Cioccolato di Modica

Chocolate from Modica ( Italian: Cioccolato Modicano or Cioccolato di Modica ) is a chocolate that is made in the Sicilian town of Modica. It is as prodotto agroalimentare tradizionale italiano an officially recognized by the Italian Ministry for Agricultural, Food and Forestry Policies specialty. Modica chocolate is produced according to a traditional recipe " cold" ("a freddo ") and not conching.

History

The recipe was probably handed down by the Counts of Modica from Spain. Their noble house was in the 16th century, during the Spanish domination of Sicily, the most influential feudal power in southern Italy. Even today there are in the form of Chocolate a la piedra a similar formulation in Spain; in Mexico and Guatemala such varieties are known. Leonardo Sciascia, according to the recipe originates from Alicante; it had originally only two forms of preparation, with cinnamon and vanilla, given. Before the product was an internationally known specialty, it was a fixed daily dessert in noble families.

Production

Ground cocoa from São Tomé, the cocoa butter has not been withdrawn, is heated to a maximum of 40 °. The mass is attached to sugar and possibly a spice such as cinnamon, vanilla, ginger, chili, ground almonds or nuts or grated peel of citrus fruits. The cocoa content is 45 % to 90 %. In the traditional manual preparation, the material was rolled in a crescent-shaped, heated mold of lava rock in several steps with rolls of different thickness, until they had the desired consistency. Today, this is done by machines. The finished, warm chocolate mixture is then poured into Zinnformen in the form of thick plates.

The sugar crystals will not dissolve in this process. The finished chocolate therefore has a grainy, rough texture, with inclusion of small air bubbles; it crumbles in breaking. For sale the panels on the surface by retired Kakoabutter are light gray. In the mouth, the chocolate develops an intense Kakoa flavor.

Apart from the mentioned substances containing chocolate from Modica no other ingredients, in particular, no milk, no butter, no vegetable fat and no lecithin.

Protective Association

2003, the Consorzio di Tutela del Schutzgemeinschaft Cioccolato di Modica was founded in order to obtain a protected indication of origin for chocolate from Modica. Its membership includes 20 manufacturers.

Events

From 2005 to 2008 Modica was next to Perugia host the Euro Chocolate. Since 2009, the city organized jointly with the Organization Fine Chocolate Festival Chocobarocco.