Mortgage Broker in Cocoa, SC

Break out your hats, scarves, and mittens in preparation for an event happening on the North Carolina coast this winter. It's fun for the whole family and will be memorable for all. In celebration of one of the season's favorite beverages, Elizabeth City hosts a community-wide Hot Cocoa Crawl during the holidays. Sample specialty hot chocolates, from coffee to brews, get gifts for the hot chocolate lover in your life, and ring in the holidays. Follow this waterfront town's tasty path to warm, chocolatey goodness.

Follow the Hot Cocoa Trail

Elizabeth City, a small town set along the Pasquotank River on the North Carolina coast, is known as the "Harbor of Hospitality®." In keeping with their friendly reputation, an open invitation is extended to experience a taste of the town's sweet treats during the holiday season.

According to the press release for the inaugural year of the Hot Cocoa Crawl, "Local businesses will showcase a chocolatey trail of original mouthwatering beverages and cocoa-inspired experiences for locals and visitors to enjoy. The Harbor of Hospitality's® multi-week inaugural event will offer a one-of-a-kind holiday experience to visitors from across the Carolinas and beyond." Now an annual event, festival-goers are sure to be sweet on this new tradition.

Participating businesses are known to showcase their own specialty hot cocoa recipes, each with a memorable twist. Some of the hot chocolate varieties that have been offered include a toasted marshmallow version from Paradiso Roma Ristorante, the whipped cream and chocolate-topped Vanilla Latte Stout from Ghost Harbor Brewing Company, red wine hot chocolate from 2 Souls Wine Bar, and the Liquid Brownie Hot Chocolate from Muddy Waters Coffeehouse, among several others. Visitors can enjoy the sweet sips while taking in the sights and sounds of the town.

Experience the Holidays in Elizabeth City

This charming waterfront town features a revitalized downtown that is both historic and vibrant. The holiday parade here is a cannot-miss family-friendly experience, and the well-attended First Friday ArtWalk is transformed into a special holiday edition for visitors and residents alike.

While you're in Elizabeth City, you can also enjoy the town's Main Street Lighting Ceremony, taking place during Thanksgiving weekend, and the Lighted Boat Parade, which takes place in early December and sees light-strung boats making their way around the harbor

Elizabeth City's Hot Cocoa Crawl takes place starting in late November and runs through the first days of January. To begin planning your visit, check out Elizabeth City news and this year's events at visitelizabethcity.com. Bundle up and get in on the cold-weather fun in one of North Carolina's most quaint and welcoming locations.

Raise Your Celebratory Hot Beverage

All this talk about a hot cocoa walk has us wanting to celebrate with a comfort-laden warm beverage. Take a look at these links for seasonal drinks that will have you wrapped in a festive mood.

A building under renovation near downtown Aiken soon will be the home of a shop selling fine Belgian chocolates.

Plans also call for the office of a real estate firm based in the Charleston area to be located in the structure.

In addition, there is room for another business.

“I decided to give it a new look, a fresh look,” said entrepreneur David Meunier, who purchased the 2,576-square-foot building on Chesterfield Street South for $240,000 two years ago.

The sellers were Evelyn Kim Cato and Keith Lamar Cato, according to Aiken County land records.

“It was an eyesore, a little bit. That’s what I like to do, take places that are not too good and improve them,” Meunier said. “I do a lot of my buildings in Miami the same way. I like to dress them up with wood, mix wood with concrete to give them warmth.”

Meunier doesn’t believe he will have a problem finding a tenant for the unclaimed space in the structure.

“It’s going to be rented in no time,” he said. “I’ve gotten so many inquiries because of how the building looks.”

The structure is next to Meunier’s La Parisienne, a French restaurant and bakery that he launched in 2020.

Meunier also owns La Bourgogne Club de Polo on Coleman Bridge Road between Aiken and Wagener, and he has purchased a variety of other properties locally in recent years.

The chocolate shop in the refurbished Chesterfield Street building will be called La Bonbonnière and is scheduled to make its debut in March.

