Archive for the ‘Historic Events’ Category
Wednesday, May 1st, 2013
— Ed Engoron, Co-Founder of Choclatique
Author of Ed Engoron’s Choclatique, Running Press, 2011 This is my favorite Mexican fast food dessert and it’s perfect for a Cinco de Mayo celebration. The long strips of fried dough are comparable to New Orleans beignets or southern-fried fritters… only they’re easier to make. They are a common street food and can also be found at fairs and carnivals in both America and Mexico. In recent years many vendors have resorted to frozen churros choosing to just fry them off. I think my freshly made version presented here is far better than frozen. I made them even more delectable with the addition of Choclatique Cocoa Powder to give it a light chocolate flavor. Fried chocolate-how bad could it be?
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Fry Time: 30 minutes (to fry them all)
Ready In: 40 minutes
Yield: About 24 Churros
Ingredients:
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 quarts vegetable oil for frying
1 cup water
1/2 cup margarine (not butter)
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup Choclatique Rouge Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 large eggs
Directions:
- Stir together the sugar and cinnamon and set aside.
- In a heavy deep skillet or deep-fryer, begin to preheat heat the oil to 360º F (use a thermometer). The oil should be at least 1-1/2 inches deep.
- In a medium saucepan, heat the water and margarine to a rolling boil. Combine the flour, cocoa powder and salt; stir into the boiling mixture.
- Reduce heat to low and stir vigorously until the mixture forms a ball, about 1 minute. Remove from heat and beat in the eggs one at a time.
- Spoon the mixture into a pastry bag fitted with a large star tip.
- Carefully squeeze out 4-inch long strips of dough directly into the hot oil. Fry 3 or 4 strips at a time, until golden brown, about 3 to 4 minutes on each side.
- Remove from hot oil to drain on paper towels.
- Roll each of the churros in the cinnamon-sugar mixture while still hot.
ChefSecret: If the oil isn’t hot enough the churros will be greasy; if you fry the pastry at a higher temperature than noted they will not get fully cooked on the inside.
Dress the churros up for a dinner time dessert by drizzling a little dark chocolate sauce over the top and garnish with fresh seasonal berries.
To make the Chocolate Drizzle:
Ingredients:
2 ounces Choclatique Private Reserve Dark Chocolate, chopped
1 teaspoon white vegetable shortening
Directions:
- Place the chocolate and shortening in a small re-sealable freezer bag.
- Microwave on HIGH for about 30 seconds until chocolate is melted.
- Massage chocolate and shortening together in the bag.
- Snip off corner and drizzle over the fried churros that have been dredged in cinnamon-sugar.
Special Note: Leave it to Joan to find another use for churros. While surfing the internet for Cinco de Mayo festivities she came across a recipe for Churro Cupcakes on The Curvy Carrot website. I think it a great idea that we will be trying here this week. Go and grab a quick peak for yourself and see what you think. Think of the possibilities… I would consider making a Tres Leaches Churro Cake just to make sure you have a totally indulgent dessert for the May 5th.
  Chocolate Doctor
Posted in Chocolate, Desserts, Food, Historic Events, Holidays | 3 Comments »
Thursday, June 28th, 2012
— Ed Engoron, Co-Founder of Choclatique
Author of Ed Engoron’s Choclatique, Running Press, 2011
 Albert Einstein use to eat a three ounce bar of dark chocolate everyday. Thomas Jefferson had his chocolate imported from France and Spain. Theodore Roosevelt always had chocolate packed in his steamer trunk for his excursions into the wilderness and it isn’t by coincidence that more chocolate is consumed in California’s Silicon Valley than in any other place in America. If this is all true, then one has to assume that chocolate is “brain food” and the smartest people in the world eat chocolate.
We are right in the middle of what one might say is the most important election of our life times. Then, it’s only logical that if these people—chocolate eaters—are so smart, they should be able to accurately predict who is going to be the next president of the United States. More than that, chocolate lovers should also be able to forecast who will control the Senate and The House of Representatives.
This week Choclatique launched the first-ever chocolate election poll to predict who will take a bite out of the 2012 election. As experts in chocolate, we felt compelled to add our expertise for the debut of the world’s first and only chocolate political poll.
