Advertisement - Click to support our sponsors.

Relax, enjoy
coffee break

A coffeehouse was once described as "the ideal place for people who want to be alone but need company for it."

Coffeehouses probably had their start in the Middle East prior to the 13th century. By the end of the 17th century, their popularity had spread throughout Europe.

Just as they did more than 700 years ago, coffeehouses still offer a delightful diversity of experiences. Besides drinking coffee, you can read, write, chat with friends, listen to music, or people watch.

Sometimes you may even hear poetry recited or play a game of backgammon.

Taking a coffee break is a great way to unwind and get revved up at the same time. Coffee breaks have been shown to improve overall work productivity. Frequenting a coffee shop can also give you the opportunity to get a snack without feeling obligated to buy a meal.

Caffeine can increase blood pressure, but taking a break to decrease stress can lower it. Despite what you may have heard about coffee and its effects on health, studies show that moderate coffee consumption is not harmful. In fact, freshly-ground coffee offers antioxidants that may protect against certain diseases.

A cup of black coffee is fat- and calorie-free. A shot of steamed lowfat milk adds calcium and a few calories. A 12- or 16-ounce coffee drink made with whole milk or half-and-half, sweetened with syrup, flavored with chocolate and topped with whipped cream, is laden with fat and calories. If you have one of these, use it to replace your dessert calories and fat for the day.

Here are definitions of some of the more popular coffeehouse drinks.

Espresso: Dark, strong coffee made by forcing steam or hot water through finely ground Italian roast coffee.
Cafe latte: At Starbucks, the most popular morning coffee drink. It consists of espresso combined with a liberal amount of foamy steamed milk.
Cafe mocha: Espresso with chocolate syrup and a liberal amount of steamed milk.
Cappuccino: Named for the Catholic order of Capuchin friars, whose hooded robes resemble the drink's cap of foam. Espresso topped with a creamy foam of steamed milk, sometimes dusted with cocoa powder or cinnamon.

The next time you reach for a pastry to eat with your coffee, consider a lowfat bagel or muffin, such as this blueberry muffin served at Starbucks.

Lowfat Blueberry Muffins

Starbucks Coffee Company

3 cups unbleached flour
1 cup sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup skim milk
2/3 cup applesauce or pureed pear or 1/3 cup melted margarine
2 egg whites
1 1/2 cup blueberries
Vegetable oil spray

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Blend dry ingredients and set aside. Combine milk, apple or pear, egg whites; blend well. Add to the dry ingredients and mix with a fork until just blended. Gently fold in blueberries.

Spoon batter into muffin tins lightly sprayed with vegetable oil. Bake until golden brown. Makes 12 muffins.

Approximate nutritional information per muffin with fruit puree: 200 calories, 2 g total fat, 0.5 g saturated fat, less than 5 mg cholesterol, 230 mg sodium.

Approximate nutritional information per muffin made with margarine 230 calories, 6 g total fat, 1 g saturated fat, less than 5 mg cholesterol, 290 mg sodium.

Health Events

---

Barbara Burke is a Hawaii-Pacific University instructor who has been teaching
and writing about food and nutrition since 1975.

Joannie Dobbs, Ph.D., C.N.S., is a food and nutrition consultant
and owner of Exploring New Concepts, a nutritional consulting firm.
She is also responsible for the nutritional analyses
indicated by an asterisk in this section.

---