The owner, Bebette Smith, also operates a La Bonbonnière store in Augusta at 231 Furys Ferry Road, Suite 206B.

She founded her handmade chocolate business in Georgia in 2005 after graduating from the Wieze Chocolate Academy in Belgium.

Smith, who was born and raised in Belgium, also has attended numerous workshops for chocolatiers in her native land and the U.S.

“My chocolates will continue to be made in Augusta, and then they will be brought to Aiken just to sell,” Smith said.

She decided to establish a South Carolina branch of La Bonbonnière because the Aiken residents who visited her shop asked her to do so.

“Many times, I heard people say, ‘Why don’t you open in Aiken?’” Smith said.

She met Meunier because he was a customer.

One day, Smith recalled, they had the following conversation:

“He said, ‘You know I have a place for you if you want to open in Aiken,’ and he said, ‘I bet you it would work.’ I said, ‘Okay.’”

To begin with, the operating hours for La Bonbonnière in Aiken probably will be 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday.

“Aiken is a weekend place,” Smith said. “People take walks then. They also shop, go to restaurants and do things like that.”

For more information, visit labonbonniereaugusta.com or the La Bonbonnière, Augusta, Ga., page on Facebook.

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Is it time for a steaming cup of hot chocolate? Spartanburg, SC is full of places where you can find a delicious cup of cocoa. We asked our readers for their favorite cocoa spots and they did not disappoint. So load up the kids and find your perfect cup of hot chocolate in Spartanburg, SC.

If all things pumpkin spice usher in fall time, then hot chocolate signals in winter. But not just any cup of Swiss Miss. We are looking for places to get a hot creamy cup of chocolate goodness, and there’s no shortage of them in Spartanburg.

Hot Chocolate in Spartanburg and Beyond

Grab a cup of hot cocoa, and sink into a comfy sofa among the plants at Botanical Brew. You will most likely leave with a cup of cocoa and a new leafy green baby to tend to.

Outdoor seating makes grabbing hot cocoa with kids easy at this Coffee Shop in downtown Inman. They can get their wiggles out, and you can enjoy your custom hot cocoa creation from their menu!

There are several locations in the Little River Roasting company to choose from, and they serve up a creamy cup of hot cocoa!

Peppermint bark hot chocolate (mix of dark and white chocolate) is so rich and perfect, and the only hot chocolate I drink year round. Made with dairy or preferred milk alternative- no watery cocoa here.

Abigail

Little River. Love Them

Emily

Served with a heaping helping of whipped cream, the hot chocolate from Eggs Up is a fantastic beverage to enjoy with breakfast! In addition, they have a hot mocha chocolate that is out of this world!

Mexican hot chocolate at Spill The Beans is my favorite!

Daisy

A cup (of hot cocoa) at The Crepe Factory goes great with thier beignets!

Samantha

Bella Latte’s is yummy AND they will only lighty steam to make it warm if you tell them it’s for your kid so you don’t have to wait for it to cool down or have them burn their mouth.

Crystal

Bella Latte at Drayton Mills. It’s really tasty!

Christy

Starbucks white hot chocolate is wonderful!

Meghann

Not only can you grab a fantastic ice cream sandwich at Rocky Moo, but you can also enjoy Hot Chocolate, and Hot Chocolate floats from this Upstate favorite!

Hot Chocolate Worth the Drive in Asheville, NC

There appear to be quite a few specialty chocolate shops in Asheville, just waiting to satisfy your winter drink craving.

Folks, as of publication time, I have no idea what “liquid truffle sipping chocolate” is, but I fully intend on finding out ASAP. Whatever it is, it sounds glorious, and it’s on the menu here.

If you are up for a trip The Chocolate Lounge in Asheville is every bit of amazing. But I would go with Little River Roasting

Melissa

Cocoa is most commonly associated with chocolate and has a variety of nutritional benefits that can confirm positive health attributes. The cocoa bean is an accident source of dietary polyphenols, containing more finale antioxidants than most foods. It is well known that polyphenols are associated with beneficial health effects, therefore cocoa is rich in polyphenols, and dark chocolate, which contains a high percentage of cacao and high antioxidants compounds relative to other chocolate types, have assumed significant importance to health.