 Now chocolate lovers can cast their vote at www.PresidentialPoll2012.com and follow the voting progress of their favorite candidate during the Presidential Election, as well as which party will control the House of Representatives, Senate and even the Supreme Court. These poll results are ‘easy to swallow’ and practically foolproof, with a “fudge” factor of + 2%, for people who eat chocolate “never” lie.
Our Presidential Poll is a great indication of both political preferences and the overall mood of the nation since the world’s greatest mood elevator is chocolate. We think you’ll find it fun to play politics in a non-threatening, safe environment that is a ‘tasteful’ way to predict the election.” My partner, Joan Vieweger, is the lead pollster for this campaign, as well as a leading market researcher for several Fortune 100 food companies.
At the same tome Choclatique is also unveiling our new Capitol Collection, a new line of truffles, each piece representing either Democrats (blue donkeys) or Republicans (red elephants). Each individual piece of chocolate is a hand-decorated white chocolate truffle filled with soft, creamy, dark chocolate ganache.
 These limited edition, authentically American-made chocolates are available now through the November 2012 Election with 15 percent of the proceeds benefiting Operation Homefront. Supporting returning veterans, Operation Homefront provides emergency financial and other assistance to the families of service members and wounded warriors.
This is where Democrats and Republicans can put aside their differences and unite with chocolaty, bipartisan goodness. “We have created the perfect union in our Capitol Collection established upon principles of peace, freedom, equality, justice, liberty and the love of chocolate for all.
 This stately collection is available in Donkeys, Elephants or Bipartisan gift boxes, which come in an array of sizes including: 8-pieces ($18.00), 15-pieces ($30.00) and 30-pieces ($55.00). For election viewing party favors, customers can purchase mini gift sets of two pieces (12 sets of two for $50.00). Orders can be placed at www.Choclatique.com. Choclatique ships nationwide in elegant, reusable, leather gift boxes with hand-tied ribbon that are sealed for ultimate freshness.
For additional media information, please contact:
Tracy Rubin
JCUTLER Media Group
323.969.9904
Chocolate Doctor
Tags: Bipartisan, Democrats, Donkeys, Elephants, GOP, House of Representatives, Politics, Presidential Election, Presidential Poll, Republicans, Senate, Supreme Court
Posted in Chocolate, Elephants, Food, Historic Events, Politics | Comments Off
Thursday, May 3rd, 2012
— Ed Engoron, Co-Founder of Choclatique
Author of Ed Engoron’s Choclatique, Running Press, 2011
 Do not confuse Cinco de Mayo with Mexican Independence Day, which is actually on September 16.
Cinco de Mayo (Spanish for “fifth of May”) is a celebration held on May 5. It is celebrated nationwide in the United States and regionally in Mexico, primarily in the state of Puebla where the holiday is called El Dia de la Batalla de Puebla (English: The Day of the Battle of Puebla). The date is observed in the United States as a celebration of Mexican heritage and pride, and to commemorate the cause of freedom and democracy during the first years of the American Civil War. In the state of Puebla, the date is observed to commemorate the Mexican army’s unlikely victory over French forces at the Battle of Puebla on that fateful day under the leadership of General Ignacio Zaragoza Seguín.
 Normally we celebrate at bars around the country where people enjoy tequila shots, Cadillac margaritas and nachos. I decided to add a little chocolate to the equation with my Cinco de Mayo Holiday Brownies. I felt that cinnamon and chili peppers are such an integral part of Mexican cuisine that they were an appropriate addition to an all-American favorite—the brownie. They are the closest flavors to what Montezuma himself may have consumed when he downed nearly 50 golden goblets of a roughly made chocolate beverage.
 So enjoy the rich, spicy flavors of chocolate, cinnamon and chili, in this wonderful brownie. Better yet, make it really easy and bake-up a bag of our Choclatique Dark Chocolate Brownie Mix adding in the required cinnamon and chili.
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Ready In: 70 minutes
Yield: About 30 brownies
Ingredients:
1-1/2 cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter
3 cups granulated sugar
6 large whole eggs
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon pure almond extract
1 cups Choclatique Natura Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
1/4 cup Choclatique Black Onyx Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablepoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 cup Choclatique Milk Chocolate Chips
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 350º F.
