Archive for April, 2007
Well, the stories and studies keep rolling in, with one thing clear - drinking coffee, in moderation, can decrease many health risks. Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, kidney stones, gallstones, depression, suicide, type 2 diabetes, etc. One interesting thing to note is that the apparent decreased risk of type 2 diabetes is the same for those who drink decaffeinated as caffeinated. There’s a possible downside though, a potentially increased risk of leukemia and stomach cancer. You can read more about this over at Physorg (yeah, I know, not the usual sort of article for that website!).
April 30th, 2007
By Matter of Taste co-owner Dawn Tran:
1/2 tsp dried lavender flowers
1/4 vanilla bean
3/4 cup 10 per cent cream
1-1/2 cups dark chocolate sauce
Pinch each: salt, ground cinnamon
1 long strand lemon zest
3/4 cup 2 per cent milk
1 drop each: blue, red food colouring
1 shot hot brewed espresso
In small saucepan, combine lavender, vanilla and cream. Gently heat over medium 3 minutes.
Let stand 1 hour. Strain, discarding solids.
Whisk lavender-infused cream into chocolate sauce. Transfer to airtight container. (Makes about 2 cups. Reserve extra for other uses.)
To 4-ounce clear glass, add 1 tablespoon reserved chocolate sauce. Sprinkle with salt and cinnamon. Add zest.
In steaming pitcher, combine milk and food colouring. Steam. Pour into prepared glass. (You will likely have extra.)
When milk settles, add espresso. Stir well before drinking.
Makes 1.
(via The Toronto Star)
April 28th, 2007
By Matter of Taste barista Kimberly Staveley:
Matter of Taste barista Kimberly Staveley was inspired by anise-flavoured Sambuca for this espresso con panna (espresso with cream). She uses whole anise, cardamom and ginger from Spice of India (262 King St. E., Kitchener). You could substitute a pinch each of ground cardamom and ground ginger.
1 tsp anise seeds
2 cardamom seeds
Tiny piece dried whole ginger
250 mL carton whipping cream (1 cup)
2 oz vanilla syrup
1 tsp finely grated bittersweet chocolate
1 shot hot brewed espresso
3-inch cinnamon stick
In mortar and pestle, grind anise, cardamom and ginger into powder. Reserve large pinch.
In chilled bowl, whip cream using electric mixer. Stir in remaining anise mixture and syrup. (Alternately place cream, anise mixture and syrup in cream whipper. Process as per equipment instructions.) You will have extra.
To demitasse (2- to 3-ounce cup), add 1 tablespoon infused whipping cream. Add reserved pinch anise mixture. Sprinkle with chocolate. Pour espresso over. Serve with cinnamon stick. Stir well before drinking.
Makes 1.
(via The Toronto Star)
April 27th, 2007
An abstract from the International Journal of Dermatology:
Background Androgenetic alopecia (AGA) is a common problem in men of all ages, affecting approximately 50% at 50 years of age. The underlying cause is an androgen-dependent miniaturization of genetically predetermined hair follicles. Here, the hair organ culture model was used to investigate the effects of testosterone and caffeine; the latter being a promising candidate for hair growth stimulation.
Methods Hair follicles from 14 biopsies, taken from the vertex areas from male AGA patients, were cultivated for 120–192 h in vitro with normal William’s E medium (control) or William’s E medium containing different concentrations of testosterone and/or caffeine. Hair shaft elongation was measured daily and at the end of cultivation, cryosections of follicles were stained with Ki-67 to evaluate the degree and localization of keratinocyte proliferation.
Results Significant growth suppression was found in hair follicles treated with 5 µg/ml testosterone. This was counteracted by caffeine in concentrations of 0.001% and 0.005%. Moreover, caffeine alone led to a significant stimulation of hair follicle growth. These results were confirmed immunohistochemically by Ki-67 staining.
Conclusions Androgen-dependent growth inhibition of ex vivo hair follicles from patients suffering from AGA was present in the human hair organ culture model, a constellation which may serve for future studies to screen new substances against androgen-dependent hair loss. Caffeine was identified as a stimulator of human hair growth in vitro; a fact which may have important clinical impact in the management of AGA.
April 26th, 2007
Research from the International Journal of Dermatology suggests that caffeine may stimulate hair growth! Hey, yet another reason to drink coffee, right?! Dr. Ernesto Illy, chairman of Illy Coffee, will be discussing this and other coffee related health issues, such as its positive effects on degenerative diseases Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s, at the International Culinary Center on Friday, April 27th. Naturally, following his speech will be a special espresso extraction tasting. 
(via EarthTimes)
April 26th, 2007
The Roasting Plant, a new cafe in New York, has taken coffee roasting to the next stage - roasting on demand, allowing customers to even request their own custom blend of beans. Their automated roasting machines also help ensure freshness, being able to roast whatever is needed, whenever it’s needed. I do wonder how the results are, for I’ve always been a believer of human interaction with the roast - you can’t just set time and temperature, for the ambient temperature and humidity can affect the roast, as can the specific batch of green beans you’re roast. Still, it’s entirely possible that The Roasting Plant’s machines can take this into account. Having truly fresh roasted coffee really DOES make a huge difference in my experience. It’s certainly worth trying. If any of you are near their shop at 81 Orchard Street in New York, stop on in and report back here with what you think! (via CoolHunting)
April 23rd, 2007
My two passions in life are coffee and fast cars. More specifically, Italian cars, Lamborghini foremost among them. Those two passions have now been combined, in the form of a $1700 Lamborghini-branded espresso machine. Only 1000 will be built. It’s gorgeous, but sadly this is likely to be more a case of a company’s marketing department run amok, than a really good bargain for a high quality espresso machine. I picture most of these lying dormant in museum-quality garages on tile countertops surrounded by a Murcielago or two. The company certainly has gone overboard, offering leather armchairs, tableware, golf carts, bicycles, shoes, jewelry, etc. (via Autoblog)
April 14th, 2007
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