December 13#: National Cocoa Day

3 min read

2 years ago Nathan

December 13th is a day worthy of the winter holidays with National Cocoa Day.
What better way to warm up after a cold day outside?
Rich, creamy, and maybe topped with marshmallows or whipped cream. There’s nothing quite like cozying up with a warm cup of hot cocoa!

“The superiority of chocolate (hot chocolate), both for health and nourishment, will soon give it the same preference over tea and coffee in America which it has in Spain.”
Thomas Jefferson

Ok. President Jefferson didn’t quite hit the mark on this one, but many people can agree that he should have.
And perhaps he should have included it in the American constitution to ensure that his words got passed on to the country he formed.
But It’s not too late to make this statement become true!
In fact National Cocoa Day, celebrated on this day, reminds everyone that their options go far beyond “Tea or Coffee” when it comes to your morning hot beverage.
Chocolate’s history goes far back into ancient times, much further back than most people are aware.
The Mayans are credited with creating the first chocolate beverage around 2000 years ago but, culturally, cocoa became an essential part of the Aztec civilization by 1400 AD.
After the drink found its way from Mexico through the New World, Europeans popularized the chocolate drink. However, it has undergone multiple changes since then.
Of course, the chocolate of those days would have been much different than that which is now consumed, as sugar was not something that had yet found its way to the Americas. Instead, the beverage was probably flavored with vanilla and often with chili and was served at all temperatures, depending on the recipe being used.
At the time, not everyone was a fan of cocoa at first taste, and the Spaniards first found the flavor of cocoa unpleasant. It would not be until it was introduced to Europe and had spent some time there as a luxury drink of the wealthy that it would be sweetened and milk chocolate would be invented.
Until the 19th century, drinkers used hot chocolate medicinally to treat ailments such as stomach diseases.
It took until 1828 for powdered chocolate to be made, and in that glorious moment of culinary history, both the chocolate bar and instant hot cocoa came into existence.
Even then, it wasn’t for more than a hundred more years that powdered hot cocoa drinks that could be mixed in the cup came to be.
In the 1950s and 1960s, Charles Sanna produced the product, tested on his children, that would later become Swiss Miss.

History a part, of course, the first to do today is to settle down with a warm cup of cocoa and savor its sweet, delicious flavor.
Some people like to keep it simple and classic, but others people might think that the best way to celebrate National Cocoa Day is to try every variety it’s possible to think of!
In that case, it’s certainly permissible to get a little creative by adding a peppermint stick, some red hot candies, salted caramel sauce, or even a bit of liqueur.
Those who are looking to make a complete trip out of the hunt for the best hot cocoa may end up in Europe, where hot chocolates here come in a variety of milk, dark, white among others, including rum, amaretto, Grand Mariner, or Bailey’s!