- Line a 12×15-inch baking pan with parchment paper, leaving about 3 inches of paper overhanging 2 sides to use as handles to help lift the baked brownies out of the pan.
- Place the butter in a microwave-safe bowl, and cook on medium until the butter is about half melted, about 1 minute. Mash the butter with sugar until well combined.
- Stir in eggs one at a time, incorporating each one before adding the next.
- Mix in the vanilla and almond extracts.
- Sift the cocoa, flour, cinnamon, cayenne pepper and baking powder into a bowl. Sprinkle in the salt.
- Mix the flour and cocoa mixture into the butter and sugar mixture, stirring to blend well. Fold in the chocolate chips and pour the batter into the prepared baking pan.
- Bake in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with moist crumbs, 20 to 25 minutes.
- Let cool in the pan, and use parchment paper handles to remove the brownies for slicing.
ChefSecret: Make it Authentic! If you can find Mexican cinnamon (canela) in a local ethnic store, use it in place of the traditional bottled ground cinnamon for a real holiday flavor.
Chocolate Doctor
Tags: Cinco de Mayo, Holiday Brownies
Posted in Chocolate, Desserts, Food, Historic Events, Holidays | Comments Off
Thursday, June 23rd, 2011
— Ed Engoron, Co-Founder of Choclatique
Author of Ed Engoron’s Choclatique, Running Press, 2011
 As I was planning my trip to Lisbon, Portugal next week I found that I have a stop-over in Barcelona. What could be better than an afternoon in the old chocolate capital of the world? The harbor of Barcelona was the port into which the very first shipments of cocoa from the New World arrived more than 500 years ago, making it the ideal home to the Museu de la Xocolata—Barcelona’s Chocolate Museum.
 The Catalan Capital is a beautiful city with a diverse culture and history and Barcelona’s museums offer visitors a wide range of aesthetic experiences – in fact, they can be seen as a perfect illustration of just how beguilingly this city can be.
Two of Barcelona’s most popular museums are devoted to artists—the works of Joan Miró and Pablo Picasso – the first born in the city and the second generally acknowledged as an adopted son.
 The third is the Museu de la Xocolata which is housed in an outwardly unimposing but historical building. From the aroma wafting through the narrow twisted streets lets visitors know to be prepared for an idiosyncratic and glorious celebration of the world’s most famous treat.
Inside the museum the history of chocolate is demonstrated from the discovery of the first cocoa beans brought back by the New World explorers, including Christopher Columbus himself, the progressive history since its origins as a spicy drink to its delight as a French sweet all the way through time to its present predominant position in the commercial world.
 There are displays of machines and tools representing the chocolate maker’s art as well as fantastically detailed reconstructions of many of Barcelona’s most famous architectural sites – painstakingly and lovingly recreated from nothing but chocolate. There is even Snowy, an albino gorilla (from whom we named our Snowy White Chocolate) who has been meticulously constructed from white chocolate.
This “delicious” museum demonstrates chocolate’s many different purposes: as a medicinal element, an aphrodisiac, a nutritional treasure and everything in between, both legend and reality. They offer different workshops for children and adults.
 Save a little time to stop by the chocolate café and bar where they sell great hot chocolate, thick enough to hold a spoon on its edge in the cup. While enjoying your chocolate, swivel around on your stool and watch the students next door being put through their paces as they try to achieve master status as pasty chefs and chocolatiers.
 The Museu de la Xocolata is located in the Antiguo Convento de San Agustín at Carrerr de Commerç, 36. It is a pleasant short walk from Arc de Triomf Metro station (Red Line, 1), beginning on the Passeig Lluis Companys or due east of the Metro at Juame 1 (Yellow Line, 4), just a few minutes past the Picasso Museum in the Gothic District.