Image Credit: Africa Studio/Shutterstock.com

The nutritional aspects of cocoa

Cocoa contains a significant quantity of fat, ~40 -50% contained in cocoa butter. This is comprised of 33% oleic acid, 25% palmitic acid, and 33% stearic acid. The polyphenol content constitutes approximately 10% of a whole bean dry weight. The polyphenols that cocoa contains include catechins (37%), anthocyanidins (4%), and proanthocyanins (58%). The proanthocyanins are the most prevalent phytonutrient in cocoa.

It is important to note that the bitterness of polyphenols is the reason that unprocessed cocoa beans are unpalatable; manufacturers have developed a processing technique to eliminate this bitterness. However, this process markedly decreases the polyphenol content. Polyphenol content can be lowered by up to tenfold.

Cocoa beans also contain nitrogenous compounds – these include both protein and methylxanthines, namely theobromine and caffeine. Cocoa is also rich in minerals, phosphorus, iron, potassium, copper, and magnesium.

The cardiovascular effects of cocoa consumption

cocoa is predominantly ingested in the form of chocolate; chocolate consumption has seen a recent increase globally, with dark chocolate becoming increasingly popular owing to its high concentrations of cocoa and associated beneficial health effects compared to normal or milk chocolate. In addition, come on chocolates with lower cocoa content such as milk chocolate are typically associated with adverse events due to high sugar and fat contents.

In terms of ingesting cocoa, dark chocolate is the predominant cocoa foodstuff associated with health-promoting effects; cocoa in its raw form is unpalatable.

There is a series of beneficial effects on the cardiovascular system that is associated with regular intake of cocoa-containing foods and beverages these encompass effects on blood pressure, vascular and platelet function, and insulin resistance.

Polyphenols, which are present in high concentrations in cocoa and dark chocolate, can activate endothelial nitrogen oxide synthase. This leads to the generation of nitrogen oxide, which lowers blood pressure by promoting vasodilation. Studies have shown improvements in pulse wave speed and sclerotic score index. Moreover, greater concentrations of plasma epicatechins aid in the release of endothelium-derived vasodilators and increase the concentration of plasma procyanidins. This leads to greater production of nitrogen oxide, and its bioavailability.

Once released, nitrogen oxide also activates the prostacyclin synthesis pathway, which also acts as a vasodilator and so also contributes to protection against thrombosis.

A systemic review has suggested that regular chocolate consumption, quantified as <100g/week, may be linked with a reduced risk of cardiovascular disease; the most appropriate dose of chocolate was 45g/week, as at higher levels of consumption, these health effects may be counteracted by elevated sugar consumption.

With regards to specific forms of cardiovascular disease, a Swedish prospective study has linked chocolate consumption with a reduced risk of myocardial infarction and ischemic heart disease. However, a lack of association between chocolate intake and risk of atrial fibrillation has been reported in a cohort of United States male physicians. Alongside this, a population-based study of 20,192 participants has failed to demonstrate an association between high chocolate intake (up to 100 g/day) and incident heart failure.

Cocoa has also been shown to play a role in treating cerebral conditions such as stroke; a large Japanese, population-based, prospective study rated an association between a lowered risk of stroke in women, but not men, with regards to chocolate consumption.

The effect of cocoa consumption on glucose homeostasis

Cocoa contains flavanols which improves glucose homeostasis. They can slow down carbohydrate digestion and absorption in the gut, which forms the mechanistic basis of their action. Cocoa extracts and procyanidins have been shown to dose-dependently inhibit pancreatic α-amylase, pancreatic lipase, and secreted phospholipase A2.

Cocoa and its flavanols also improved glucose insensitivity by regulating the transport of glucose and insulin signaling proteins in insulin-sensitive tissues such as the liver, adipose tissue, and skeletal muscle. This prevents oxidative and inflammatory damage associated with type 2 diabetes.

