When is the last time you had a cup of joe? Did you make it yourself or buy it from a restaurant or cafe? What's the best cup of coffee you've ever had? It's time to enjoy that fresh taste in the morning again. Consider the following helpful tips regarding your options with coffee.
Avoid storing your coffee in the freezer. The extreme temperatures of the freezer will destroy the oils in the coffee. Instead, drink what you have or buy smaller amounts of coffee. If you do not buy too much coffee, you will not need to worry about storing it for an extended period of time.
Use your used coffee grounds in your compost pile! Coffee grounds offer many beneficial ingredients to a compost pile including pest control. Coffee grounds contain caffeine which helps prohibit the growth of fungus that can quickly destroy your vegetable garden. The next time you brew a fresh pot of joe don't throw away those grounds; add them to your compost pile!
For those individuals who do not want to consume caffeinated drinks, but love the flavor of coffee, they can enjoy decaffeinated coffee. Some people do not have a problem with a little caffeine, and half-caffeine coffee is a good choice for them. There is no appreciable difference in the flavor between full and half-caffeine coffee.
Iced coffee doesn't taste so great when the ice cubes begin to melt, watering down the flavor. An excellent tip is to make ice cubes out of coffee or milk, and keeping them in the freezer in zippered bags. They will be handy anytime you want a cold drink on a hot day!
Never just throw coffee grounds into a coffee maker without measuring first. Match the number of cups you'd like to the right measurement of grounds. Measuring cups are typically eight ounces and a coffee cup is six ounces. The ideal ratio is two tablespoons of ground coffee to six ounces of water. Using an official measuring cup makes for a weak blend.
Be sure to regularly clean out your coffee maker or pot. If you wait too long between cleanings, your coffee is more likely to have a foul taste and you may even find coffee grinds in it. A good rule of thumb is to clean it out at least once a week.
If you're a coffee fan who also wants to enrich residents of third-world countries, think about buying fair trade coffee. Fair trade coffee may be a little pricier than the more common brands of coffee, however it is also tastier. You are going to be providing assistance to small farming co-ops in third world countries.
Before you decide on a drive-thru establishment that you want to purchase from each morning, try them all to get an idea of the one you like the most. The last thing that you will want to do is settle for a mediocre coffee, if there is a place that you would enjoy better.
The amount of time that you brew your coffee is very important. Around 4 or 5- is all it should take. If you brew for longer than five minutes, the coffee ends up tasting bitter. If you brew for less than four minutes, usually you end up with a weak and flavorless brew.
Eliminate the expense of coffee shop lattes by making your own at home. With practice you can even teach yourself to create the fancy designs produced by the baristas at your favorite local coffee shop. All you need to perfect your design is patience and practice. Pour the milk into the cup slowly and finish with melted chocolate.
A clean coffee maker is a great coffee maker. If your coffee maker is not cleaned on a weekly basis, your coffee will suffer. Use a solution of one part vinegar to two parts water to run through the coffee makers system to flush out any dirt and contaminants that could influence the taste of your coffee.
Coffee roasts determine the flavor of your coffee. Try different roasts and blends to find the best taste for you. Dark roasts typically have been roasted for a longer period of time. They usually have a stronger and more bitter taste than the lighter roasts. A blend can give you the perfect combination for the perfect cup.
If you have a lot of ants in your home, you can use coffee to repel them. Sprinkle dry, used grounds anywhere that you normally see them. You can brew a pot and pour it over any ant holes that you see in your yard and they will go away.
Drink coffee in moderation. Too much coffee, like anything else, can be bad for you. It can give you the shakes and raise your blood pressure. You don't want that. One or two cups a day is safe for most people. If you're not sure how much is safe for you to drink, see your physician.
If you have cats that like to make a mess of your garden, sprinkle it with used coffee grounds. The smell is a natural repellant for cats. This will stop your cat from thinking that the flower bed you love so much would be better if used as a litter box.
To allow for proper water penetration in your coffee grounds, be sure to indent them. Take your index finger and add a small dimple to the middle of your grounds. It should be about an inch and a half deep. That indent will allow the water to evenly penetrate the grounds that reside at the bottom of your cone.
Use filtered, cold water for brewing coffee. This helps reduce mineral build up and wear on your coffee maker. More importantly, filtered water makes a better cup of coffee. If you think about it, coffee is just flavored water, so the better the water is, the better the coffee will taste!
Take the time out of your day to enjoy that refreshing cup of coffee in the morning. It is a pick me up that you don't want to miss. So many flavors, so many choices, and you are free to explore your options. Next time you're in the store, make out like a kid at a candy shop.
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