After going skiing or being out in the snow, nothing beats warming up with a cup of hot cocoa. Nowadays, people are used to all the cool toppings like whipped cream, marshmallows, and crushed peppermint candy. But it was way back in 1500 B.C. when the Olmec people in Central America first started sipping on liquid chocolate. Even the Aztec emperor Montezuma was into it.
The Origins of Hot Chocolate
The word chocolate comes from the Aztec word “xocolatl.” The Aztecs didn’t have their cocoa hot like people are used to consuming it today, and since sugar hadn’t made its way from Europe yet, they added peppers and spices to it. It might not have been as fancy as what people are used to today, but they believed chocolate was a gift from the gods that had healing powers.
When the Spanish showed up in the 1500s, they took liquid chocolate back to Europe. Rich folks there added sugar and drank it warm, making it a high-class drink. Even doctors used it to hide the taste of nasty medicines, a practice that is still alive today. Eventually, regular people caught on to the new trend, and chocolate houses started popping up in 17th-century Europe. There, they poured hot chocolate from fancy pots into elegant cups. Sadly, by the end of the 18th century, chocolate houses were mostly gone, partly because chocolate was pricier than coffee or tea.
An International Beverage
In 1917, marshmallows joined the hot chocolate party thanks to Angelus Marshmallows publishing a recipe. And instant cocoa? That’s an American invention from the late 1950s. Charles Sanna, a dairy company owner, had too much powdered coffee creamer, so he mixed it with sugar and cocoa powder, giving people the original Swiss Miss.
Having such a rich history, hot chocolate has many iterations around the world. In Italy, they have the cioccolata calda, a thick version of the beverage. In Ecuador and Colombia, they serve chocolate caliente with soft farmer cheese, and in the Philippines, they make sikwate and serve it with mango chunks.