Everything You Need to Know About Coffee

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Coffee is one of the world’s most popular drinks. It’s really something quite magical when you think about it; a drink that helps us feel alive and alert enough to conquer the world! Or at least to conquer our workload for that day. Many people can’t function properly without a cup of coffee to start their day off. Whether you feel the same about coffee or not, it has an interesting history. Also, science has proven that it can be good for us. That’s right; drinking coffee could make us healthier individuals. I am not a doctor so this post is not meant to give medical advice.  Please consult your own physician.  Want to know more? Of course you do! Read on…

Where Does Coffee Come From?

The first thing we’ll start with is where coffee comes from. Unlike the story of Jack and the Beanstalk, coffee did not magically appear like the magic beans (although I’m sure you’ll agree that they are magical beans).

Coffee seeds are planted, and it takes around 4 years for a tree to grow that will produce the beans. That’s a long wait! However, they will only grow into the type of coffee that we know and love today when planted in certain areas; called the ‘coffee/bean belt’. These areas include Kenya, Colombia, and Brazil. You can also find great coffee in Costa Rica. The fruit of the coffee tree is called a cherry (confusing I know), and when that turns a deep red color it can be harvested. Don’t get the coffee cherry confused with a fruit cherry!

The coffee cherry is always harvested by hand, and it can take 4000 beans to make just 1 pound of roasted coffee. Once harvested, there’s milling and polishing, grading and sorting. This is where the beans are refined and any nasty beans are removed to make a quality cup. Coffee is then shipped all over the world!

Did you know that there are even people employed to make sure the coffee is of a high standard? They’ll use sight, smell, and taste to ensure that the beans are the highest quality. Beans are then roasted to transform them into the brown color that we know and love. Beans can then be ground, but it depends on the method in which the coffee is going to be made.

The Benefits of Coffee

Coffee is good for us! It’s true; you don’t need to feel guilty about your morning brew. Let’s take a look at some of the most notable benefits:

  • Coffee contains lots of antioxidants and nutrients. In fact, many people get more antioxidants from coffee than anywhere else! Although you can get antioxidants and nutrients from food, many people don’t eat the right foods to get enough of them. This is why they get the most out of coffee.
  • Coffee can help the liver, especially if you drink alcohol. If you’ve had a heavy night don’t hesitate to have a cup of coffee.
  • Coffee can lessen feelings of depression, and has been linked with a reduce in suicide. If you’re feeling low, a cup of Joe could be just what you need.
  • Just a whiff of coffee can help people to feel less stressed. Try having a sniff and see what you think.
  • Coffee can help us to feel happier. I know from personal experience!
  • Coffee can make Parkinson’s disease symptoms less prominent.
  • Coffee can improve your athletic performance by giving you a buzz before you work out. It can also help you to burn more fat as it increases your metabolic rate.
  • Coffee can lower the risk of type 2 diabetes.
  • Alzheimer’s disease and dementia are less likely to develop with regular consumption of coffee.
  • Coffee could even lower the risk of certain types of cancer. It’s said to be specifically helpful with skin cancer in women.

What better reason to get your coffee on?

8256640709_c06426ff1d_zpicture source

Is Coffee Bad for Us at All?

You’ve probably heard people say that coffee is bad for us and we shouldn’t drink it. But how can that be true, especially with all of the benefits listed above?!

Now, while coffee is good for us in the right amounts, too much of it can be bad for us. It’s the same with anything; too much of it and we can hinder the results. One or two cups of coffee in the day is fine to perk us up, but try to drink green tea for the rest of the day. Too much caffeine can actually increase our cortisol levels, making us feel more stressed. Cortisol also makes us hold onto belly fat, so it can be bad for weight loss too.

The moral of the story is, coffee is good for us if you watch your consumption.

Interesting Coffee Facts

Want to know some interesting coffee facts you’ve probably never heard before?

  • Sometimes, coffee shops use a fake coffee scent to entice shoppers. That fresh coffee smell you get when you open a new tub of coffee? That may have been injected into it too!
  • People in Europe originally used to refer to coffee as Arabian Wine.
  • In every scene of the film ‘Fight Club’, there’s a Starbucks cup present. Of course Starbucks were fine with the advertising!
  • Two of the worlds oldest recorded cats used to drink coffee every day. They lived to be 34 and 38. They had the same owner, and were also fed eggs, bacon, and broccoli.
  • Some legends suggest that coffee was first founded by the Ethiopians, who realised that their goats started to dance after eating coffee berries.
  • African tribes used to mix coffee berries with fat, to make little edible energy balls.
  • Hawaii is the only US state that can grow coffee.
  • Coffee is the second most traded commodity in the world after oil.
  • George Washington invented coffee in 1906, but not the president you’re thinking of! A Belgian man living in Guatemala by the same name.

I bet you didn’t realise that coffee was so interesting, huh? Now you can share this information with your fellow coffee lovers and enlighten them. Enjoy!

 

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Easy to Make K-Cup Summer Drink Recipes FREE eBook

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Free Summer Recipe Ebook With Coupon

Free Keurig K-cup recipe ebook exclusive money saving coupon included!
If you love iced coffee and other iced beverages as much as I do then you’ll LOVE this FREE K-Cup Recipe eBook!