Chocolate Doctor
Tags: Barcelona, Chocolate Museum, History of Chocolate, Museu de la Xocolata
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Thursday, March 24th, 2011
— Ed Engoron, Co-Founder of Choclatique
Author of Ed Engoron’s Choclatique, Running Press, 2011
 Giving baby chicks at Easter is a tradition that has its roots in ancient history. Eggs are widely recognized as symbols of new life, and are often included in various spiritual traditions. As symbols, they are most familiar to Western culture as Easter decorations and treats. Eggs and baby chicks are as prevalent as the bunny at Easter.
 An egg is also a symbol of the rock tomb from which Christ emerged when he arose again. Likewise the chick, hatching out of the egg symbolizes new life or re-birth.
 It is the influence of traditional spring rites that makes Easter so egg-special. And myths coming down to us from an incredibly distant past have shown man’s relationship with the egg to be very deep seated. This is caught in the old Latin proverb: “Omne vivum ex ovo,” which means “all life comes from an egg.”
 From ancient India to Polynesia, from Iran, Greece, and Phonecia to Latvia, Estonia, and Finland, from Central America to the west coast of South America, there are myths that the whole universe was created out of an egg. Thus, it is not unusual that in almost all ancient cultures eggs have been held as an emblem of life. The concept of all living beings born from an egg is also a foundational concept of modern biology.
Eggs were viewed as symbols of new life and fertility through the ages. In early Christian times, the egg was a symbol of new life just as a chick might hatch from the egg. The Easter egg tradition may have celebrated the end of the privations of Lent. It is believed that for this reason many ancient cultures, including the Ancient Egyptians, Persians, and Romans, used eggs during their spring festivals.
 The coloring of eggs is an established art, and eggs are often dyed, painted, and otherwise decorated. Eggs were also used in various holiday games: parents would hide eggs for children to find, and children would roll eggs down hills. These practices live on in Easter egg hunts and egg rolls. The most famous egg roll takes place on the White House lawn every year. The oldest tradition is to use dyed and painted chicken eggs, but a modern custom is to substitute chocolate eggs—solid or hollow, the latter filled with confections such as jellybeans. Candy Easter eggs can be any form of confectionery such as hollow chocolate eggs wrapped in brightly-colored foil or delicately constructed of spun sugar and pastry decoration techniques. The ubiquitous jelly egg or jellybean is made from sugar-coated pectin candy. These are often hidden, supposedly by the Easter Bunny, for children to find on Easter morning.
At Choclatique, we pay homage to both the chicken and the egg with our chocolate Chicks. Chicks are a delicious change from traditional Easter candy. These exceptional chocolates truffles have been hatched just in time for spring with an array of vibrant colors and luscious flavors. Chicks are the perfect choice for a special Easter basket addition or even a baby shower.
 Everyone marvels over our delicate chocolate eggs cracked in the middle with a tiny chick emerging from within. Our Chicks are made with our premium quality, great-tasting chocolates and wonderful truffle fillings. Chicks are individually hand-painted and decorated by our talented artisans in our Chocolate Studios. Flavors include Cranberry Bog Chick, Sticky Almond Chick, Triple Chocolate Chick, Strawberries & Cream Chick, Chocolate-Marshmallow Chick, Chocolate Mousse Chick, Mint Chip Chick and several other chirping delights.
 Chocolate lovers are peeping with joy over Choclatique Chicks with the unique blend of gourmet chocolate and flavorful fillings. For those of you who like their Chicks unadorned and without fillings, we also offer Naked Chicks, solid chocolate tweets available in our premium Private Reserve Dark, Heritage Milk, Snowy White or a mixture of all 3! Chicks have become a new family tradition and a favorite for many Easters to come.
Chocolate Doctor
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Wednesday, November 24th, 2010
— Ed Engoron, Co-Founder of Choclatique
 This week we will be celebrating Thanksgiving with many of the foods that have been the holiday’s custom since the very first celebration. And, as hard as it is to believe, chocolate was unknown to the early settlers and did not have a place at their first celebration—something we have changed in later years. Regardless, Thanksgiving is the authentically American holiday which is celebrated on the final Thursday in November. But did you know it was not always so?
It wasn’t until December 26, 1941 when President Franklin D. Roosevelt approved this date to give the country an economic boost, making Thanksgiving a national holiday and setting it to be the fourth (but not final) Thursday in November. But long before the official proclamation, it was an annual tradition in the United States since 1863. Thanksgiving was historically a religious observation to give thanks to God.
