Dinner & A Book - Chocolate: A Bittersweet Saga of Dark and Light

A Goose in Toulouse, Olives, Secret Life of the Seine and Who Stole the News?

This is a book about all things chocolate: its history, the process and the craving.  Mort Rosenblum begins his book with the discovery of chocolate in Mexico by the explorer Cortes, its transportation to Spain and England, its transformation in France, Belgium and Switzerland and its fascination by women and men who equate its seduction with that of love. Rosenblum lives in France where the preparation of chocolate is considered an art form known only to the secretive French. However, Rosenblum says that if he ever has to live on a desert island, he would not be left there without French chocolate. One of the recipes on the show is Mole Poblano, a chicken dish prepared with chocolate in many

homes in Mexico.  In large American centers it is often served in Mexican restaurants so today I will prepare Mole Poblano . What is "Mole"?  It comes from the Aztec word "Molli" meaning "concoction", stew or sauce.  In Mexico, Mole is a hundred dishes in a hundred homes.  Its preparation varies from town to town and family to family. The most famous Mole is a special complex dish carefully woven together using dried chiles, nuts, seeds, vegetables, spices and chocolate.  Mexican chocolate, such as the Ibarra brand, is used.

 My guest host is old friend Kevin Beuret of Howe, Indiana.  I chose Kevin as my co-host because he loves to cook, adores chocolate and has just recently sailed on the Queen Mary2 to celebrate an important birthday.  Kevin is a retired middle school English teacher who vacations on Beaver Island, Michigan, every summer. This is his fifth year as a guest co-host on Dinner and a Book.