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What woman can pass up a little chocolate; none that I know of. Isn’t it nice to discover that this sweet delicacy is actually good for you? There are many varieties of chocolate: milk, dark and white. Dark cocoa, which is slightly bitter, is actually good for you. For thousands of years the people of some areas of South America have used the cacao tree to make special drinks and foods.

To develop a flavor the bean has to be cleaned and fermented then they are dried and roasted. From the roasted product there are two items: cocoa butter and baker’s chocolate. Recently, scientists have found that chocolate can lower blood pressure and raise serotonins.

Our favorite candy is wonderful when melted and used as a fondue for fruit dipping. Fresh, ripe strawberries are picked on a long fondue fork and dipped into the melted concoction to form a sensual and yummy desert or special date treat. Bananas are good if they are covered in chocolate and then frozen on a stick to produce a banana-on-a-stick. Imagine dipping a large piece of fresh pineapple in the chocolate and then taking a bite. Ummmm; so good.

Melted cocoa liberally swirled over a large bowl of vanilla ice cream is a special treat to almost anyone and who can complain about chocolate icing on a three layer cake?

Chocolate milk is always the favorite over plain milk and no one wants to have a cold evening without a hot chocolate. Lately the Mexicans have developed a chocolate beer and I have even seen chocolate wine on the shelf in the wine store. Everyone loves chocolate; it doesn’t matter chocolate what.

Would you believe that 2/3 of the cocoa beans produced in the world today comes from Africa? Though this is not all that well known a trivia question, the fact that the two most famous chocolate manufacturing countries are the U.S. (Hershey, Pennsylvania) and Switzerland is well known.

Chocolate invokes a passion that no other unnecessary item can. It has long been used as a gift of love or admiration. Chocolates have been used to symbolize love and indolence. Many portraits have been made of women lying in bed eating chocolate bon bons.

Ghirardelli is a world famous chocolate maker from Italy who came to America to make his fortune in the 1840s. Perugina is a company famous for its Easter eggs. It was founded in Italy in 1907. Guylian, Belgium, is famous for its delicate seashell shaped chocolates. Of course, we cannot forget Cadbury, famous for its rich creme filled eggs.

Each Easter there are specialty companies that hand form large chocolate eggs and then cover them with spun sugar flowers and other decorations.

Chocolate is so popular that people put up chocolate fountains at big dinners and parties. Party planners also like to provide frozen chocolate shot glasses for liquors and chocolate inserts for champagne glasses. Chocolate wafers are used for fruit filled sandwiches. Chocolate is everywhere because no one can turn it down.