 The event that Americans commonly call the first Thanksgiving was celebrated to give thanks to God for helping the Pilgrims of Plymouth Colony survive their first brutal winter in New England. The first Thanksgiving feast lasted three days providing enough food for 53 pilgrims and 90 Native Americans. The first Thanksgiving feast consisted of fowl, venison, fish, lobster, clams, berries, fruit, pumpkin, squash, beetroot and turkey.
Our modern day Thanksgiving holiday traces its origins from the original 1621 celebration at the Plymouth Plantation, where the Plymouth settlers held a harvest feast after a successful growing season. This was continued in later years, first as an impromptu religious observance, and later as a civil tradition.
The Wampanoag tribe of Native Americans lived near the Pilgrims and taught them how to catch eel and grow corn. The Wampanoag leaders had allowed their own food reserves to be shared with the fledgling colony during the first winter when supplies brought from England were insufficient to keep the population alive.
 Wisely these first Americans set apart this day to celebrate at Plymouth immediately after their first harvest. At the time, this was not regarded as a Thanksgiving observance; harvest festivals existed in English and Wampanoag tradition alike. Several colonists gave personal accounts of the 1621 feast in Plymouth, Massachusetts. It was quoted that, “the Pilgrims found the Lord to be with them in all their ways, and to bless their outgoings and incomings, for which let His holy name have the praise forever, to all posterity.”
Our forefathers began to gather their small harvests and prepare their houses against winter cold. In future years some of these adventurers were employed in civic affairs, others were fishing for cod, bass and other fish, which was dried and stored, of which every family had their share. As winter approached they began to store salted fowl, of which there was plenty. Beside the abundance of waterfowl there was great supply of wild turkeys. All of this lead to a grand meal for ever person as the harvest of Indian corn was brought in from the field and stored for the winter months.
Today we celebrate Thanksgiving with turkey, corn, squash or pumpkin, cranberries and nuts. Many the recipes we use today use the very same ingredients from earlier Thanksgiving celebrations. While chocolate was not a part of the first feast, we have adapted many recipes that have been enriched with the dark stuff.
 One of my personal favorites is Chocolate Pecan Pie which is made with our Choclatique Dark, Semi-Sweet Chocolate Mini Chips. I like this chocolate the best not only because of its wonderful rich flavor but for the miniature size. There are over 4000 mini-chips to a pound which ensures that every single bite will have a fair share of chocolate.
I encourage you to give this recipe a try and experiment with other chocolate desserts. If you have one that you think is out-of-this-world, send it to me and I will post it so others may share. Finally as we all express thanks for this year’s bounty, let’s not forget to offer a special thanks and prayers for our military men and women who are protecting us from others who do not share our beliefs.
 Chocolate Doctor
Tags: Chocolate Chips, Native Americans, Pilgrims, Plymouth Colony, Thanksgiving, Wampanoag Tribe
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Thursday, July 15th, 2010
— Ed Engoron, Co-Founder of Choclatique
 There is substantial evidence that chocolate was a major food during most of California history—it was a pleasure to drink and a pleasure to eat. California can claim a long history of savoring chocolate. Recently discovered documents show that chocolate was part of the supplies during a 1774-76 Spanish expedition to San Diego, San Gabriel, Monterey and San Francisco. Chocolate served as a stimulant to kept soldiers alert during their sentry rounds and as a way to ease hunger during long overland treks and as a popular social beverage served to family members and guests alike.
 Accounts of the early Spanish and Mission era extol the merits of chocolate, as noted in the diaries of Mexican and Anglo pioneers making the trek to California who found chocolate available at stopovers in Texas, New Mexico and Arizona. Evidence found at Sutter’s Fort in Sacramento (where gold was first discovered in California) showed chocolate was made there and served to members of the Fremont expedition in 1845. Ledgers in the fort archives record the sale and prices of chocolate in Sacramento both before and after the discovery of gold.
 Chocolate is found in the accounts from the Gold Rush. Miners took “chocolate breaks” to brew their favorite beverage, and hard-working women served chocolate to their children. Getting lucky with chocolate? In San Francisco, chocolate was served as a refreshing beverage in various gambling saloons where miners were at a “loss” for words or even something more substantial.
