Recently we have been harvesting, fermenting, drying and roasting our cacao produce. Once we had then peeled the cacao roasted cacao beans the agricultural students learnt how to add value to the cacao nibs by processing it. This involved setting up an grinding machine used for grinding maize to produce arepas, and then, grinding the beans with the machine. We found that passing the residue of the grind through the machine at least four to five times was sufficient to produce a semi-liquid mass that we could then manipulate.

Once the semi-liquid mass was ready students wearing gloves took 14 grams of the mixture and mixed it between their hands, forming chocolate balls. These were set out on a tray and left to cool. They were then placed in a fridge to keep them cool and keep their shape.

In total 32 balls were produced.

The next day teachers were invited to try our chocolate balls in hot chocolate that was made using milk and water. For each litre of milk five chocolate balls were used. Items were placed in a chocolatera, heated and then mixed with a wooden spatula.

The hot chocolate that was produced was gladly consumed by teachers, with very favorable reviews.