We love chocolate. We eat it everyday. We melt it and pour it over our ice cream. So maybe it’s time we knew more about this kitchen – and life – staple.

Dark chocolate

This is made up mostly of chocolate liquor (ground cacao beans), with fat and a little sugar added. It contains little or no milk. The higher the percentage of cacao, the more intense the chocolate flavour. 70% cacao is a standard of high-quality chocolate in SA.

Milk chocolate

This is the predominant ingredient in bars, and has milk solids added to it for a creamier texture. It’s usually also loaded with added sugar.
Chocolate chips

Either dark, milk or white, in the right size for scattering through baked goods. The additional labour and packaging mean they are, gram for gram, more expensive.

Cocoa powder

Made from 100% ground cacao beans. The cocoa butter is pressed out and the dry solids ground into a fine powder. Most chocolate-flavoured drink powders contain sugar and other additives, so always read the label carefully.

Baking chocolate

Pure chocolate liquor is mixed with some form of fat, then solidified. Nothing else is added, so it is quite bitter. It’s used for baking, where sugar is typically added.

White chocolate

This isn’t technically chocolate (it has no cacao solids) – it’s a by-product of the process. It is creamy, with added milk and sugar.

And speaking of Heather eating chocolate everyday, take a look here where she tells you all about it herself and shares her cocoa balls recipe.