For many of us, coffee is the reason we get out of bed in the morning – whether we enjoy a brew at home or head to our favourite café for a cup.
The sound of the coffee machine percolating in the kitchen and the aroma of coffee beans helps us forgive the alarm clock for waking us up – the day doesn’t officially begin until we have had our first cup.
What is it about coffee that makes us come alive and face the day? Here are five fun facts about your cup of Joe we bet you didn’t know and a killer layered coffee cake recipe to try at home:
•Coffee decreases muscle pain – adding a cup of coffee to your post-workout routine can decrease muscle pain by up to 48%.
•Goats originally discovered coffee in Ethiopia about 800 AD. A shepherd first sampled the fruit that would lead to coffee when he noticed his goats looked as if they were dancing after eating from the bush. Shortly after, monks got hold of the berries and noticed they kept them alert throughout the night.
•Decaf is not ‘caffeine-free’. In one regular cup of coffee, there is about 95mg-200mg of caffeine – in a cup of decaf there is about 2mg-12mg of caffeine, making it significantly less but not actually caffeine-free.
•Adding cream to your coffee will prevent it from cooling faster – cream cools about 20% slower than black coffee.
•Coffee wasn’t introduced to America until the mid-1600s, however it didn’t grow in popularity until after the Boston Tea Party in 1773.
Ready for a cup? Head to one of these cafés near you.
