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Coffee and Blood Pressure
An Old-Fashioned Coffee Klatch
Back in the dim and dusty past, women didn't hold jobs outside the home. I know that is hard to believe, but it is true. One income was sufficient for a household to live on. Children were cared for by their mothers at home, while the father worked and earned the living to support the household. My, how times have changed!
Now, understand that running a household was a full time job in those days. The modern conveniences that we all take for granted didn't exist. Washing machines weren't automatic, clothes were dried on clothes lines, and the only canned goods that were available were those that the mother had canned and stored herself. Life wasn't easy, and social occasions were few and far between. That is why women participated in old-fashioned coffee klatches.
Coffee klatches were most often regularly scheduled events. A group of women would gather at the home of one and enjoy coffee, sweets, and conversation for a short period of time once every week or so simply for social contact.
Today, we have our modern versions of the old-fashioned coffee klatch. Today, however, men as well as women participate in them and, of course, they aren't called "coffee klatches" now. Still, coffee drinking is a social affair. It is one that is practiced all over the world in one form or another. People gather for social or business reasons, and you can be almost certain that coffee will be the beverage that is offered. There may be other beverages, but coffee is almost always included.
Perhaps the connection between social contact and coffee drinking stems from the old-fashioned coffee klatch. Our grandmothers and our grandmothers were on to something important…coffee drinking is social.
See Also:
MakeGoodCoffee.com | How to make the perfect cup of coffee at home
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All About Coffee
Decaf Coffee
Caffeine is a natural substance that is found in coffee. Caffeine is also found in tea, soft drinks, and chocolate. Caffeine is what helps to wake us up in the morning as we sip that first cup of coffee. It is what gives us that little added boost in the afternoon when our energy is flagging.
There is research that "proves" that caffeine is bad for us and good for us. It has been determined that caffeine is a stimulant, and some researchers see that as a good thing; while others see it as a bad thing. It is true that caffeine is somewhat addictive and there are those who are deeply opposed to anything and everything that might possibly be addictive in any way.
My point is that the caffeine might be called the "active ingredient" in coffee. So, of course, it can be removed. When the caffeine is removed from coffee, though, most of the taste goes with it. Coffee that has had its caffeine removed is called "decaffeinated," or "decaf."
There are at present two basic ways in which caffeine is removed from coffee. The two processes for decaffeination are known as (1) European Process; and (2) Swiss Water Process.
The European Process uses methylene chloride to wash the coffee beans. The chemicals absorb the caffeine. The beans are then washed to remove the chemical, roasted, and ground. The European Process actually leaves more flavor in the coffee beans, but there are those (surprise) who object to the use of chemicals.
The Swiss Water Process for removing caffeine from coffee beans is a multi-step process that only uses water and steam. The Swiss Water Process, however, removes more than just the caffeine from coffee beans. Many of the oils are also lost in the process, and the coffee made from beans that have been decaffeinated using the Swiss Water Process is pretty much tasteless. |
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Home Coffee Roasters
There are people out there who really prefer to roast their own coffee beans at home rather than buying coffee that is already ground and ready to put into a coffee maker. These people swear that home-roasted coffee beans make a far superior cup of coffee than any pre-roasted and pre-ground coffee bean ever dreamed of.
Coffee beans can certainly be roasted using a regular stove or even a popcorn popper, but if you are serious about roasting your own coffee beans at home, you should probably invest in a coffee-roasting machine. You will have far better control of the temperature and other conditions.
The prices of coffee bean roasters seems to range from a low of about $70 to a high of about $595. The smallest and least expensive coffee roaster will only roast enough green coffee beans to make one 10-cup pot of coffee at a time. The most expensive coffee-roasting machine that I located would roast about nine ounces of green coffee beans at a time.
There are varying aspects of coffee-roasting machines that you will want to consider before you purchase one. For example, you will want to know just how long it will take to roast coffee beans, how many coffee beans can be roasted at a time, and how much control you will have over how long the beans are roasted. Some coffee roasting machines (the more expensive ones) will give you greater control over the coffee bean roasting process than the less expensive ones.
However, before you invest any big bucks in a coffee roasting machine, it would probably be an excellent idea to start out with the least expensive variety and work your way up.
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