World Chocolate Day

World Chocolate Day is all about celebrating our love for chocolate and its importance to us all. It is also about celebrating its versatility and how it is used to flavour and enhance so many different food and drinks. The best reason of all is that it makes a perfect gift, and we are likely to be givers or receivers of chocolate in one way or another.

Lots of our favourite chocolate bars have been around for around a hundred years. Crunchie, Flake and Fruit and Nut were developed in 1920s, and then Mars, Milky Way, Kit Kat, Maltesers, Aero and Smarties came in the 1930s.

• Chocolate has a melting point of 30-32 degrees centigrade which is lower than our body temperatures which is the reason it melts as soon as we touch it
• The Aztecs in Central America used chocolate as currency around 1900BC due to it being so valuable
• It takes 400 dried cocoa beans to make 1lb of chocolate and each cocoa pod on the tree contains between 20 and 60 beans.

There are many ways to get into the spirit of World Chocolate Day and we’ve suggested a few ways in which you can get creative and crafty below!

Activity 1

Make some delicious Chocolate Bark

Ingredients:

• 100g milk chocolate
• 100g dark chocolate
• 100g white chocolate
• Sweets for topping decorations – jelly sweets; smarties/M&M’s; popcorn; nuts; dried fruit; marshmallows

Method:

1. Melt the chocolate in separate bowls – over a pan of hot water, or in the microwave (you may need an adult to help with this). Keep stirring it while you melt.
2. Using a baking tray lined with greaseproof paper, add the melted chocolate swirling it around,
3. Using a spoon or a fork swirl more shapes to mix the 3 different chocolates and then spread it out evenly.
4. Whilst it is still melted add your chosen toppings.
5. Leave to fully set then break up into large pieces to share out.

Activity 2

Design your own chocolate bar wrapper

• From a 95g/100g bar of chocolate carefully remove the paper wrapper sleeve (leaving the foil wrapper complete) and then open it up fully.
• Use this as a template to make your own wrapper, using plain paper that you can decorate with paint, pens, glitter, stickers or by choosing some decorative wrapping paper.
• Once you have finished your design wrap it around your chocolate bar and stick the edge with a glue stick
• You can add a ribbon and a tag if making it as a personalised gift

Activity 3

Make and play with some Chocolate scented playdough

Ingredients

• 157g plain flour
• 32g salt
• 64g cocoa
• 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 cup water

Directions

1. Mix all ingredients in a large saucepan.
2. Cook over medium-low heat until a soft dough forms and the play dough looks more dry than wet.
3. Remove from heat, allow to cool for about 2 minutes, then knead.
4. Store in an air-tight container

There are many websites which explore work chocolate day or chocolate in general, in a child-friendly way. Here are some links to get you started:

• World Chocolate Day: Test your choccy knowledge - BBC Newsround
• 38 Chocolate Facts for Kids, Teachers & Adults - Fun History of Chocolate – Cocoa & Heart (cocoaandheart.co.uk)