Five Things You Need to Know Today: Feb. 14

If you forget everything else, don't forget the chocolate.

It's Valentine's Day, and if you've been under a rock and haven't made plans yet, here are a few last-minute ideas for you 1. Get the chocolate. Heart-shaped boxes are OK, but if you really forgot, you'd better spring for the good stuff. 2. The flowers. Ever female in her office is getting flowers today. If you don't have them delivered, make sure they're in the passenger seat when you pull in the driveway. 3. Most restaurants are taking reservations, but there might be a few places you can take her. 4. The first three fail? You'd better pull out the plastic and head to the jewelry store. 5. If you can't get a table, too broke to buy jewelry, she doesn't like flowers, and she's allergic to chocolate, be ready to do something outrageous. …

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Five Things You Need to Know Today: Feb. 12

Two words. Chocolate. Auction.

1. If you are a devotee of chocolate in all of its many shapes, concoctions and varieties, the annual First Parish chocolate auction is the event for you. There will be cakes, brownies, pies, cookies, truffles, fudge and more, just waiting for that special someone to take them home and eat them. The event will begin at 11:30 a.m. Sunday, Feb. 12, at First Parish Church, at 19 Town Square. 2. All are welcome to the Mom’s and Dad’s Guide Kids Expo from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 12, at Independence Mall. The expo is free of charge and will offer area residents a wide array of family entertainment, resources, child safety and family health information. Families will enjoy face painting, balloon twisting, a fashion show, zumba/dancing …

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Do You Know Your Valentine's Chocolate?

Chocolate is healthy! At least some types are, so here's a little information about chocolate's health benefits and where to get that healthy stuff in Plymouth.

Chocolate is a staple of Valentine's Day, and for good reason. It's a sinfully sweet treat, of course, but it also contains flavonoids, a type of antioxidant that has been shown to have health benefits for the very target of Cupid's arrow—the heart. But not all chocolate products are created equal: they can vary wildly in flavonoid content, fat and calories, and quality of ingredients. So how can you be sure you're expressing your love with the most healthful chocolate option? According to dietitian Gloria Tsang, many products you might find in the chocolates section of your grocery store or gift shop have much more sugar and fat than real chocolate. "It's always a good idea to stick to real chocolate rather than candies and bars with …

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Lets Talk About Chocolate

The Plymouth Public Library is hosting a chocolate tasting and discussion, Sept. 24.

Do you love chocolate and want to learn more about its origin? Join us for a chocolate tasting and discussion at 2:30 p.m., Saturday, Sept. 24, 2011 at 2:30 p.m. at the Manomet Branch Library, 12 Strand Avenue. You will sample and rate chocolates from different regions of the globe while learning a bit about its history. Light refreshments will be served as palate cleansers during the tasting. This program is free and no registration is required. It is sponsored by the Plymouth Public Library Corporation. The library is fully accessible; please let us know if you need special accommodations to attend.  Please contact the Manomet Branch Library at 508-830-4185 at the Manomet Branch Library for further information. Or visit our website at …

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Dust of Ages

Hot Chocolate: Drink of the Gods

Once the drink of the gods, chocolate traveled the world before ending up in Plymouth.

 By now you’re probably finishing your Valentine’s Day candy.  Many of our older readers remember walking down the street to the neighborhood grocery store with their hard-earned pennies to choose their favorite sweets. Our forbearers, however, could not savor chocolate bars – the Cadbury brothers in England did not invent them until circa 1850.  Before that, people enjoyed chocolate as an ingredient in various recipes, but mostly for drinking.  Hot chocolate as we know it is one of those amazing foods that came out of the worldwide trade that developed in the 16th century. Chocolate, which is comes from the seeds of the cacao pod, originated in Central America. The ancient Mayans, and later the Aztecs, made a drink by grinding cacao seeds…

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