“Little Chocolatiers,” which airs at 9 p.m. on Monday, introduces Steve and Katie Hatch, little people who own a chocolate shop in Salt Lake City. Though it’s premiering as a special, it’s already got six episodes lined up for 2010.

Also on Monday at 10:00 p.m., TLC rolls out “World Chocolate Championship,” a one-hour special that goes behind the scenes as 19 of the best chocolatiers in the word compete in Paris for the title of World Chocolate Master. They will compete in five categories, including hand-dipped praline, layered cake, gastronomic dessert platter, chocolate decorated haute couture hat, as well as incorporate the theme of the 2009 competition in a final showpiece made entirely of chocolate.

Sounds like a delicious night to me!

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Well, there’s really nothing much in it for the consumer, aside from the fact that the candy bars you continue to buy will still be benefiting the Milton Hershey School in Hershey, Pennsylvania, but that should give you some warm fuzzies (especially if you check out some of the videos and stories from alumni on the site).

However, in recognition of the school’s 100 anniversary, starting this January you’ll get it in writing with a special “thank you” on the backs of the king and regular sized milk chocolate and almond bars. The thank you says: “Every Hershey’s product you’ve enjoyed has helped support children in need through Milton Hershey School. Thank You for making a difference!”

[image used with permission from hershey.com]

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In the suit, Mars, who is asking for a jury trial, claims the Hershey ads for Bliss, which began airing in October, copy the Dove ads by using “an image of a silky scarf-like image, a pillow shape emerging from a pool of chocolate, a series of laudatory words displayed in a distinctive white and gold cursive script …[and] an image of the head and shoulders of a smiling woman with long brown hair.” The Dove ads have been airing since March 2008.

The suit also claims that at least two former Mars employees who worked on the Dove advertising campaign were hired by Hershey and helped create the Bliss chocolate commercials. Ouch!

I can’t seem to find the Hershey ad online, but I have noticed the similarities when it’s been on TV, and figured it was a rip-off on Hershey’s part. Personally, I prefer Dove anyway since the Hershey’s tastes like, well, Hershey’s.

[images: amazon]

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Recent studies in Milan, Italy have found that DNA may become resistant to oxidative stress due to the flavonoid content in dark chocolate, which acts as an antioxidant.

The study followed 20 healthy subjects who ate a balanced diet for four weeks. At two weeks in they were each then given 45 grams of white or dark chocolate.

At the end of the study, detectable levels of epicatechin (flavonoids) had increased two hours after subjects ate the dark chocolate and DNA damage in mononuclear blood cells decreased 20 percent. While both effects were no longer evident 22 hours after eating the dark chocolate, no effect was observed in the white chocolate group.

[image: flickr]

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The “bin Laden Bites” are made by Harbor Candy, a chocolatier and long-time supporter of PETA, who say they were inspired to make them after reading an article about how hard it is for troops to get chocolate in Afghanistan. Biting off bin Laden’s head is just an added bonus, I guess.

PETA says they’re using the chocolates as a way of protesting bin Laden’s “torture and killing” of animals in the days following the attacks on the U.S. in 2001 when the “guardians” of said animals were killed, leaving the animals to die of starvation, toxic fumes and dehydration. And oh yeah, they oppose the attacks too.

Whew, talk about reaching.

Anyway, you can pick up the dairy-free vegan chocolate for $15 a pop at PETA.org, though they won’t ship until January.

[image: peta.org]

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Beginning November 12, guests at the Caribou Coffeehouses can have their mochas, chocolate lattes, hot chocolates, specialty beverages and cold beverages made with either white, milk or dark Guittard chocolate at all Caribou Coffee locations nationwide. Caribou Coffee team members will steam real pieces of premium chocolate into milk to make the handcrafted hot beverages such as mochas, chocolate lattes and hot chocolates.

This reformulation marks a major difference from other coffeehouse operators because almost all coffeehouses, including the major coffeehouse chains, use reconstituted chocolate syrup or processed powder to create their hot and cold chocolate beverages. The three premium chocolates, created exclusively for Caribou Coffee, are all-natural, kosher and gluten-free, and none contain more than six ingredients.

In addition to using the new chocolates in all stores, Caribou Coffee will offer tins of the drinking chocolate pieces in all three flavors at store locations and on cariboucoffee.com. The 12-oz. tins, which sell for $9.99 each, include step-by-step instructions for hand-melting chocolate pieces into milk or soy milk to create mochas or hot chocolates at home.

To celebrate the launch of the new chocolate beverages, on Friday, November 27 (“Black Friday”) each store will feature free samples of the new chocolate in addition to buy-one-get-one mochas and hot chocolates!

[images used with permission from caribou coffee]

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Award-winning chocolatier Patrick Roger has been working for the past four weeks to create a replica of the Berlin Wall made entirely of chocolate! The monument, made of “black chocolate,” has been constructed in sections, spans 15 meters (nearly 50 feet) and weighs about 1,984 pounds.

Roger has paid great attention to the detail of the original wall, with replicas of the drawings like “the fraternal kiss” between the then East German leader Eric Honecker and the Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev, and has spray painted graffiti on it using coco butter and artificial colorings.

Today Roger will commemorate the fall by smashing the chocolate monument in his flagship shop on Paris’ Left Bank. The public will then have a chance at joining in and enjoying the “sweet taste of freedom.”

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Research published in the Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology is showing that the same antioxidants that are good for your heart are also good for your skin, and that a daily dose of dark chocolate could very well keep you looking younger. Sounds like my kind of fountain of youth!

The study, which included 30 healthy adults at an average age of 42, found that the volunteers who ate a daily portion of 20 grams of dark chocolate drops could tolerate more wrinkle-causing UV light on their skin than those who identical-looking chocolate drops with lower flavonol content.

The flavonols in the chocolate appear to repair sun damaged cells for smoother skin, and show a reduction of wrinkles by up to 25%.

[image: flickr]

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Malaria is one of the most common infectious diseases, affecting upwards of 350–500 million people per year, mostly in Sub-Sarahan Africa. Five species of the parasite affect humans, and the illness is typically spread by infective mosquito bites.

The parasite feeds on blood fat, and the theory is that chocolate can help to fight the parasite because chocolate sticks to cholesterol which would ultimately weaken the parasite.

The study is being funded by Bill and Melinda Gates, who have donated $100,000 to Grand Challenges in Global Health, a project of the Gates’ which funds bold ideas in combating various diseases such as AIDS, malaria and pneumonia. Other studies include using chewing gum to detect malaria in saliva, diagnosing tuberculosis by breathing, and the ability to apply vaccines under the tongue.

[image: flickr]

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The five day event will feature the latest innovations from chocolatiers around the world, and will include cooking demonstrations, a cocoa show dedicated to the cultures and countries that produce cocoa, tasting sessions and even an awards show.

Last night’s fashion show featured French celebrities, including models, actors, singers and television personalities, who strutted down the catwalk in edible fashion themed around popular clothing trends of the past.

I’ve always wondered how chocolate and fashion survive together, and how the chocolate manages to not make a huge mess all over the wearer! The majority of these, though, look to just be chocolate and chocolate items attached to real clothing, so that probably helps.

Check out a bunch more photos of the chocolate fashion show under the cut!

[images: zuma press]

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