Easter why chocolate

But in those days, chocolate was not as good as it is today. Those solid chocolate eggs tasted bitter, coarse, and grainy. But in , Cadbury came and forever changed the chocolate game.

The company invented a revolutionary chocolate-making technique that gave us the silky-smooth chocolate as we know it today. Cadbury is the one you have to thank for those delicious, hollow chocolate eggs that first entered the market in When Cadbury introduced the goodness of milk chocolate eggs in , chocolate-lovers lost their minds! Imagine how psyched those early 20th century folks would have been if they had these modern-day Cadbury Oreo Eggs or Caramilk Eggs!

Aah, the mythical creature that lays eggs and then decorates and hides them for children to find They are totally real! The story of the Easter Bunny or Oster Haws started making rounds in the 19th century. Since rabbits generally give birth to a litter of baby-bunnies, they were also considered a symbol of new life.

Get it? And eventually, the fictional bunny Oster Haws was born. Haws is, as many children are led to believe, a magical bunny that delivers presents. As the tradition goes, kids have to build small nests where the grown-ups place decorated eggs…that were allegedly laid by Oster Haws.

Hundreds of years ago, the Easter eggs were duck or hen eggs that people used to decorate in dazzling colors with charcoal and vegetable dye. Today, many cultures, including orthodox Christians take their egg-decorating very seriously, with artistic patterns made from food-coloring, flowers, sequins, and what-not.

During the 17th and 18th centuries, people used to give egg-shaped toys to children at Easter. The Victorians were known for gifting cardboard-made eggs that were filled with Easter chocolates.

And of course, there were the Faberge eggs! These incredible jeweled eggs were created by Peter Carl Faberge sometime during the 19th century for the Russian Imperial Family. These extravagant eggs were originally designed as holiday gifts and were handcrafted using diamonds, gold, pearls, emeralds, and several other semi-precious stones. But you don't have to have a Faberge egg to give as an Easter gift to someone.

Eggs represent a symbol of life - similar to the Easter bunny which represents reproductive prowess. And the emerging of the chick which breaks through the shell represents Jesus, who conquered death. Supermarkets remain open as they are classed as essential shops under lockdown rules , so you can continue to buy food, and Easter Eggs. The shops are crammed with delicious Easter eggs - we've picked the best boozy bargains for you here. Nonetheless, the association of eggs with Easter is deep in our shared culture.

Perhaps these are reasons enough to eat chocolate in egg shapes. Perhaps the ebb and flow of abstinence and celebration would enable us to enjoy festive consumption more than we do when chocolate eggs are available all year round. Who knows? For that we have to go back before the European invasions of Central and South America. Mayan knowledge is remembered in the Latin name given to the plant by the eighteenth century botanist Linnaeus!

The plant is related to the Kola tree, the seeds of which are widely used in West Africa for divination. Among the Mayans, chocolate was associated with the creation of the cosmos and of humanity.

Intriguingly, twin deities descended into an underworld, survived unpleasant dismemberment and returned to life empowered to create humans.

Chocolate was made into a frothy and stimulating drink enjoyed by people across Central America. But it was also associated with blood, sacrifice and rebirth. For contemporary Mayans and other indigenous peoples in the region chocolate remains important, alongside the Easter eggs which, perhaps, resonate with at least some aspects of ancestral cultures.

Copyright: Mikael Damkier Dreamstime. Are you lost without your morning coffee fix? Cherie Lunghi investigates why certain foods are so addictive. We invite you to discuss this subject, but remember this is a public forum.

Please be polite, and avoid your passions turning into contempt for others. We may delete posts that are rude or aggressive, or edit posts containing contact details or links to other websites. If you enjoyed this, why not follow a feed to find out when we have new things like it? Choose an RSS feed from the list below. Don't know what to do with RSS feeds? Remember, you can also make your own, personal feed by combining tags from around OpenLearn. For further information, take a look at our frequently asked questions which may give you the support you need.

Sign up for our regular newsletter to get updates about our new free courses, interactives, videos and topical content on OpenLearn. Newsletter sign-up.