CONFESSIONS OF A COFFEE SNOB

(and why you should buy organic coffee)

Yep…Ms. Healthnut over here is a coffee snob.  I can’t help it, I just love it way too much to ever give it up.  My love affair with coffee started when I was 16 years old in a teeny tiny coffee house in Flagstaff, Arizona called Macy’s (I won’t say how old I am now…let’s just say this was a LOOOONG time ago).  My very first coffee there was a Cafe Mocha and I was forever changed.  The owner, Tim Macy, knows his stuff when it comes to all things coffee.   Macy’s also has amazing baked goods and food.  Actually, I’m sure Tim does not remember this, but I used to work the drive-through at the Arizona Bank in downtown Flagstaff.  Tim was one of my customers.  He knew how much I loved his coffee…but also how much I loved his cream cheese brownies.  Sometimes when he would come to make his deposit, he would bring me one of those brownies…wrapped up nicely…and sent right through the drive-through tube!  To this day, I have NEVER found coffee that is as amazing as the coffee at Macy’s, and Lord knows I have tried.  I live on the other side of the country now, but on the rare occasions that I get to visit, guaranteed you will find me at Macy’s. Check out this interesting video of Tim explaining how Macy's got it's start. 

Back to coffee.  I drink it, every.single.day.   Most of the time I drink it more than once a day.  My afternoon coffee break is one of my most prized rituals…second only to my morning coffee ritual.  I know it probably isn’t the healthiest thing, but to be honest…I.DON’T.FREAKING.CARE. 

There are, however, things I do to make my coffee healthier.  First, I make sure my coffee is Fair Trade and organic.  Did you know that coffee is one of the most highly pesticide sprayed crops out there?  If you drink coffee daily and you are not drinking organic, you are exposing yourself to high levels of pesticides (yes, this includes all you pod drinkers too if you aren't buying organic).  Second, if you don’t like your coffee black (which I don’t), make sure you are using a high quality creamer and sugar.  I use organic heavy cream, or half and half from a local dairy (from grassfed cows).  To sweeten my coffee I use organic coconut palm sugar.  Every once in a while I use regular (gasp) cane sugar  (if you use regular sugar, please make sure it is cane sugar, otherwise there is a good chance you are getting beet sugar, which is a GMO crop).  Other good options for sweetening your coffee are pure honey or pure maple syrup. 

Do not drink decaf coffee (and really…what is the point of that anyway).  It is highly chemically processed and you just don’t need or want that.

Enjoy your coffee…just think about ways you can make it healthier!!!