Coffee

Though I have never been a coffee drinker, I love the smell of it brewing in the morning. I guess it is because I have happy memories as a child and I knew the smell of coffee meant my mother was up and we were going to have one of her wonderful breakfasts or that we were at my grandmother’s house and we were going to have one of her wonderful breakfasts. My grandmother always had a pot of coffee on the stove for visitors – and a homemade apple pie – and there was always someone at the house visiting!

People have been enjoying the benefits of coffee for over fifteen hundred years. Originating from the Kaffa, Buno, and Ethiopia areas, the main center of production was the port city of Mocha, Yemen, where it was served to Italian merchants and then spread to Europe in the 1600′s. Little did the Turks know that they were serving what would become one of the most popular drinks in history. Coffee houses began ‘brewing’ all over North American in 1668 in towns such as Boston, New York and Philadelphia. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Americans drink on the average of more than eight ounces of coffee a day.

The benefits of coffee are astounding. Coffee is extremely high in antioxidants (substances that slow down or prevent oxidative damage to our cells and bodies and act as free radical scavengers). In Harvard Health Publication, studies have shown coffee in moderation can reduce the risk of developing gall stones, colon cancer, liver damage, Parkinson’s disease, improve endurance performance in physical activities and cognitive function.

It is recommended that coffee be consumed in moderation since it is a stimulant. Too much coffee or anything for that matter, can do more harm than good, so limit consumption to no more than two cups a day. Over consumption of coffee can cause anxiety or panic attacks and in some cases increase the risk of heart disease in some people. If you find that you are jittery or nervous after drinking coffee, cut back.

The key to brewing a good cup of coffee is to grind good quality fresh beans yourself. As soon as the beans are ground, precious oils that make your coffee taste great are lost. Just imagine how great your coffee will taste from freshly ground beans. A coffee grinder is used for this purpose and a must if you really want a good cup of coffee. I am going to add a personal note here about coffee grinders. I have one and use mine to grind nuts and seeds to make a coating for food instead of breadcrumbs. I grind almonds, sunflower and pumpkin seeds, mix them together with paprika, herbs, a little salt and pepper. This makes a grand coating for salmon cakes or chicken and fish. Then I pan sear, and serve with a mayonnaise, lemon, garlic, and horseradish sauce. Yum. 

I have also used mine to grind herbs if I want them really fine. If you wish to use a coffee grinder for other things, it is best to purchase two – one for coffee and one for grinding nuts, seeds and herbs. Purchase high quality beans, of course choosing the type of bean for a particular flavor is up to you. If your water is poor quality, use filtered or spring water to make your coffee taste even better.   Also consider organic coffee and experiment with different flavor beans to find your favorite. Our parents used to let us have a small amount of coffee when we were kids. They called it coffee milk and it consisted of coffee, pure cream – more cream than coffee and sugar. That was a real treat.

Safe Home Sue is a product specialist for Safe Home Products(R). Safe Home Products, Inc. is a growing e-commerce reseller of consumer products that improve safety, security, health and quality of life. Established in 1999 as a woman-owned business, Safe Home Products serves over 100,000 clients worldwide from its customer service and fulfillment headquarters in Iowa City, Iowa. Safe Home Products offers over 10,000 products including carbon monoxide and radon detectors, emergency preparedness equipment, environmentally-friendly cleaning supplies, pet products, pest control solutions, and home medical equipment. They ship to all 50 states and U.S. territories and to most countries.

Author: Sue Wes
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If you want to taste coffee in a whole new way, try making it with a French Press coffee pot. Most people are used to their coffee being brewed in an electric, drip coffee maker a la Mr. Coffee. This method has one flaw in the brewing process that takes away from the true essence of coffee: the paper filter. The paper retains some of the coffee essence, and deprives you of coffee’s true potential. Granted, we cannot simply dump ground coffee into a cup, pour in hot water and start drinking; the grounds must be separated from the liquid that is consumed. Coffee grounds are bitter, gritty, and stick to your teeth. The French Press method removes the grounds, but lets all of the flavor of the coffee come to life.

Although French Presses come in various shapes, sizes, materials and manufacturers, the Chambord model by Bodum is a good example of a ubiquitous style found throughout the industry . The handle attaches to the holder for the glass carafe. The carafe holds the coffee and hot water. The carafe looks like a beaker from a chemistry lab, with a spout for easy pouring. The “pressing” apparatus of the French Press sits atop the beaker. It consists of a dome which covers the coffee as it brews. The plunger is a skinny metal post with a plastic ball at the top that slides through a small hole in the middle of the dome. At the bottom of the post is the filter, a wire mesh disk.

A quick note about ingredients. A cup of coffee is made of coffee beans and water. Therefore, start with freshly roasted whole beans ground just before brewing. Whole beans maintain their freshness twice as long as ground coffee. The water is just as critical: make sure it is cold, fresh, and filtered.

