Prairie Fare: Good to the Last … Crumb

By Julie Garden-Robinson, Food and Nutrition Specialist
NDSU Extension Service

When I was very young I couldn't wait to be old enough to sip steaming mugs of coffee with the adults. I liked the aroma emanating from a newly opened can of coffee, and I quickly learned how to make coffee in my parents' favorite proportion. I also discovered that coffee was an "acquired" taste.

Coffee used to be a little old fashioned, and "regular" and "decaf" were the only choices available. In the 1990s coffee bars and drive-up coffee huts sprang up around the U.S., and "cappuccino," "latte" and "espresso" became part of everyday language. Even though coffee is "cool," it remains a rather adult beverage and just 7 percent of 10- to 19-year-olds reported drinking coffee in a 1996 survey.

Now specialty coffees have become big business, topping $3 billion a year. According to a survey by the National Coffee Association, about 54 percent of adults drink coffee every day and 25 percent drink coffee occasionally. About 62 percent of coffee is consumed at breakfast, 22 percent is consumed between meals and 16 percent at other meals. About 62 percent add a sweetener or whitener/cream. On average, coffee-drinking men gulp down 1.9 cups per day and women, 1.4 cups. While women find drinking coffee "relaxing," men say that coffee helps them "get things done."

With the exception of decaffeinated coffee, all coffee contains some caffeine. The amount of caffeine your cup of coffee contains varies depending on the variety of the bean, where it was grown, the proportion of water to ground coffee, the "grind" of the coffee and, of course, the size of your cup. An 8-ounce cup of brewed coffee contains 80 to 120 milligrams of caffeine. A one-ounce "shot" (about 2 tablespoons) of espresso contains about 40 milligrams of caffeine. 

While some people may claim to be "addicted" to coffee or caffeine, caffeine does not meet the elements that generally indicate true addiction: severe withdrawal symptoms, need for higher doses regularly and loss of control. Cutting caffeine may produce withdrawal symptoms such as headache or drowsiness in some people. If you've decided to cut caffeine out of your diet for whatever reason, it's a good idea to taper consumption slowly.

Researchers examining the effects of coffee on heart health have had conflicting opinions. After reviewing dozens of scientific studies, one researcher concluded that drinking coffee is not a major risk for heart disease. A study done in Scandinavia did find some negative effects of coffee on blood lipid values, but the coffee was boiled and unfiltered. Another study of more than 45,000 men found no link between drinking four or more cups of coffee a day and heart disease. Moderation in all things consumed is still a good idea. Pregnant women, however, should discuss their caffeine intake with their healthcare providers. 

What you choose to eat with your coffee may have a greater effect on your health than the coffee itself. When I was young, sugar lumps, donuts or cookies were the popular items to dunk, and the last drops of coffee had quite a hearty texture. Now the "hot" item for dunking is biscotti, slightly sweet twice-baked cookies that originated in Italy. These hard crunchy cookies are perfect to dip, plus they're a break from holiday sweets. This recipe is from the American Institute for Cancer Research.

Cranberry Biscotti

Ingredients:
1 egg
2 egg whites
2/3 cup sugar
2 tablespoons honey
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 tablespoon water
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour or whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cardamom (or substitute cinnamon)
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1 cup dried cranberries

Procedure:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix liquid ingredients (eggs through water) together in small bowl. In separate larger bowl, combine dry ingredients (flour through cranberries). Add liquid to dry and combine to form a soft dough. Knead 10 strokes. Divide dough in half. Using more flour if necessary to prevent sticking, shape each half into a 2-inch wide log. Place logs on parchment-lined cookie sheet and bake 30 minutes. Remove from oven and reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees. Allow logs to cook 15 minutes and remove to cutting board. With a serrated knife, cut each log into 18 slices about 1/4-inch thick. Place cut side down on 2 parchment-lined baking sheets. Bake about 25 minutes, turning them after about 10 minutes. Remove to a wire rack. Store in a tightly closed container. Makes about 36 biscotti. Each cookie contains about 60 calories and less than one gram of fat. 

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Source: Julie Garden-Robinson, (701) 231-7187, jgardenr@ndsuext.nodak.edu  
Editor: Tom Jirik, (701) 231-9629, tjirik@ndsuext.nodak.edu