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FREE McCafe Coffee at McDonald’s!!!

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mccafe
Today until April 13, McDonald’s is giving its friends free McCafé coffee during breakfast hours.

That’s two whole weeks of free freshly brewed coffee to brighten your day and help you enjoy your me time – all on them.
McCafé’s signature drip-coffee blend is freshly brewed to provide a quality, great-tasting cup of coffee just for you!

YUMMY!  FREE COFFEE!!!

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#sponsored Try Caza Trail Coffee For FREE #MC

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Disclosure- I participated in a campaign on behalf of Mom Central Consulting for Sturm Foods, Inc. I received a promotional item and product samples as a thank you for participating.

caza trail
I love coffee.  Normally I am an iced coffee kind of gal but during the holiday season I also enjoy sipping a warm cup of coffee from my single serve coffee maker at home.  I have recently discovered a flavor I really enjoy, Caza Trail’s single serve Donut Shop blend.  It is really delicious and right now if you head over to Mom Central’s Facebook page here you can try it for yourself for FREE. For a limited time they’re giving away free 3-pack sample of Caza Trail’s Donut Shop Blend K-cups. You can also find the Donut Shop blend and 24 other Caza Trail varieties on their Amazon page. Let Caza Trail keep you warm this holiday season!

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Coffee-mate Girl Scout Cookie Flavors Product Review

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Disclosure- I received the product(s) mentioned below to facilitate my review.  I received no other compensation and all opinions are 100% my own.
Girl Scout Cookie Coffee-mate
If you like Girl Scout Cookies, you have to try Coffee-mate’s 2 new Girl Scout Cookie flavored creamers- Thin Mint and Caramel & Coconut (like Samoas, my favorite Girl Scout Cookies).  I tried them both a few months ago when I went to BlogHer in Chicago and I have been searching for them at my local grocery store ever since.  Then a weeks ago my family and I went to a local museum and Coffee-mate was there sampling these two yummy flavors and I was hooked again.  Actually this time my whole family was hooked.  The Thin Mint tastes just like a Girl Scout Thin Mint Cookie which both of my girls love and the Caramel & Coconut tastes just like a Girl Scout Samoa cookie, my favorite!  I don’t let my girls drink coffee.  We’re already short enough.  No need to stunt their growth by drinking coffee.  Maybe that is why I am hardly 5 feet myself!  I found that I can mix a little of the Coffee-mate with milk and create a yummy flavored milk.  Or for a more indulgent treat it can be used to make a milkshake.
girl scout thin mint creamer
When a representative from Coffee-mate contacted me to review the Girl Scout Cookie flavored creamers I jumped at the chance just to get my hands on more since I still haven’t been able to find it locally.  Two bottles of each flavor were dropped off yesterday morning and I am *almost* too embarrassed to admit that my family has almost gone through one entire bottle of the Caramel & Coconut flavor.  It is THAT good.
iced coffee
Hubby and I each had a few cups of coffee in the last 2 days with the Caramel & Coconut flavor and my younger daughter had me make her flavored milk with it.  My older daughter is camping this weekend ironically with her Girl Scout troop so we’ll have to save her some.
flavored milk
To make Girl Scout Cookie flavored milk I added about an ounce of Coffee-mate Caramel & Coconut flavored creamer, 2 cups of milk, and some ice and shook them together in my blender ball cup.
It was really yummy but then I decided to kick it up a notch and add a tablespoon of chocolate syrup.  It was AMAZING!  Next time I make it I am going to put some vanilla ice cream in it and turn it into a milkshake.  samoa milk
The creamers are really flavorful, rich, and creamy so they make coffee, milkshakes, and more feel like an indulgent dessert.  Now that we’ve almost gone through a whole bottle, I’ll have to hide it so it will last longer!
milk mustache
I think I might try baking with the creamer, too.  If I come up with any good recipes I’ll be sure to share them with you.  Do you have any creative recipe ideas using the Coffee-mate Girl Scout Cookie Flavored Creamers?

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Ghirardelli Chocolate Sauce + Iced Coffee = YUMMY!!!

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I received a bottle of Ghirardelli Chocolate Sauce through a blogger program in exchange for sharing my honest opinion with you, my readers.  Ghirardelli Chocolate Sauce can be used in so many recipes from chocolate tortes to ice cream sundaes to many coffee drinks.  Why pay a barista $5 for fancy coffee drink when you can make one at home with Ghirardelli Chocolate Sauce?  Here’s how I made the yummy iced coffee drink above.

  1. Brew coffee over ice.
  2. Add milk and Splenda to taste.
  3. Add 1 Tablespoon of Ghirardelli Chocolate Sauce.
  4. Add iced coffee and more ice in a blender and blend until smooth.  (I used my Magic Bullet)
  5. Decorate the sides of a glass with Ghirardelli Chocolate Sauce.
  6. Pour coffee mix into glass and enjoy!

Next I plan on making Ice Cream Sundaes with my Ghirardelli Chocolate Sauce.
What recipe would you use Ghirardelli Chocolate Sauce for?

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