Let’s assume a 12 oz. cup is being prepared. Using 1-1 ½ tablespoons of whole beans, set your grinder to coarse. This produces the largest grounds possible, and allows water to extract the maximum flavor from the coffee. It also reduces the amount of smaller grounds that will end up in the bottom of the cup.

Dump the ground coffee into the carafe. Before adding hot water, take a moment to inhale the aroma of the dry coffee. The aroma of freshly ground coffee will take you to a better place.

Next, heat your water (12 ounces). The optimal brewing temperature is 195-205 F. If you don’t have a thermometer, simply bring your water to a boil and wait thirty seconds.

Pour the water into the beaker and stir for a couple of seconds. This will agitate the mixture and allow the coffee to brew more completely. Place the plunger apparatus on the carafe, but do not depress. Set a timer for four minutes. This amount of time allows all of the flavor and oils to be extracted perfectly from the coffee.

At four minutes press down the plunger completely, then pour the freshly brewed coffee into your mug.
Look at the coffee before adding any condiments. The coffee will appear more complex (richer) than if it were brewed in a drip coffee maker. There will even be a thin layer of crema (light brown froth) resting on top of the liquid. Put your nose close to the cup and breathe in the aroma. The smell is stronger, more pure than if the coffee passed through a paper filter. Taste the coffee before adding sugar etc. When you reach the end of the cup you will notice some residue. These are simply micro-grounds that made it through the mesh filter.

You can purchase French Presses that double as travel mugs. There are also double-walled glass, and stainless steel thermal units as well. Some are beautifully crafted and look like museum pieces. The reason for this is that coffee made in this manner is the height of the coffee brewing experience. So, if you love coffee, you owe it to yourself to purchase a French Press and make the best-tasting coffee in the easiest possible way. Prices start at around 13 dollars for a two cup (12 oz.) unit.

Brent Kloster is co-owner of Falls River Coffee, which sells fresh roasted coffee, loose leaf tea, and brewing equipment online at http://www.FallsRiverCoffee.com.

Author: Brent Kloster
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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Aside from the finer points in roasting coffee beans, the extraction of the coffee flavor from the beans by way of brewing is the most important aspect of coffee-making. It is the final process right before we drink our coffee.

This is the one area where most of the connoisseurs have tried to concentrate their efforts in trying to improve the process throughout the ages. Today, we have several forms of coffee brewing techniques, both for commercial and home use.

Flavor extraction length
As a general rule, the length of extraction time is directly related to the grind coarseness.
The smaller the coffee particles, the shorter the extraction time.

French press coffee is the longest, with coffee and water contact lasting as long as four minutes. Espresso has the shortest contact time, about twenty-five seconds, and the coffee granules used are among the smallest.

If the coffee and water stay together for too long, other compounds start to leach and these will make the coffee bitter. On the other hand, if the granules are large, and the extraction time is short, the coffee will lack flavor because of under-extraction.

Drip brew
Most home brews nowadays are produced through the drip process. The technique is simple enough: hot water is poured over a medium-ground coffee within a filter and the water goes through the coffee grounds and drips into a holding container.

There are many variations on these drip brewers with different functions for home use, and also available in larger models for commercial use.

Auto-drip brewers
This machine makes brewing a very simple process. Water is heated in one place and piped over the grounds inside a filter. The extracted brew then drips into a holding vessel.

One complaint is that these machines do not make the water hot enough, so flavor extraction happens at lower temperatures than is recommended.

Another issue is that the machines have warming hot plates, ostensibly for keeping the coffee warm. However, continuous heat will make the coffee bitter.

Single-Serve Systems
These machines were once used exclusively in commercial places. Now, people buy them for their own use at home.

These are very convenient to use. Pre-packaged coffee is inserted into the machine and with one push of a button, the coffee starts to come out. There are variations to these, however.

Some pre-heats an entire reservoir or heats the water on demand. Some machines can brew with less water, making for stronger coffees. They are more like smaller versions of drip machines. Some involve pressure but they are not true espresso machines.

One complaint is that these machines use proprietary packaged coffee, so quality and freshness cannot be guaranteed.

French Press / Press Pot / Cafeteria / Plunger Pot
The French Press has two parts: the beaker (made of glass, metal or plastic) and a plunger which has a wire-mesh filter.

To use, heat the brewing water and pour it on the coffee grounds in the beaker. Let the coffee steep for about 3 to 5 minutes (to your taste) before putting the plunger in and push the dregs down with the filter mesh. You may stir the brew for a second or two before putting the plunger in. Pour the cleared coffee into an appropriate mug. It is now ready for drinking.

Note: Pour out the coffee into your drinking mugs or carafes right after brewing. Do not leave it steeped with the grounds all throughout. The continuous steeping will make the coffee bitter.

Espresso
Espresso is coffee created by forcing hot water steam through finely ground coffee at a certain pressure. The resulting brew is called espresso, as developed by the Italians. It is different from regular coffee in that it has a cream produced by the process unlike regular brews.

Espresso is the base for such bestselling Italian coffee concoctions as cappuccino, lattes, macchiato and more.