Tags: California History, Chocolate Beverages, drinking chocolate, Gold Rush, Spanish-Era California
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Friday, May 28th, 2010
— Joan Vieweger, Co-Founder of Choclatique
This weekend our nation “celebrates” Memorial Day… you know, the 3-day weekend that marks the unofficial start of summer. The weekend of baseball, barbecues and blockbuster movie debuts. The weekend of legendary mattress, car and stereo sales for those who venture out and Law & Order, and NCIS marathons for all you couch potatoes.
 What seems to get lost in all of the eating, watching and shopping is the real significance of the holiday… a day of remembrance and respect for those who died in service to our country. Memorial Day was officially proclaimed on 5 May 1868 by General John Logan, national commander of the Grand Army of the Republic; it was first observed on 30 May 1868, when flowers were placed on the graves of Union and Confederate soldiers at Arlington National Cemetery. In 1971, as part of the National Holiday Act, Congress made the holiday a three-day weekend, a move the VFW (Veterans of Foreign Wars) believes has “contributed greatly to the general public’s nonchalant observance of Memorial Day.”
This spring, I re-watched HBO’s excellent Band of Brothers series as the lead-up to the new series The Pacific. Though the docudrama was very compelling on its own, the video vignette interviews of the actual servicemen from World War I and World War II were moving beyond words. Even all these decades later, the pain of their experiences was evident on their faces, yet they were proud of their service of their fellow soldiers so many of whom never made the trip back home.
 Those of us who have never served in the military can never begin to fathom what thousands and thousands of brave soldiers have endured—and are enduring—to protect us and our allies in conflicts. We owe these brave men and women—and their families—a debt we can never repay.
In December 2000, the “National Moment of Remembrance” resolution was passed in hopes of re-educating and reminding Americans of the true meaning of Memorial Day. The resolution asks that at 3:00 PM local time, for all Americans “To voluntarily and informally observe in their own way a Moment of remembrance and respect, pausing from whatever they are doing for a moment of silence or listening to ‘Taps.’” It would seem that this is the very least we can do to pay deep respect to those who have made the ultimate sacrifice so that we may live in freedom.
 At Choclatique, we proudly support the men and women of the military—past, present and future—who defend our country. We have been very fortunate to become acquainted with many troops currently deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan. They and their families inspire us and help us put life’s little inconveniences into proper perspective.
If you find yourself compelled to watch a marathon this weekend, at least tune in to the AMC channel. Beginning at 9:00 AM, you can view 7 classic war films, including The Devil’s Brigade, The Enemy Below and To Hell and Back. But please… don’t forget to take a moment to stop and remember those who gave their lives defending ours.
Tags: AMC, Armed Services, Heroes, Memorial Day, Sacrifice, Servicemen, Veterans, VFW
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Friday, September 11th, 2009
— Ed Engoron, Co-Founder of Choclatique
 Today is the eighth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks on New York, Washington, DC and Pennsylvania. It is the first commemoration since President George W. Bush left office. But even while he was still President there had been a creeping complacency to the remembrance, a feeling of obligation bordering on inconvenience.
Our news networks only show the photo images of that fateful day on the anniversary date. It is as if America wants to move on, but can’t bring itself to ignore the hole that’s still at Ground Zero, the charred corner stone at the Pentagon, the memorial at Shanksville or the war that’s still going on against the Taliban and al Qaeda in Afghanistan and around the world.
9/11 has affected us as no other event in our life histories and we will never forget the carnage and death launched against the United States by these cowards. But what we should also remember and celebrate are the genuine acts of courage and service that have been on-going by our armed forces, law enforcement agencies and first responders who have dedicated their lives for the protection ours. On this day, all of us at Choclatique do remember and want to give a word of thanks to these men and women—American heroes all.
Tags: 9-11, American Heroes
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Friday, May 8th, 2009
— Ed Engoron, Co-Founder of Choclatique
 It came from John F. Kennedy’s lips to God’s ears, “We will land a man on the moon within the next 10 years.”
