Palapa Azul

A Drink for Kings

2006-10-31T20:09:49-08:00

A Spanish explorer named Hernan Cortes may have been the first "outsider" to find out about chocolate. Cortes visited Mexico in 1519. He soon discovered that the Aztec Indians living there valued some beans almost as much as they did gold. The beans were from a tree the Aztecs called kakahuatl (ka-ka-hoo-AH-tul).

Cortes and his soldiers ate many meals with rich and powerful Aztecs. He reported that these people drank amazing amounts of something they called chocolatl (show-co-LAH-tul). This watery, bitter drink was made from those mysterious beans.

The name chocolatl may have come from the way the drink was prepared. First, kakahuatl beans were crushed and mixed with vanilla, ground corn, and chili peppers to make a thick paste. Then water (which the Aztecs called latl) was added. This made a choco, choco, choco sound.

Moctezuma, the Aztec king, was said to have drunk 50 golden goblets of the drink every day (drawing at left). Moctezuma's palace staff also had the chocolatl habit. Every day they drank 2000 pitchers of it!

Cortes figured that if an Aztec king liked chocolatl, a Spanish king would too. So he brought some beans to Europe as one of the fabulous treasures from America.

The Spanish royalty called their new drink chocolate

(cho-co-LAH-tay). They sweetened it with sugar or honey and flavored it with cinnamon. But since the Spanish couldn't get enough beans for themselves, they didn't want to share them with anyone. They kept their secret so well that, for many years, very few people in Europe knew about chocolate.

To read the complete article, go to:

LookSmart's FindArticles - Chocolate! - history of chocolate, how it is made, and the different forms in which it is eaten - includes a quiz on chocolate trivia
Ranger Rick, Feb, 1996

To learn more about Palapa Azul's Mexican Chocolate Ice Cream, go to:

Palapa Azul - Premium Mexican Frozen Treats

The Contest Defined: Treasures of Mexico

2006-10-25T05:51:02-07:00

On behalf of Palapa Azul (www.PalapaAzul.com) and the company's blog (www.PalapaAzul.Typepad.com), we would like to invite you to join our "Treasures of Mexico" adventure contest. To celebrate Palapa Azul's authentic Mexican dessert recipes that are passed on from generation to generation, the company would like to offer, every month, an assortment of free Palapa Azul frozen desserts to the best contributor to our blog about a Mexican "treasure": a travel adventure, memory, story or food/culinary experience. Entries will be judged (subjectively by the company founders :0) on their originality, authenticity and on their ability to convey the "essence of Mexico." The authors of all winning monthly contributions will be automatically entered in a yearly competition, the details of which will be given at a later date, and that may involve travel (stay tuned!!!!) We will showcase many of these entries on the blog. In addition, this partnership will increase traffic to your site, as we will obviously include a hyperlink to your content. By participating in this contest, you give us explicit rights to use and reproduce your piece within our materials, on or offline. We look forward to hearing from you soon. Thanks!

The old road to Acapulco

2006-10-21T17:30:18-07:00

Few “chilangos,” (people born in Mexico City) don’t have a story to share about the old road to Acapulco. We all remember, with little variation, those never-ending road trips to what was then the popular destination on the Pacific coast.

The southbound trip started easily enough on a broad, two-lane highway with long straight-aways, punctuated by the occasional turn, most notably the infamous “la pera,” an acute, pear-shaped hairpin twist that signaled the final approach to Cuernavaca and importantly for us, the impending stop at “El Café de la Parroquia” or “Los Arcos” (conchas, hot chocolate, enfrijoladas and tortas) by the zocalo sometimes culminating at “Helados Virginia” (corn, pineapple, coconut or mamey ice cream).

After that, the lure of two weeks at the beach was strong enough for us kids to endure the twisty road through the “Cañon del Zopilote,” a desert pass with little else than “organos,” a type of cactus reminiscent of the saguaros of the American Southwest.

Parents (or grandparents) intent on finding a distraction from car sickness and the intense heat – air conditioning a rare luxury in those days – invented word games, rewarded the first person to spot brown mountain goats among the rocky inclines, or counted road markers, simple reminders of the excruciatingly slow passage of distance and time.

There were occasional stops, like the one at Chilpancingo, the Guerrero State Capital where we rushed the bathrooms, devoured the obligatory hand-made corn cookies and, if we were really lucky, had a Mexican version of the soft serve at “La Vaquita.”

At last, just when we thought we would never arrive, the proximity of the coast suddenly made itself felt. Desert landscapes and dry air were replaced by lush foliage and humidity rushing through the open windows and making our clothes stick.

Small villages, following each other every couple of kilometers, offered us their treasures: stand upon stand of tamarindo candy, glimmering red papaya halves, ripe and sweet, ready to be eaten with a drop of lime, and coconuts slivers, in paper or plastic cups, in their own concoction of chile, salt and lime.

As the road wound down the last few hills, we made bets on who would be the first to catch a glimpse of the ocean.

To learn more about Palapa Azul's Mexican Papaya Frozen Fruit Bar or Coconut Sorbet, go to:

Palapa Azul - Premium Mexican-Style Frozen Treats

We Want Your Feedback

2006-10-03T15:13:46-07:00

Friends, we want your feedback. Your thoughts, suggestions, ideas, observations; your comments about Palapa Azul and the things that make this brand fun and successful. This blog is a way for us to showcase your support and applaud your work. If nothing else, we'll all have a wonderful time corresponding with one another and learning more about the wonders of Mexico and about Palapa Azul. Enjoy!

Welcome To The World Of Palapa Azul

2006-09-20T10:13:37-07:00

Welcome to the official Palapa Azul blog, which is a clearinghouse for all the delicious wonders the company so enthusiastically develops. As this site evolves, we will celebrate fans of the brand, highlight noteworthy information about Mexican delicacies, inform readers about worthwhile nutritional trends and simply have a good time. This blog is your forum as much as it is ours. I look forward to reading your comments, and responding to your queries whenever possible. Thanks for your support!