There are many more brewing techniques culled from all over the world. Since they are popular only in their parts, we have not included them in the list. Suffice it to say that whatever the number of brewing techniques that one knows, the quality changes accordingly.

Frankly, all of these coffee brewing techniques are just as good as any. And that says a lot on how versatile coffee is.

Jhon Noya, Author Of Free Tips Making Money From Internet and Free Tips For Dating

Author: Jhon Noya
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Almost everyone around the world love to drink coffee. It must be the addicting caffeine kick that entices people to this popular drink. Breakfast will not be complete with a freshly brewed cup of coffee to start the day. Coffee is also the favorite companion of students staying up late at night when studying for an exam. It is also beside the businessmen staying up late at night to finish some reports in front of the computer.

Coffee is also present in social gatherings. Friends would catch up with their stories while clutching their favorite cups of coffee. This is also the reason why coffee shops have become so prevalent and profitable today. It has become the rendezvous for friends of families.

Whatever the reason is, people drink coffee. And because of this, it has sparked interests to make coffee cups at homes. After all, if one drinks coffee regularly, like once or twice a day, it will be very costly and impractical to buy a cup each time in coffee shops.

And thus, coffee grinders are widely available in the market to cater to the many lovers of this caffeine drink. To note, there are four categories of coffee grinders and these will be discussed below in more detail. These are classified according to use.

The first category is the office and home coffee grinders for personal use. Most of these are portable but they are also durable when cleaned and maintained well. As a general rule, the heavier the coffee grinder, the better. It is because coffee grinders with heavy and large motors produce more torque in a comparatively slow speed. They have ample power to actually grind coffee beans, excluding the need to heat them up.

These coffee grinders are enough to make five to ten cups of coffee in one brewing. It can serve a whole family or a couple of officemates at work.

Espresso grinders are the second type, good for small restaurants or coffee shops. These usually weigh 10 lbs or more. The espresso grinders are really more for commercial use. It produces stronger flavors of coffee, that a small serving holds a strong percentage of caffeine. It also produces more cups in a single brewing. Thus, it is good even with high traffic of customers in peak hours.

The third type is the commercial coffee grinders. It is mainly built to grind several pounds of good coffee all throughout the day, without the risk of overheating the appliance. This is because commercial types of coffee grinders have very large electrical motors and additionally large hoppers. Although these grinders are heavy and large, they still run with 110/220 Volts of standard power. Thus, almost all commercial types of coffee grinders have a so-called doser and are fully automatic.

The last type is retail coffee grinders. They are basically used in gourmet coffee shops and supermarkets. It grinds fast and with precision. These are the coffee grinders you see in small outlets serving cups of coffee to a long queue.

For more information on Coffee grinders and Selecting Best Coffee Grinder Tips please visit our website.

Author: David Urmann
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A coffee maker is an appliance, usually operated at home or in coffee shops, which you can use to make coffee while bypassing the need to boil water separately. Essentially, it is an appliance that brews coffee. Typically, the most popular brewing method employed is the drip-brew principle, wherein heated water is made to run through ground coffee which has been scooped onto a funnel in the coffee maker. The prepared concoction then drips through the apex of the funnel and into a container set under this funnel.

Naturally, the type and quality of the coffee you brew would depend on several factors. As expected, the key component to making a good cup of coffee would be the coffee itself. Nothing beats using fresh coffee, whether in the form of whole beans or as ground coffee. Just as important is the ability to preserve the freshness of the beans, because more often than not you cannot brew all of the coffee beans that you have just bought. One good way to go about the upkeep of your coffee’s freshness is store it in airtight bags, such as zip lock containers which you can open and reseal anytime. The key is to ensure that your coffee is kept away from heat and air. Also, make certain that you store it in a place that is dry and cool.

Now when it comes to preparation, the general rule is to prepare about 1 to 2 spoons of coffee for every 6-ounce cup. However, you may vary this mix depending on your personal tastes. The beauty of making coffee is that you can serve it in a variety of ways-black, with cream or milk, and varying amounts of sugar.

There are also several types of coffee makers to choose from, and the type you can opt to use will depend on exactly what kind of coffee you want. The first type is the pressure-brewed type of coffee maker. This one uses extreme pressure to brew black coffee. If done right, this maker also gives you a gold crema while maintaining the coffee’s full-bodied aroma. The caffeine content of the coffee you can brew from a pressure-brewed maker is about 30% less that that you can make using a drip type. Another good thing about this particular coffee is that it contains no tannic acid.

Still one other type of coffee maker is the filter drip type, or simply the drip type, wherein coffee is simply brewed through a filter. The great thing about this coffee maker is that it is relatively easy to clean.

Yet still another type of coffee maker is that pod maker, which makes use of pre-packaged coffee packed in a filter. Needless to say, this type of coffee maker is very easy to use.

Katya Coen provides information on coffee makers for Coffee Online – the site for coffee lovers.

Author: Katya Coen
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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