Results from the Physician Health Study have also reported an inverse relationship between cocoa consumption and the incidence of diabetes. In a cohort of multiethnic subjects, a lowered risk of developing type 2 diabetes has been found, with the highest intake of chocolate products and cocoa-derived flavonoids.

Moreover, a prospective study in Japanese pregnant women has also demonstrated a reduced risk of gestational diabetes among those women in the highest quartile of chocolate consumption.

Other studies which demonstrate the association of cocoa and glucose homeostasis have shown that cocoa extracts and procyanidins inhibit the production of enzymes for the digestion of carbohydrates and lipids, which suggests a putative role in the control of body weight in conjunction with a reduced-calorie diet.

Moreover, a single-blind, randomized placebo-controlled crossover human study has shown the metabolic benefits of consuming polyphenol-rich dark chocolate and the possibility of adverse effects occurring with polyphenol-poor chocolates.

The effect of cocoa consumption on cancer

Effective cocoa consumption on cancer is controversial. Earlier studies initially suggested that chocolate intake could be a predisposing factor to the development of colorectal and breast cancer. However other studies have shown that cocoa can inhibit the growth of cancer cells in vitro; despite this, the mechanisms for this anti-cancer activity are not well understood.

With regards to the active component in cocoa which produces such anti-cancer effects, procyanidins specifically have been shown to reduce the incidence and multiplicity of lung cancers as well as decrease thyroid adenoma size in male rats. These compounds could also inhibit mammary and pancreatic tumorigenesis in female rats. Cocoa procyanidins also reduce activity associated with tumor-associated activities such as tumor vascular endothelial growth factor activity and angiogenic activity.

The treatment of different types of ovarian cancer cell lines with various concentrations of cocoa rich in procyanidin has been shown to induce cytotoxicity and chemosensitization. Notably, a significant percentage of cells in the G0/G1 phase of the cell cycle with increasing concentration. In addition to this, a significant proportion of cells were also arrested in the S phase. These effects are thought to be attributed to increased intracellular levels of reactive oxygen species.

Several studies have also demonstrated various effects of cocoa on the risk and spread of cancer. Cocoa polyphenols have been shown to produce antiproliferative effects because of interference with polyamine metabolism in in vitro human studies. In in vivo rat studies proanthocyanidins present in dark chocolate have been shown to inhibit the mutagenicity of pancreatic cancers at the initiation stage as well as exerting chemoprotective effects in the lung, decreasing the incidence and spread of carcinomas in a dose-dependent manner.

To determine the full effect of cocoa on the risk of reducing the risk or severity of cancer, further translation and prospective studies are necessary.

The effect of cocoa on the immune system

Studies on immune system effects related to cocoa or chocolate use have shown that a cocoa-enriched diet can modulate intestinal immune responses in young rats. In particular, theobromine and cocoa were demonstrated to be responsible for systemic intestinal antibody concentration as well as modifying the lymphocyte composition in young healthy rats.

In studies of humans, a randomized double-blind crossover study has shown that dark chocolate consumption improved leukocyte adhesion factors as well as vascular function in men that were overweight. Moreover, participants in a cross-sectional, observational, human study who moderately consumed cocoa were found to have a reduced frequency of chronic disease compared to lower consumers. In addition, the consumption of cocoa was inversely associated with allergies and physical activity.

The effect of cocoa on body weight

Counterintuitively, there is an association between the consumption of cocoa and its potential role as a therapeutic measure against obesity and metabolic syndrome. This comes from several in vitro mice and rat studies as well as randomized control trials, prospective human, and case-control studies in humans.

In mice and rats, obese rodents supplemented with cocoa lessened the incidence of obesity-related inflammation, fatty liver disease, and insulin resistance. Cocoa ingestion also decreased fatty acid synthesis and transport to the liver and adipose tissues.

In humans, the smell or ingestion of dark chocolate can alter hunger, suppressing appetite because of changes in ghrelin, the hormone responsible for feelings of hunger. Regular consumption of dark chocolate could favorably affect levels of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (the ‘good’ cholesterol), the ratio of lipoproteins, and inflammation markers; similar effects were seen when the consumption of dark chocolate in combination with almonds, was shown to improve lipid profiles in the blood.

