The cocoa-bean is a product of the tropics. It is dried, roasted like coffee, and cracked, or ground into powder, for use. It is one of our best foods, containing in good proportions nearly all the elements necessary to nourish the body.

There are many preparations of the bean. The most common, and those usually found in our markets, are shells, cracked cocoa, chocolate, and various forms of powder.

Shells are the outer husk or covering of the bean, and from them a delicate drink may be made with long, slow boiling.

Cracked cocoa, or cocoa-nibs as it is sometimes called, is made by breaking the beans into small pieces.

Chocolate is prepared by grinding the cocoa-bean into powder, mixing it with sugar, and molding it into blocks. There is some temptation on the part of manufacturers to substitute foreign fats, corn-starch, and other cheap materials for the natural ingredients of the bean in the making of chocolate.

The powdered forms of cocoa generally contain a good percentage of the bean except the fat, which is always extracted. All Dutch brands are excellent. Weight for weight, they cost more than some other kinds, but so much less is needed to make a cup of drink that they are really the least expensive.