americans relatively evenly split between a love for dark or milk chocolate.
• Sweet and savory combinations are mighty fine. We sampled bacon, brie and chipotle filled truffles–one of each.
• Interested pairings are making their mark, such as chili, lavender, sesame, green tea infused chocolates.
• Chocolate and cocoa are international foods. Cocoa was celebrated by the ancient Mayans over 2000 years ago. Cocoa trees are grown in small communities in very hot humid climates near the Equator in West Africa, Asia and Latin America. Chocolate or cocoa are immensely popular in the Americas, nearly all European countries and there is growing interest in Asia where green tea and chocolate are popular combinations.
• Cocoa trees are delicate, requiring the loving care of the farm families who tend them. They are susceptible to pests and diseases and need careful pruning and constant attention to ensure a healthy tree. Most cocoa farm families grow other crops, such as hardwood trees, bananas, other fruits, cassava and plaintain to provide shade for the cocoa trees as well as a year round income for the families, since there are only two cocoa harvests a year.
• Definitive research shows that cocoa butter, the natural fat in the cocoa bean, does not raise blood cholesterol levels in the body. (Cocoa beans, by the way, are a fruit and grow inside pods shaped like footballs from the trunks of cocoa trees.)
• Chocolate, in particular dark chocolate, and cocoa contain flavanols, a type of antioxidant which can affect good cardiovascular health.
• Our experts predict that additional research will show a positive effect on blood pressure and mood (we don’t really need the experts to tell us chocolate makes us happy!).
• The antioxidant properties of the cocoa bean make it a beneficial addition to many skin and beauty care products such as lotion, anti-aging creams, soaps and shampoos.

We had a great time and hope our guests did, too. We hope some of you will be able to join us at our table in the future. In the meantime we know that really, almost everyone is a chocolate expert. What chocolate trends are you willing to predict?

Although it wasn’t big news in the United States, President Obama and his family visited Ghana last Saturday, where the President addressed the Ghanaian Parliament and later he and his family visited one of several former “castles” on the Ghanaian coast which were the disembarkment point for captured Africans who were sold into slavery.

President Obama chose Ghana as his first trip to Africa due to the determination of the Ghanaian people to support a democratic form of government. He mentioned “cocoa” in his speech, stating that “oil simply cannot become the new cocoa.” Obama was suggesting that African nations should provide a supportive atmosphere for a variety of businesses, in particular export businesses, to flourish for the economic benefit of its citizens.

I visited Ghana a couple of years ago as part of a “Cocoa Tour to Ghana” organized by the World Cocoa Foundation. The tour was unforgettable. When we landed at the international airport outside of Ghana’s capital, Accra, the importance of cocoa to the country was immediately visible in the artwork on the airport walls.

Traveling in a cocoa producing country can seem like living inside a sauna. Cocoa trees thrive in hot, very humid weather. It doesn’t take long for a westerner to wilt like a stalk of celery.

What many of us consider basic necessities can be hard to come by. We were there in June when electricity, powered by water in Ghana, was scarce prior to the rainy season. Sometimes the lights and the air conditioning would be out for hours. Once, while we waited several hours for an audience with a regional king, several in our party became faint as there was little air, despite open walls on 3 sides.

Despite more than their share of adversity Ghanaians are a very proud people with enthusiasm for the democratic process. In 50 years as an independent state they have held free elections, engineered successful and peaceful transitions of power and relentlessly pursued good governance. They also politely but firmly regularly inform westerners that Ghanaians will decide their own future and what’s best for their people.

Ghana is the second largest cocoa producer in the world and the chocolate and cocoa companies who are our members purchase Ghana’s largest agricultural export crop. They do their best to listen to Ghanaians while working in partnership with governments officials, civil society and cocoa farm communities to secure a better future for those farm families who grow the most essential ingredient in chocolate.