Coffee Lovers Blog

According to a recent story by NPR’s Morning Edition, a new cafe in Michigan is helping a town boost its mood and stay strong throughout the economic downturn by offering a simple and effective remedy: a comfortable place and a nice cup of coffee.

The Front Porch Cafe is a non-profit cafe with a mission to help the people of Ellsworth, Michigan. After the town lost its diner, bait shop and grocery story, a local church decided that the people of Ellsworth needed a better place to gather and to build community of a warm cup of java. So they opened The Front Porch, a cafe that serves up affordable breakfasts, pie, and fresh brewed coffee. On any given day, you’ll find a fair amount of the town’s 500 citizens taking part in the community and brews at the cafe as the town looks to make it through the downturn. Thanks to The Front Porch, Ellsworth finally has a spot where residents can get a slice of pie, a cup of coffee and a sense of community.

How has coffee and community impacted your area in the downturn? What inspiring stories have you shared over a cup of joe?

This oh-so-yummy and deliciously coffee flavored toffee bars recipe comes from Good Cookies Plain and Fancy, by Annette Laslett Ross and Jean Adams Disney, published by Doubleday in 1963. Though a classic recipe, it’s sure to become a new family favorite in your home – especially if you have a bit of coffee left over from this morning.

Ingredients:

1 cup flour

¼ cup butter

1 egg

1 cup brown sugar

1 tsp baking powder

¼ tsp salt

¼ cup strong, cold coffee

1 cup chocolate chips

1 tsp vanilla

Directions:

1. Grease a 9-inch square baking pan and preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Melt butter in a heavy pot. Stir in brown sugar until dissolved. Cool and then add one egg.

3. In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and salt.

4. Add this to the butter mix alternately with vanilla and coffee. Blend well.

5. Stir in chocolate chips and then place batter in baking pan.

6. Bake for about 30 minutes. Serve with your favorite cup of coffee or a glass of milk.

Daniel Young’s new book, Coffee Love – 50 Ways to Drink Your Java, is for coffee buffs who love to debate the merits of their favorite beans while analyzing brewing and serving methods.

According to a book review in the El Paso Times, Young does not take sides; he recognizes that coffee preferences are personal. His goal is education – in a delicious fashion – and he’s served up 50 simple recipes for coffee drinks from baristas around the world. Plus, there’s great passages on the love of coffee, cafes, and coffee bars.

Here’s a passage from the inside cover:
Throughout the book, Young’s engaging profiles and evocative photographs bring the coffee experience to life. You’ll visit fabled coffee shrines such as Café Sperl in Vienna, you’ll meet Bologna’s most accomplished barista, and you’ll learn the secrets of the world’s most distinctive coffee drinks. If you love coffee and want to explore many great ways to enjoy it, this book is your indispensable guide.

Well brewed, Young. Well brewed.

Numerous studies have reached a consensus: coffee is good for us! It’s true; brewing some fresh java every now and then can have a positive impact on your well being, and as the authors of the Coffee Lover’s Blog, we at Zaccardis.com couldn’t be happier to hear the news.

Why is coffee so beneficial to our health? According to Sandy Procter, a specialist in human nutrition at Kansas State University, it could be due to the beverage’s anti-inflammatory properties and wealth of antioxidants. “Coffee contains four times more antioxidants than green tea — and brewing adds 300 more antioxidants to the 1,000-plus found in green coffee beans,” she says. “Roasting those green coffee beans adds even more healthful benefits.”

In one study, researchers found that people who drank three to five cups of joe per day were two thirds less likely to develop various forms of dementia such as Alzheimer’s disease, and as noted in one of our blogs, coffee has also been found to lower the risk of stroke. Other studies have reported similar findings, including a staggering 80% reduction in cirrhosis of the liver.

Of course, this doesn’t mean that we should go overboard, and more research is needed in order to confirm these findings. However, things are certainly looking up, and that makes Zaccardis.com proud to support our fellow coffee lovers!

Perfection is an ideal that is seldom ever fulfilled, but that doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t strive for it.  After all, a failure to perfect something can still yield positive results.  While you may never be able to make a cup of coffee that’s “just right,” a quality blend is far from impossible, and if you follow these tips (courtesy of the Chicago Tribune), you’ll see that this is true.

1.Ensure that your coffee beans are fresh.  This way, you’ll get the most flavor out of them.  Since exposure to air will significantly reduce their freshness, it’s a good idea to keep them in an airtight container.  Don’t store them in a freezer, however; the resulting condensation can compromise their integrity.

2.When brewing, stick to simple, non-electric methods.  This will allow for the most even extraction.

3.Consider investing in a good burr grinder and use it before you brew.  Propeller grinders are thought to produce uneven grinds.

4.For every six to eight ounces of water, use 2 tablespoons of coffee.  Measure carefully!

5.Don’t use water that you wouldn’t drink.  Filtered and bottled water should do the trick.

The Baratza grinders, although designed for home use, were some of the rare few grinders that were able to produce a grind fine enough and consistent enough to work with an espresso machine with a non-pressureized portafilter. A fine, uniform grind along with a proper tamp is needed to provide sufficient resistance to the flow of water through the grinds to build up the proper amount of pressure to produce a technically correct espresso. By technically correct espresso, I mean there is espresso and then there is espresso! – we mean the latter. To explain further – the term espresso is often used liberally. For instance, there are plenty of products on the market called espresso makers or espresso machines, but many do not possess the ability to meet the requirements of a true espresso, extracted at a certain temperature, time and pressure. For more details click here. But having a machine capable of producing a true espresso does not indeed mean you will obtain a true espresso. If the grind and tamp are not just right, the correct resistance to water flow is not produced and the proper pressure is not achieved – nor is the proper thick layer of crema and that magical taste that sets the proverbial “god shot” apart from just a plain old espresso.

