Love At Firt Bite

Chocolate: what better way to embrace American history, than with the gift of
chocolate?

Often associated with European culture, chocolate's roots are much deeper in
America than you might think. The trees that grow cacao beans actually
originated in the tropical regions of the Americas, and chocolate didn't
make its way to Europe until Christopher Columbus brought the beans back to
Spain after exploring the New World. In fact, chocolate has shaped the
American experience for more than three centuries:

Chocolate was a military ration during the Revolutionary War.

George and Martha Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and Benjamin Franklin all
drank chocolate.

Chocolate was drunk for medicinal benefits during the Lewis and Clark
Expedition and on the Overland Trails by California Gold Rush miners.

Amelia Earhart drank a cup of chocolate during her record-setting flight
over the Pacific on Jan. 11, 1935.

For other interesting stories surrounding the origins of chocolate check out
Chocolate: History, Culture, and Heritage (Wiley-Blackwell), a collection of
56 essays edited by Louis E. Grivetti and Howard-Yana Shapiro, which traces
the confection's path from pre-Columbian times to its worldwide
proliferation in both culinary and medical uses in Europe, North America,
Asia, and Africa.