Chocolate Caramel Popcorn - Can You Say, Yummy?

How about a sweet treat for the kids? Caramel chocolate popcorn is a great treat for slumber parties, camp outs or just family movie night fun. So give this a try. Your kids will love it and you will too.

Ingredients needed
1 cup of popcorn for popping
1 pound of bitter sweet chocolate melted, may use a bag of chocolate morsels melted

For the caramel:
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons of sugar
½ cup plus 2 tablespoons of corn syrup
Scant ¼ cup of water

Pop the popcorn. You may use a hot air popper if you like or any way you prefer.

To make the caramel:

Place the corn syrup, sugar, and water in a heavy bottom 2 quart sauce pan over medium high heat and cook until light golden brown. Use a nice large pan so you have room to add the popcorn.
Use a wooden spoon to stir the popcorn into the caramel until it is evenly coated. Pour the caramelized popcorn onto a parchment paper lined baking sheet and allow it to cool. If you don't have parchment paper, just lightly oil your baking sheet. When cool, use your hands to break up any clumps.
Place the cool popcorn in a large bowl. Use a ladle to drizzle the chocolate over the popcorn, stirring with your wooden spoon as you go. Keep adding chocolate until the popcorn is evenly coated. Pour the chocolate coated popcorn onto a fresh parchment paper lined baking sheet until its cool.

This recipe makes 4 cups of popcorn.

Tips:
When cool, place in decorative bags to give as gifts.
Use milk chocolate and or white chocolate to coat the popcorn.
Be careful when working with caramel, it gets very hot and can burn.
Keep a bowl of ice and water beside you in case you get caramel on your skin.

By Dee Ann Stickrath

Dee Ann Stickrath is an accomplished cook, mother and homemaker. Her personal take on dishes given to her from her rich heritage filled with Irish, German and English families has made her a favorite landing spot for her family and friends and she is happy to share this and other recipes with you at http://deesrecipies.blogspot.com/

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Chocolate History

Chocolate is made from the seed of the cacao tree, a tree native to lowland areas of South America. Cacao was used as far back in history as 1100 BC. Although the Maya used the cacao bean earlier, most of the credit is given to the Aztecs.

Cacao played an important role in the Aztec society, serving both as a drink and as currency. The drink "xocolatl" or "bitter water" was consumed by the Aztec elite society. According to legend the Aztec ruler Montezuma consumed up to fifty cups of chocolate a day. Perhaps the myth of chocolate was born when Europeans first observed Montezuma drinking xocolatl prior to visiting his concubine.

Although Columbus actually was the first to bring cacao back to Spain, it wasn't until Cortez returned to Spain with cacao beans that Europeans first started consuming it. Unlike the people of South America, Europeans found the drink bitter and sweetened it with sugar. Within 100 years the secrets of cacao had spread throughout Europe and chocolate was a favorite in the royal courts of Europe.

In 1828 the Dutch chemist Van Houten invented a press to extract the cocoa butter from the roasted ground beans leading to the invention of the chocolate bar. When Daniel Peters developed a technique to incorporate condensed milk into the candy, and Milton Hershey used fresh whole milk, milk chocolate was born.

History is sprinkled with anecdotes relating to chocolate and it's various uses. In addition to Montezuma's use of cacao as an aphrodisiac, the great lover Cassanova allegedly used chocolate for the same reason. Reportedly he actually preferred chocolate to champagne. Chocolate was actually marketed as a medicine here in the United States and in Europe.

Today we continue the aphrodisiac tradition with Valentines Day gifts and the tradition of bringing flowers and chocolate for dates.

By Verland Pierson

To read this or other articles related to chocolate go to http://www.internetvaluereviewer.com/chocolate.html Author of this article is Verland Pierson, webmaster and contributing writer for http://www.internetvaluereviewer.com/

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Verland_Pierson

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From Bitter to Sweet - The 7 Most Common Varieties of Chocolate

As all chocolate aficionados know, you capture the greatest nutritional benefits when eating raw, organic chocolate as opposed to processed varieties. Once cacao beans are roasted, they lose the majority of their nutritional value. So, enjoy these chocolates as you would any highly-caloric sweet treat, and get your vitamins and minerals elsewhere.

Chocolate varieties

1. Bitter (unsweetened) chocolate has a small amount of cocoa butter and no sugar added. It's best suited for baking. Despite not having sweetener, many people find the naturally bitter taste of unsweetened chocolate quite satisfying.

2. Bittersweet (semi-sweet) chocolate contains sugar, more cocoa butter than bitter chocolate, and about 50% chocolate liquor, which is made from cacao beans.

3. Cocoa powder - This is actually the pulverized remains of cocoa butter and is commonly used in baking.

4. Couverture - A rich chocolate containing a high level of cocoa butter, making it particularly creamy. It's typically used in cake decorating and candy making.

5. Dutch process cocoa powder - A cocoa powder processed with alkali, it has a delicate flavor and is used in cakes and pastries. This alkalization process makes it neutral, so recipes using Dutch Process cocoa powder call for an acidic ingredient such as baking powder.

