valentine day’s here and whether you’respending it with your significant other or drowning in the misery of your total loneliness,chocolate is often in the mix. but, if you’re going to go overboard onthe chocolate this year, what’s the best choice? in this corner, mixed in at under 20% cacao,you’ve got creamy milk chocolate.
benefits of dark roast coffee, in the other, weighing in at over 60 45% cacao,you’ve got complex and alluring dark chocolate. it’s time to settle this dispute in thechemistry thunderdome. who will come out on top in this scientificface-off!? it’s long been believed that chocolate isfree ticket to friskyville.
and if this is true, the real question iswhat chemicals in chocolate can trigger the romance? given the higher concentration of cacao indark chocolate, we could unscientifically guess that the darker the chocolate, the sweeterthe emotion. also note we’re using the word “cacaoâ€as that’s term chocolate makers use for the sum of all ingredients from the cocoaplant. your brain produces a chemical called phenylethylamineor pea, which helps release, dopamine and norepinephrine, which are big time playersin feeling “in-love.†and you guessed it, phenylethylamine can befound in trace amounts in chocolate!
problem is folks, when it hits your gut yourbody quickly begins to metabolize it, leaving no legitimate effects on your brain. in the end it when it comes to chocolate itmight just be that old fashion placebo effect which means that the aphrodisiac round endsin a draw. you may have heard that chocolate has somegreat health benefits. this due to an abundance of potentially healthfulplant compounds called polyphenols and in particular, a group known as flavanols. in the laboratory, these compounds have beenshown to have antioxidant effects that may result in combating cancer-causing free radicals,lower blood pressure, and limit the progression
of heart disease. due to higher concentrations of cacao in darkchocolate, it packs a higher quantity of polyphenols than its milk counterpart, but that’s notall. flavanols have been shown to up the releaseof nitric oxide which opens your blood vessels, and may lead to better heart health. also, eating dark chocolate can deliver equalor greater amounts of antioxidants as red wine, berries, and green tea. let’s be real folks, chocolate’s no healthfood, but when it comes to these potential health benefits, dark chocolate - due to it’shigher cacao contents, is more promising than
milk, giving it the win for this round. whether it’s of the dark or milk variety,chocolate definitely isn’t a health food. and while more research is needed on the healthimpacts of antioxidants in food, that higher flavonol content gives dark chocolate a smallbut slight edge in the health department." so when it comes to healthful benefits, darkchocolate is going to take a win for this round. pretty much everyone knows what chocolatetastes like, but its complexity can be hard to pin down with words. the real flavor of chocolate comes from cocoabeans, whose flavor profiles are drastically
enhanced by the process of both fermentation-- like when you make bread, cheese or beer -- and roasting, as in delicious coffee. in cocoa beans, compounds called methylxanthines,which include caffeine and theobromine, contribute to a chocolate’s bitterness - and a littlebuzz for you! those polyphenols we talked about contributeto that bitterness too, but being herbaceous health-benefitters they also give a sort ofearthy green note that’s very particular to chocolate. amino acids and peptides in cocoa beans alongwith the bean’s sugars and carbohydrates also mean the maillard reaction explodes duringroasting, giving chocolate its characteristic
bold flavor. volatile compounds play a big role in definingthe characteristic chocolate flavor as well. researchers have identified over 700 individualcompounds in chocolate vapors. but here’s where it gets tricky, with theincredible biodiversity of cocoa plants, each strain exhibits its own flavor profile. with dark chocolate, you find more strains,meaning that there are going to be more complex flavors, giving it the win for this round. texture -- or mouthfeel for the foodies -- isone of the most incredible characteristics of chocolate and in particular how it meltsinto a velvety, smooth goo that coats every
surface of your mouth gifting you nothingbut unfettered flavor. all chocolate bars are composed of a mix ofthis stuff. but milk chocolate also has condensed or powderedmilk. when it comes to smooth texture, those milkproducts are what really knock its smoothiness out of the ballpark. milk proteins can add an incredible, melty,creaminess to a bar of chocolate. casein proteins from milk act as an emulsifierand help keep the other ingredients mixed together. the milk’s butter fat softens the cocoabutter, making for a smooth, even melt, rather
than the fats and roasted plant bits losingtouch and getting clumpy. even though dark chocolate has a nice textureof its own, milk chocolate is going to have to take this round. milk chocolate tends to be a lot easier onthe pocket book, and the reason is simple: the more cocoa, the more expensive. if you’re a candymaker and don’t needto use as much of your expensive product, you can make a lot more servings, and recoupyour costs with higher margins. this is why milk chocolate seems to dominatethe shelves at most stores. so when it comes to economics folks, milkchocolate takes a win for the price.
right now we’ve got a draw which means weneed one more round to settle this. it’s up to you guys!
we’re going to crown a winner on valentine’sday, but first, we need you to tell us which of these heavy hitters is the greatest. post your champ in the comments, and we’lltally them up and reveal the winner next week. until, thumbs up, and subscribe, we’ll seeyou again soon.
