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The Daily Coffee Grind
Buying Bulk Coffee
Remember the old movie, "Cheaper by the Dozen"? The point was that quantity cut costs. Well, there are other "points" made in the movie of course, but you get my drift here. The fact is that you can save money by buying almost everything in larger quantities.
There is a good reason why this is true. Packaging costs decrease, transportation costs decrease, and handling costs decrease, so larger quantities of almost anything can be sold for a smaller unit cost than smaller quantities of the same item. And coffee is no exception to the rule.
The secret of buying in bulk and making it cost-effective is that you must store bulk coffee in an airtight container. Air is what degrades coffee, whether the coffee is in a whole bean form or has already been ground. You know that smaller quantities of coffee are packaged in vacuum containers. The reason that they are packed like that is for the purpose of preventing the air from degrading the coffee.
Storing coffee in the refrigerator isn't a good idea either. The best way to store coffee that has been bough in bulk is by using one of the airtight food sealing products that you can buy. There are many brands of this kind of product. The best known brand is called "Seal-a-Meal," but it isn't the only one out there.
When you buy coffee in bulk, you should seal it in portion sizes that are the best for you by using one of the airtight food sealing products and then store the packages in a cool, dark place to prevent degradation of the coffee flavor and freshness. After all, if you buy coffee in bulk to save money and then the coffee loses its flavor and freshness before you can use it, you really haven't saved any money at all.
See Also:
Mr. Common Sense
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Flavored Coffee Syrup
Coffee Grinders
Grinding one's own coffee beans is quickly becoming a part of the American version of the coffee drinking experience. The choices for coffee grinders available for purchase is mind-boggling, so you really do need to know a few things about coffee grinders before you purchase one of your very own.
The earliest version of coffee grinding was done with a bowl and a pestle. The beans were roasted first, then they were placed in a bowl and crushed or ground with a pestle. Then things got mechanized, and changed quickly when coffee grinders that were hand-cranked came into being. If you have ever watched old western movies, there is always a hand-cranked coffee grinder in the local general store.
Then along came electricity, and things just got easier. The first electrified coffee grinders actually operated on the same principle as the hand-cranked version. There were basically two flat plates (one stationary and the other moving) that the coffee beans were crushed between. Things have gotten better since then although the principle remains basically unchanged -- only improved upon.
Today, you can buy coffee grinders with blades that simply chop the beans into fine particles. However, these particles are not of identical size. These blade-type coffee grinders can be bought for as little as $20, but they are not the best choice.
The best choice for a coffee grinder is a "burr" grinder. The burr coffee grinders operate on the same basic principle as the old hand-cranked coffee grinders in that there are two plates. However, these plates have burrs on them, and the coffee particles of beans that have been ground in a burr grinder are all of identical size. Burr grinders are, of course, more expensive, but they are much better coffee grinders. |
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Flavored Coffee Syrup
To give your coffee some zing and more body, or just to add a surprise flavor to a cup of coffee, you might want to try some of the many choices of flavored coffee syrups that are on the market today. Coffee no longer has to be plain coffee. It can be flavored almost any way any body could possibly want.
There are flavored coffee syrups available in all of the flavors that you might expect; chocolate, vanilla, various fruits and nuts. But then there are flavored coffee syrups available in some flavors that you might never expect, like Granny Smith Apple, lavender, gingerbread, eggnog, cheesecake, or pumpkin spice, just to name a few.
Do you have to watch your diet? No problem, you can still enjoy many of the flavored coffee syrups on the market because they come in sugar-free and even low-carb varieties.
If you are very creative or really into the flavored coffee syrup thing, you can even make your own flavored coffee syrup. The syrups that you make can be used in coffee, of course, but they can also be used to make shakes, smoothies, or over ice cream as a dessert. You can find recipes for flavored coffee syrup all over the Internet. Here is one example of a flavored coffee syrup that you can make at home:
Stir together until fully blended:
1 ½ cups of sugar
1 cup of powdered cocoa
1/8 teaspoon of salt
Gradually add 1 cup of water to the mixture stirring constantly. Don't beat the mixture. Simply stir it until it is blended completely.
Then heat this mixture until it comes to a full boil and boil it for a full three minutes. You must stir constantly to prevent lumping. Now, remove the mixture from the heat and let it cool, then add two teaspoons of vanilla flavoring and store it in the refrigerator.
Related Topics: Just Coffee Please,
Flavored Coffee Syrup, An Old-Fashioned Coffee Klatch
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