6. Milk chocolate - This popular type of chocolate contains condensed or powdered milk. Only a small amount of cocoa is required to make it milk chocolate. It is the most-consumed variety of chocolate due to its presence in candy bars and some desserts.

7. White chocolate - Containing the highest amount of sugar of all chocolate varieties, white chocolate is also made from milk fats and solids. It is not considered to be actual chocolate and with little to no cocoa solids, doesn't offer vitamins or minerals.

If you're looking for nutrients, eat chocolate that is processed as little as possible. Also ensure that the cacao beans are organic. Non-organic cacao may include pesticides and other fillers. Raw, organic cacao beans are incredibly rich in sulfur, magnesium and other minerals that are integral to the body's functioning.


By Sarita Haines Platinum Quality Author

Hungry for more? Visit Chocolate Is Healthy for the latest information on chocolate and your health.

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How to Make Brownies to Die For - Tuxedo Brownies That Are Out of This World Good

Who doesn't love a good brownie? (God bless them whoever they are!) One of my very favorite brownies is this recipe for Tuxedo Brownies. Chocolate and raspberry is one of the great combinations of flavors, in my opinion. The brownies start out with a boxed brownie mix but by the time you have them completed, no one would ever guess you started with a boxed mix. By the time you get the chocolate, white chocolate,cream cheese,raspberry jam, fresh raspberries and the other ingredients put together you will have an out of this world delicious brownie.

TUXEDO BROWNIES

1 pkg (21-oz) brownie mix
1/2 cup seedless raspberry jam
2 cups fresh raspberries
3 squares (1-oz each) white chocolate, melted and cooled slightly
2 pkgs (8-oz each) cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1/4 cup milk
1 container (8-oz) frozen whipped topping, thawed
Chocolate curls, optional

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly spray the bottom of a 9 x 13-inch pan with nonstick cooking spray. Set aside.

Prepare and bake brownie mix according to the package directions. Cool completely. Spread jam onto the brownie. Reserve 1/2 cup of the raspberries for garnish. Arrange the remaining 1 1/2 cups raspberries evenly over the jam. Microwave chocolate on high for 1 minute; stir. Microwave another 30 seconds or until chocolate is completely melted when stirred; cool slightly. Meanwhile, combine cream cheese and powdered sugar in a mixing bowl; mix well. Gradually whisk in the melted chocolate and the milk. Fold in the whipped topping; spread carefully over the raspberries. Refrigerate for an hour or until firm. Cut into 15 squares. Garnish with the reserved raspberries and chocolate curls, if desired. Store covered in the refrigerator (if you have any leftovers!)

Enjoy!

By Linda Carol Wilson Platinum Quality Author

For more delicious sweets visit http://ladybugssweettreats.blogspot.com.
For Linda's diabetic recipes and information go to http://diabeticenjoyingfood.squarespace.com.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Linda_Carol_Wilson

A Healthy Chocolate Fudge Recipe That Takes 5 Minutes to Make - You Heard Me Right, it is Healthy!

As a Certified Nutrition Specialist, I try my best to make tasty foods that you probably would not think were actually good for you. I have a real sweet tooth, but I also try to make them healthier than typical desserts, which are basically just junk food. The problem with a lot of desserts that are deemed to be "healthy" is that they simply improve the flavor by taking away fat and adding sugar (or using artificial sweeteners). Nothing healthy about that!

Today, I am going to share with you a chocolate- peanut- butter fudge recipe that is very easy to make. It fact, it will take only 5 minutes to bake! And, it adds no sugar or artificial sweeteners. Instead, it relies on fat sources which are healthy. (And if you don't like peanut butter, you can simply leave it out and just use chocolate)

* Extra dark chocolate bar (3-4 oz bar is good. Try for one with at least 70% cocoa content, which minimizes sugar)
* 4 or 5 Tbsp of any organic nut butter
* 2/3 to 3/4 cup of organic coconut milk
* 2 tbsp rice bran (good fiber source)
* 2 tbsp oat bran (again, more fiber)
* 1/2 cup raw pecans, almonds, or walnuts (these fats are healthy, have antioxidants, and lots of vitamins and minerals)
* 1/2 cup dried cranberries or raisins (not required)
* 1 tsp vanilla extract
* a little stevia to lightly sweeten (stevia is a natural sweetener that has no calories)

Put the coconut milk, nut butter, and chocolate bar in a saucepan and turn the heat to the lowest level possible. Stir all the contents together, then add everything else in. Then, spread your mixture onto some waxed paper that's in a baking dish and put it in the refrigerator. You now have fudge that is much more nutritional than any other type you will find!

Enjoy, and make sure to tell your friends that your trainer Brendan Harris gave you the recipe!

And, click here to check out 5 ways to get a flat stomach with no worthless diet pills or any other weight loss scams.

By Brendan Harris

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Brendan_Harris

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