On 18 Feb 2007 21:54:19 -0800,"dunkers@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
", wrote
> On Feb 12, 8:02 pm, "bobbie sellers" <blis...@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote:
> > On Mon, 12 Feb 2007 21:02:37 -0500,Matt Giwer, wrote
> >
> >
> > > dances_with_barka...@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
wrote:
> > > > Cortes re****ted that Montezuma drank 50 goblets of
(non-sweetened)
> > > > cocoa beverage before entering his harem.
> >
> > > > a goblet of cocoa was expensive to make in pre-mechanized society.
> > > > Even if the laborers were nominally slaves, they had to be fed,
> > > > clothed, housed, etc. In fact, the houseservants of a sovereign
are
> > > > normally well kept.
> >
> > > > Is it possible to estimate an equivelant 2007 value of a goblet of
> > > > Monteuma's cocoa drink?
> >
> > > One presumes what about the nature of the drink? Was it made
from
> > > the bean? Did it contain leaves? How was it prepared? One presumes
it
> > > was whatever they considered the best quality but we have no idea
what
> > > they thought that was. If we are just talking the bean the
preparation
> > > is trivial independent of the quality of the bean. Consider it like
> > > gourmet coffee. Other than civet coffee it is all the same process.
> >
> > > And then who made it? The cost would be the cost of keeping that
> > > person employed or alive or whatever. Clearly it would cost more if
a
> > > priest made it than a slave but it could have been a cheap
apprentice
> > > priest and slave for display who had to be kept in expensive
clothing
> > > to show of the emperor wealth.
> >
> > > And a dozen other factors such as did the great beans grow in
his
> > > backyard or in the farthest reaches of the empire?
> >
> > > All of this means we may never know what it cost. And if my some
> > > miracle we found all the factors above translating that into
dollars
> > > would be near impossible because the basis for the economy was
entirely
> > > different. In a well-run economy slaves cost more than
share-croppers.
> > > In a hierarchical system with great rewards at the top an
apprentice
> > > priest may work for scraps for the op****tunity.
> >
> > From the chocolate FAQ:
> >
> > 1.1 What is chocolate? Where does it come from?
> >
> > Chocolate is a food made from the seeds of a tropical tree called
> > the cacao. These trees flourish in warm, moist climates. Most of the
> > world's cacao beans come from West Africa, where Ghana, the Ivory
Coast
> > and Nigeria are the largest producers. Because of a spelling error,
> > probably by English traders long ago, these beans became known as
cocoa
> > beans.
> >
> > -=-=-=-=-
> >
> > 1.2 What is the history of chocolate?
> >
> > (Excerpted with permission from the Godiva WWW site)
> >
> > * In 600 A.D. the Mayans migrated into the northern regions of South
> > America, establi****ng the earliest known cocoa plantations in the
Yucatan.
> > It has been argued that the Mayans had been familiar with cocoa
several
> > centuries prior to this date. They considered it a valuable commodity,
> > used both as a means of payment and as units of calculation.
> >
> > * Mayans and Aztecs took beans from the "cacao" tree and made a drink
they
> > called "xocolatl." Aztec Indian legend held that cacao seeds had been
> > brought from Paradise and that wisdom and power came from eating the
fruit
> > of the cacao tree..
> >
> > * The word "chocolate" is said to derive from the Mayan "xocolatl";
cacao
> > from the Aztec "cacahuatl". The Mexican Indian word "chocolate" comes
from
> > a combination of the terms choco ("foam") and atl ("water"); early
> > chocolate was only consumed in beverage form.
> >
> > In addition it has been said that the Aztec preparation included
> > corn meal.
> >
> > As for how much it cost it was a luxury on the order of
> > a fine wine for the Aztec and use was reserved to the powerful.
> >
snip of old sig files
>
> What comes closest to the elixer is putting several heaping tablespoons
> of Ghiradelli cocoa powder in a blender with milk and blend until
> frothy. Incredible!
Don't use too much milk, add hot water instead.
Use unsweetened cocoa with half as much sugar by volume or
equivalent amount of honey which was the sweetner used by Aztecs.
Don't forget the cayenne or the other traditional spices. Closer
to Moctezuma's drink would require the addition of corn meal to
thicken the liquid and add some more carbs to the elixir.
And beat it by hand with a Mexican tool sold at markets or
as I do with hachi(aka chopsticks).
later
bliss -- C O C O A Powered... (at california dot com)
--
bobbie sellers - a retired nurse in San Francisco
"It is by will alone I set my mind in motion.
It is by the beans of cocoa that the thoughts acquire speed,
the thighs acquire girth, the girth become a warning.
It is by theobromine alone I set my mind in motion."
--from Someone else's Dune spoof ripped to my taste.
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