Overall, cocoa and its derived products can act as functional foods as they contain several compounds the produce health benefits. Its positive health benefit affects the immune, cardiovascular, and metabolic systems to name a few. In addition, studies have demonstrated the positive effects of cocoa consumption on the central nervous system.

There are some limitations with studies designed to investigate the effect of cocoa – namely, that they evaluate the health-promoting properties of cocoa and not of chocolate itself. This is notable as cocoa is predominantly eaten in the form of chocolate, whose nutritional profile is distinct from that of cocoa. As such, the role of chocolate on human health is not entirely comparable to that of cocoa.

Other limitations include the relative paucity of epidemiological studies examining the health effects of cocoa in different forms – namely dark chocolate which is increasing in popularity. Moreover, there are several confounding factors such as other diet components, environmental exposures, lifestyle, and volume of chocolate consumption, as well as its composition which limit the strength of the evidence presented by studies.

Further translational studies are necessary to determine the possible effects of consuming cocoa, and chocolate and to verify results demonstrated in in vitro tests on animals.

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Hidaya is a science communications enthusiast who has recently graduated and is embarking on a career in the science and medical copywriting. She has a B.Sc. in Biochemistry from The University of Manchester. She is passionate about writing and is particularly interested in microbiology, immunology, and biochemistry.

Ken Pitcher eats one to two chocolate chip cookies every day, which is saying a lot since he’s been making them for more than 40 years.

They’re either that good or he just likes chocolate chip cookies.

The users of Yelp say it’s the former. In recognition of National Chocolate Chip Cookie Day Aug. 4, Yelp made a list of the best cookies in every state. Pitcher’s The Chocolate Shoppe in Greenville was named the best chocolate chip cookie in South Carolina.

Pitcher and his wife, Pat, bought the store from some bakers 42 years ago when it was located in a kiosk in McAlister Square Mall, which at the time was South Carolina’s first enclosed mall and largest shopping center.

But the kiosk burned down a year or so later, and the Pitchers moved the business to Lake Forest Shopping Center across Pleasantburg Drive from the side entrance to Bob Jones University.

It’s been there ever since, through the good days and bad for the strip shopping center.

The Chocolate Shoppe never faltered, even during COVID, Pitcher said. It didn’t hurt that it was located beside the now-closed but popular longtime dance studio run by Marjorie Palmer, a well-known dancer who taught all over the country. Or Bob Jones.

Pitcher said the business has grown from a simple walk-in store to one that regularly ships hundreds of dozens of cookies across the nation. It’s commonplace for the business to receive an order for National Nurses Week to be shipped to hospitals from California to New York. Or for manufacturers representatives to order dozens as a way to get in the door of businesses they hope to sell to.

They work with caterers for business events, weddings, showers, you name it. Any place someone just wants a good cookie. They now have a dozen or so varieties including the Chipwich — two chocolate ship cookies with vanilla or chocolate incing in between.

They also sell various candies and gift items.

Pitcher said what makes the cookies so tasty is they’re chewy, have high-quality ingredients (especially the chips), they’re made from scratch, and there’s “a lot of love in every batch.”

The Pitchers’ now-grown children have worked in the store and return during holidays when it gets busy to help out the eight regular employees. A granddaughter wants to one day take over the business. She just graduated from high school and is on her way to Johnson and Wales University, which specializes in food services.

Pitcher said regular customers helped the business through COVID, sometimes adding to their tabs as a thank you.

He said one of his most important business practices is good service.

“You just don’t get it like you used to,” he said.

Their website is the quaint makingtheworldsweeter.com.

He greets many people by name. Old-fashioned business. They’re not even on Facebook or any social media. Yet. Their daughter is working on that.

“People enjoy coming in and being greeted by name,” Pitcher’s daughter Tiffany Sherbert said. “It’s not scripted.”

And it doesn’t hurt that everyone who walks in gets a free cookie.