For Mar Gulis (CSIC)
“Ah, the coffee! It tastes so sweet!
is more captivating than a thousand kisses,
softer than muscatel.
Coffee, coffee… it’s all I need.
If anyone wants to make me happy,
Offer me a coffee.”
This stanza corresponds to the coffee cantata, a musical composition by Johann Sebastian Bach in the form of a small comic opera. But the famous composer is not the only historical figure fond of coffee. It is said that Ludwig van Beethoven counted exactly 60 grains to prepare his cup. Honoré de Balzac drank about 50 cups a day and demonstrated his passion in a humorous essay called The pleasures and pains of coffee. Even Napoleon Bonaparte said that he would rather suffer than stop drinking coffee. Roosevelt, Margaret Atwood or David Lynch are other celebrities who love this drink: one of the most popular and controversial in the human diet and the favorite of an increasing number of people around the world.
As they explain Maria Dolores del Castillo y Amaia Iriondoresearchers at the Food Sciences Research Institute (UAM-CSIC) and authors of the book What do we know of? The coffee (CSIC-Catarata), this drink is obtained from the seeds of the fruit or cherry of the coffee tree (an evergreen shrub from which it takes its name) by means of a careful harvesting process at its optimal point of ripening, followed by toasted and the extraction. The aroma, flavor and final composition of the precious product depend on all of this, which is prepared in various ways and at different levels of roasting throughout the globe.
On that cherry journey, even our cup of coffee falls by the wayside. more than 90% of the fruit. So it is with the shellcomposed of skin and pulp, the mucilagea gelatinous layer that covers the seed, the parchmenta very thin skin that surrounds the grain, and the huskwhich is produced during the roasting of the grain. During the production process, around 784,000 tons of residual biomass are generated worldwide. year, which pose an environmental problem if they are dumped into rivers or left to decompose on the ground in an uncontrolled manner. What to do then with so much organic matter? The authors point out that the goal is to turn all this waste into by-products and exploit them before they become waste.
grounds for the garden
Of all the by-products generated in the coffee chain, the grounds are the ones that we find most on a daily basis, with the simple fact of preparing a coffee at home. But, What happens to the tons of grounds that are generated when preparing the coffee that more than 22 million people eat for breakfast in Spain every morning? It is likely that they will end up in the trash, in the pile or that a part will be placed, for example, in a cup inside the refrigerator to catch odors unwanted, since coffee behaves like a sponge that traps these compounds.
The use of the grounds in the composting. There are various forms for use on plants or in the garden. As the researchers explain, the first thing to do is to make sure they are dry: they are spread out on a tray covered with newspaper and left to dry in the sun to prevent them from rotting or fungus growing, which would spoil the compost. Composting the grounds is then as easy as throwing them into the compost itself. Filters, by the way, can also be composted, especially if they are free of bleaching products.
The benefit of using the dregs as a fertilizer is that they add organic material, which improves drainage, water retention, and aeration of the soil. They also help beneficial microorganisms for plant growth to thrive and attract earthworms. On the other hand, it seems that many people who reuse the grounds in their garden indicate that it repels slugs and snails.
Dregs in your cookies: a recipe to make at home
Although the researchers influence the number of different possible uses for coffee by-products (from energy, fuel, cosmetics or agriculture, to name a few), it should be remembered that in their composition they contain a high fiber content and are a source of protein, in addition having potassium as the main mineral component, followed by magnesium and phosphorus. A) Yes, using coffee grounds as a food ingredient for human consumption would be one of the most efficient ways to reuse them.
One of the easiest ways to use coffee grounds as a food ingredient is cooking cookies with them. According to studies carried out by the authors’ research group on food bioscience, cookies made with coffee grounds among their ingredients have a high nutritional quality, good taste and potential to reduce the risk of chronic diseases such as obesity and diabetes. diabetes. As if that were not enough, they help to fall asleep.
To open your mouth and rehearse, here is a cookie recipe included in the book:
BISCUITS WITH COFFEE LEAVES
INGREDIENTS
- 60 g of wheat flour (or substitute)
- 20g of water
- 8g sunflower oil
- 0.6g yeast
- 0.4g of salt
- 0.35 g soy lecithin
- 2 g stevia
- 3.5 g of fructooligosaccharides (FOS also known as “beneo” or “inulin”)
- 4.5 g coffee grounds
The grounds can be used fresh obtained from a drink freshly prepared by any method (drip, French press, Italian coffee maker, etc.). If they are not used in the following hours after the preparation of the drink, they can be dried in the oven at 185 °C until all the water has been removed and stored in a dry and cool place until use. Alternatively, the wet grounds can be kept refrigerated (-20°C) until there is enough to make a number of healthy low-sugar, high-fibre cookies.
PREPARATION
Preheat the oven to 185 °C and line a tray with baking paper. Mix all the ingredients in a bowl until you get a dough. Extend it with a rolling pin, cut the cookies with a mold or a glass and place them on the previously prepared tray. Bake for approximately 15 minutes (185 °C) and let cool before eating.
If you dare to try this recipe, tell us! And don’t forget that, despite the beneficial properties that moderate coffee consumption may have (at a suitable temperature and within a diverse and balanced diet), it is very important do not add sugar. Only in this way can we obtain the best health benefits, as well as enjoy all the sensory properties that coffee products offer us.