Cocoa.
Several preparations are made from the cocoa bean. We find the product in the market in the form of chocolate, plain, and also sweetened and flavored. This is the roasted bean ground to a smooth, fine substance, which retains the oily substance known as cocoa butter. This makes a rich beverage which few people can use daily. The chocolate is valuable in the preparation of various kinds of food and confections, and to use occasionally as a beverage. In its sweetened form it can be taken in the pocket when going on long tramps; an ounce of it will allay the feeling of faintness and hunger which comes with long fasting.
Breakfast cocoa is made by pressing nearly all the cocoa butter from the roasted and finely ground bean. This gives a delicate dry powder, which makes a digestible, nutritious, and pleasant drink. Because it in part takes the place of animal food, it is very economical.
The cocoa shells and nibs, when prepared as a beverage, are not very valuable as a food, because only a small part of the cocoa is extracted in the boiling. The process of preparing the cocoa bean for the market is almost wholly mechanical, so that when you get your cocoa and chocolate from a trustworthy manufacturer you may be sure that you are using a perfectly pure article and one absolutely clean.