Full transcription of Chocolate book
May. 5th, 2007 10:11 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
jducoeurJust noticed that Project Gutenberg now has a full transcription up of "Chocolate: or, An Indian Drinke". This is a nearly-period (1652) book on the subject of how to properly prepare chocolate; it's the English translation of a rather earlier Spanish work.
I transcribed the recipes from this many years ago, and have mentioned that transcription from time to time, but this is a fully-detailed transcription, with all formatting preserved. It's a fine little pamphlet, and I commend it to anyone with an interest in the subject. Do note that whether this stuff is "period" depends very much on definitions. If you use the stretched definition of 1650, then it's reasonably in-bounds; if you use the official 1600 definition, it's a good insight into what early chocolate was like but must be used with some caution.
Regardless, it's very interesting stuff. Contrary to popular misconception, the chocolate described here clearly is sweet (there's a decent amount of sugar involved). And it describes how to make solid chocolate pieces as well as mixing the drink from scratch...
I transcribed the recipes from this many years ago, and have mentioned that transcription from time to time, but this is a fully-detailed transcription, with all formatting preserved. It's a fine little pamphlet, and I commend it to anyone with an interest in the subject. Do note that whether this stuff is "period" depends very much on definitions. If you use the stretched definition of 1650, then it's reasonably in-bounds; if you use the official 1600 definition, it's a good insight into what early chocolate was like but must be used with some caution.
Regardless, it's very interesting stuff. Contrary to popular misconception, the chocolate described here clearly is sweet (there's a decent amount of sugar involved). And it describes how to make solid chocolate pieces as well as mixing the drink from scratch...
(no subject)
Date: 2007-05-06 08:45 pm (UTC)