So when Baratza decided to design a true prosumer grinder, the industry took notice. And as more and more details of the new Baratza Vario grinder design emerged, the more excited the industry became. The Vario is compact size and the design shows a strong family resemblence to the other Barazta grinders, but make no mistake, the Vario is in a league of its own. While the other Baratza grinders use a quite competent conical burr, the Vario uses German Mahlkönig 54mm Professional ceramic burrs that produce accurate grinding, high throughput and remain sharp for up to twice the lifetime of the highest quality steel burrs. These professional quality burs are driven by a high torque DC motor and an ultra-quiet belt-drive transmission. The German timing belt provides important thermal isolation of motor and burrs, ensuring cooler coffee. This powerful combination enables the Vario to achieve professional grind speeds – grinding 1.5 grams/second at Espresso and 2.5 grams/second at Press settings. Macro and Micro adjustments are instantly and repeatedly achievable with the intuitive VARIO^TM adjustment system boasting 230 distinct grind settings – so you can tune in the perfect grind for your espresso machine. And of course, Baratza included signature features and attention to detail that you expect like reduced static design and the abilty to grind directly into a portafilter or into a ground coffee bin. With Grind on Demand electronic dosing, there’s no waste as you grind only what you need.

At Zaccardi’s, we are excited to hear your reaction to this great new grinder. Don’t forget to visit our site to learn more about the Vario, purchase yours and add your own Baratza Vario Coffee Grinder review.

Days of hot weather are on the way. Are you ready to chill out and keep cool while still enjoying your morning cup of coffee? Coffee drinkers can still enjoy their morning java without feeling the heat by trying a great iced coffee recipe. To soothe your tastes for coffee and give you the perk you need in your day, try out this delicious caramel iced coffee recipe. It works great with any blend of Zaccardis Roasted Coffee and can be easily made at home to save both time and money. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

3 cups of crushed ice or ice cubes
1 ½ cups of cold coffee
½ cup of milk
½ cup of granulated sugar
2 tablespoons of caramel syrup
2 teaspoons of chocolate syrup
¼ teaspoon of salt
¼ teaspoon of pure vanilla extract

Instructions:

Combine cold coffee, milk, sugar, caramel, chocolate syrup, and salt and blend on medium speed for 20 seconds. Next, add the vanilla extract and ice. Blend on high until the drink becomes smooth and creamy. Serve on its own or garnish with fresh whipped cream and a dusting of cocoa as a special touch. Serves two.

Women who love coffee have an even better reason to drink up on their favorite java blends.

New research conducted by Harvard Medical School and the Harvard School of Public Health now reveals that some women can reduce their risk of stroke by drinking more coffee. The study of 83,000 women revealed that drinkers of five to seven cups of coffee a week were 12% less likely to have a stroke than those who just drank one cup per month. Keep in mind that all of these successes were otherwise healthy and did not have conditions such as insomnia, anxiety, high blood pressure, or cardiac complications.

According to  German experts on stroke prevention in Berlin, the benefit does not appear to come from caffeine. Those who drank tea and other caffeinated drinks did not experience the same reduction in stroke risk, said Professor Martin Grond of the German Stroke Society. It seems the positive health effects of coffee-drinking come from antioxidants in the beverage which lower inflammation and improve blood vessel function.

So there you have it ladies.

Drink up on your favorite coffee blends at Zaccardis.com and do your bean a favor by preventing strokes.

According to a recent statement from the California Milk Processor Board, two champion baristas are teaming up with the dairy giant to educate people on how to up their calcium by drinking lattes without having to spend $4 a cup at their favorite cafe.

“It’s all about being creative,” says Heather Perry, named United States Barista Champion in 2007 and 2003. “Making the perfect latte is not rocket science. You just need basic ingredients like coffee, tea or
chocolate and of course, the ingredient that binds everything together, milk.”

Perry along with Master Roaster and Barista Rafael Aguiar have years of experience experimenting with various latte recipes – from traditional to chai to “Latinized” drinks like the Tres Leches iced latte. These experts say coffee lovers don’t even need an expensive espresso machine to make their favorite drink at home.
“A simple $20 coffee press is sometimes all you need” says Aguiar. “It’s all in the way you blend the milk with the other ingredients to make a rich, flavorful latte.”
So increase your calcium levels and get your coffee fix all at once. Use one of our coffee presses to produce great coffee. Add just the right amount of milk and you’ve got a drink that’s top notch.

According to a new study in the Journal of Investigative Dermatology, one’s risk of skin cancer can be reduced by moderate consumption of coffee and tea. When skin cells are damaged by ultra violet rays, they repair themselves by producing a protein called ATR. However, if they can’t produce enough of it, the cells remain damaged and allow cancer to breed. Fortunately, caffeine creates a direct route for the travel of ATR, so the chance of cells becoming cancerous is significantly lowered.

In addition to fighting cancer, coffee and tea are full of antioxidants, which are beneficial to our skin and overall health. Of course, caffeine can have negative side effects as well, but they only arise through constant consumption. Moderate amounts will actually do wonders for our bodies, so we should revise our diets accordingly.

This is excellent news for coffee lovers, and it makes Zaccardis.com even happier to support them!