hedgehog adventures

Saturday, September 03, 2005

Green Coffee

Jon went on a little adventure a few weeks back and came home with a bag of green coffee. Green, as in "yet unroasted" coffee beans. We kept the green beans in a tightly lidded container that sat on our counter for days until we had the opportunity to roast them.

As it turns out, roasting coffee beans is a relatively easy procedure. My only contribution to the operation was to donate my cookie sheet, otherwise Jon did all the rest. He spread the beans evenly on the cookie sheet then set it in a preheated 450 degree oven. We watched it for a few minutes until it turned the more recognizable rich brown colour. No need to worry about forgetting the beans in the oven -- the rich delicious smell will permeate the house and remind you that you are roasting something wonderful. After about 15 or 16 minutes (we wanted a relatively light roast), Jon removed the tray and transferred the beans into a cool tray (to keep it from burning). The heat had transformed the green beans into brown. Each bean had a loose paper-y light brown skin that you will need to remove before you throw the beans in the grinder. The result is a waaay superior cup of coffee -- rich, creamy aromatic blend with a caramel-y aftertaste. (I'm sipping one now as I write this.)

I got more of an education about coffee from Jon. Did you know that coffee is the second crop that is treated with the most pesticides? (The first is cotton, which thankfully, we do not ingest!) This is certainly as good an argument as any to buy certified organic coffee. Organic means that some measure of restraint is used when applying harmful pesticides to the crop. And another thing to consider: buying fair trade coffee means the workers employed in the harvesting of the beans are given a fair wage for their labour.