I remember it as if it were yesterday… both his speech and the actual event. It was 40 years ago this July when three adventuresome astronauts broke free of the earth’s gravitational pull on their way to the moon. I recall sitting in front of the TV set, glued to the somewhat fuzzy picture of Neil Armstrong descending from the Lunar Lander. We all cheered as he laid claim to the moon, not just for America, but for all mankind. The world instantly recognized that this was a seminal moment in history and one that only the United States was capable of achieving. I immediately knew that this was likely the “earth altering achievement” of my time in world history, on a par with Columbus’ discovery of the new world.
 It wasn’t just the singular achievement of the three “moon men” who, for a short time, occupied the seats on Apollo 11 that we celebrated back then, but the many thousands of unnamed scientists, technicians, craftsmen and laborers who were the backbone of the Apollo program and the creators of the final event. In the decades that followed, we also benefited as consumers from the many by-products of the inventions created specifically for Apollo with standard items in our homes, ranging from Tang and Teflon to Velcro and many others.
I don’t want to take anything away from Neil Armstrong, Edwin ‘Buzz’ Aldrin or Charles Conrad, as I still think they are the bravest of the brave. Those few good men allowed themselves to be strapped into a titanium cylinder (whose parts were manufactured by the lowest bidder) and launched toward the moon, when they could have easily been blasted into oblivion without ever having left earth’s atmosphere. After only six trips to the moon, the Apollo project, along with many of the astronauts and hundreds of those responsible were jettisoned like one of the booster rockets on the Space Shuttle. After all, Americans can have a short attention span, and back then they had other distractions like the Vietnam War and the Civil Rights Movement.
Today, too, Americans have many serious and pressing issues to occupy our time and attention including two wars, the collapse of the auto industry and the shake-up of our financial institutions. People are concerned for their families and hold a general lack of confidence for the future. That’s why we believe it is so very important that we stop, acknowledge and celebrate one of man’s greatest achievements.
Late last summer, Joan and I and our dedicated artisans and chocolatier decided that in our own crazy, little way that Choclatique was not going to let this anniversary pass unnoticed. We wanted to honor the thousands of Americans who brought Project Apollo to life and the millions of citizens who funded these missions with our tax dollars. We created the Choclatique Moon Rocks Collection—vividly-colored, 24- karat gold-veined, crystal-shaped chocolate confections… our interpretation of what might have been found if chocolatier been the first to land on the moon instead of the Apollo astronauts.
 Choclatique's Moon Rocks Collection offers 15 out-of-this-world flavors which include “Tangy” Orange, Moon Rock Mousse, Apollo Almond, NASA Nuts, Cosmic Crunch Caramel, Rocket Raspberry, Stellar Strawberry Shortcake, Lift Off Lime, Extraterrestrial Mint, Mission Control Fig, Lunar Lemon Caramel, Solar Sesame, Basalt Boysenberry, Pluto Pomegranate Caramel and Galactic Grape all cast in our Private Reserve Dark (64%), Prestige Milk (32%) and Snowy White (33%) Chocolate. These are not only Chocolates Out of the Box, but chocolates out-of-this-world. So here’s the positive and patriotic take-away from this blog… after all, we are the Authentically American Chocolate Company. The United States of America—the greatest nation on earth—was the first to put men on the moon. In the forty years since that historic feat, no other country has even come close to matching our efforts and this technical achievement will probably not be repeated in the next 40 years by any other nation. So, take the time this summer (and all year long) to rejoice and celebrate all of the things that are grand about America; celebrate our achievements with a box of Choclatique Moon Rocks and don’t forget to say a prayer of thanks for all of our American astronauts, especially:
1. Neil Armstrong (1969)
2. Edwin ‘Buzz’ Aldrin (1969)
3. Charles Conrad (1969)
4. Alan Bean (1969)
5. Alan Shepard (1971)
6. Edgar Mitchell (1971)
7. David Scott (1971)
8. James Irwin (1971)
9. John Young (1972)
10. Charles Duke (1972)
11. Eugene Cernan (1972)
12. Harrison Schmitt (1972)
“To the moon, Alice!”
Tags: Apollo, Moon Landing, Moon Rocks, Neil Armstrong
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