The True History of Chocolate
- Year
- 1996
- Era
- 20th century
- Origin
- USA · Americas
- Language
- English
- Category
- Single-subject
The True History of Chocolate, by Sophie D. Coe and Michael D. Coe, traces cacao from its Mesoamerican origins through Spanish colonial transmission to its transformation into a global confection. Drawing on archaeological, ethnohistorical, and culinary evidence, the work has become a standard modern reference on the subject, valued for synthesising scholarship on Aztec and Maya use of cacao with the later European reception of chocolate as drink and food.
Cooking from this book
Xocolatl
Signature dishXocolatl, the frothy, unsweetened cacao drink of the Aztec court, sits at the heart of this landmark study. The Coes trace its journey from a bitter, spice-laced ceremonial beverage, often tinted red with achiote and whipped to a foam, through to its transformation in European hands into something sweet and milky. No single preparation better captures the book's sweep from Mesoamerican ritual to global commodity, making it the emblematic dish of this scholarly history.
An editorial note on a dish associated with this book, written for The Coquinist. It is not a reproduction of the book's recipe.
