5 Ways to “Dress-Up” Your Black Coffee

“Sometimes you gotta drink some coffee, put on some rock n’ roll, and handle your business.”

Anonymous

Ooh, black coffee. That is a hard one for many. Don’t get me wrong, I love me some lightly flavored/sweetened coffee as a treat, but I have learned to appreciate my daily black coffee, the most.

I know what you are saying: “there is NO WAY that I could EVER drink my coffee black!”, but oh, mon cher, that is just simply not true.

Maybe the better question or comment from you would be: “but WHY would I want to?!” At least, that is what I used to say when people talked about converting over to black coffee from their sugared .. sugar. I mean, let’s face it – for most of you, it’s not coffee. It is simply coffee-smelling sugar. At least it was for me. My husband used to laugh at me and say, “do you want some coffee with that creamer?!” And he was right!! I made my coffee sooooo pale, that you wouldn’t have even known that it was coffee in there.

And don’t get my started on my Dunkin’ order! I would go through the drive-thru and ask for my iced, non-fat caramel latte – because the non-fat part of that order really mattered. That was a lot of money spent, and a lot of sugar consumed.

There was once a passage that I read, that said something along the lines of – ‘don’t drink your calories’. That was something that always stuck with me – if you are going to go big [in a calorie sense] then at least do it with food. Doing it with drinks just feels even more wrong.

Coffee has definitely been proven to positively affect your health. We know it to: help your mental function and clarity, protect against diseases, and aid in defense against depression. However, we have taken that a little far when we are consuming our caffeine with copious amounts of sugar. Especially since we also know that sugar can: drastically assist in weight gain, increase the risk for disease, and negatively impact your blood sugar levels.

So, whether you are an intermittent faster like myself, or whether you are tired of spending all the money on your sugared drinks at the drive-thrus, OR, whether you are just looking to cut your sugar in-take – follow me through the land of wonderfulness that black coffee really CAN be.

5 Ways You Can Dress Up Your Black Coffee

1. Add some ice and blend – This is by far my most favorite way to drink my black coffee. For some reason, when you brew the coffee (hot or cold works), pour it in some ice, and then blend it in the blender, it not only takes away a massive amount of the bitterness that people complain about when drinking black coffee, but it also froths it a little. Talk about making it feel so much more fancy!
2. Try an Americano – So, all an Americano is, is espresso and water. If you prefer the espresso taste over the taste of traditional coffee, then maybe an Americano is for you. An Americano still fits the bill on no additives (including sugar) and is fine to drink during a fast, but it gives you a little more inspiration than perhaps hot black coffee, sitting in a cup.
3. Do it, cold brew style – I was, for a while, doing the cold brew thing – I even got a cold brew “maker” (they are pretty cheap). Basically cold brew asks you to steep the grounds in water overnight, and by doing that, it gives you a stronger, bolder flavor. This could also lend itself well in combination with number one above, because the stronger the coffee, the better it may blend with the ice. The other benefit to this method is you have your coffee all ready to go in the morning, and it should last you a few days when you put the carafe right in the fridge.
4. Spice it up with a little bit of sparkling water or club soda – I have tried this and it is NOT for me, but I know some people who swear by it. And in fairness, I tried it with my hot black coffee (now that I am running this through my brain – WHAT was I thinking?!?) – but perhaps a dash of some bubbles would be an improvement in an iced black coffee. It may even make your coffee taste like a coffee-flavored spritzer! (What fun!)
5. Throw some Himalayan pink salt in there – In case you didn’t know this, if you brew coffee [of any kind] with a dash of salt in the grounds, it will lessen the bitterness. For real! So it isn’t a stretch to think the addition of Himalayan pink salt would do the same. For us fasters out there, Himalayan pink salt is also used to curb hunger, so this recipe could be a “two for one”.

Final tips – make sure you that are spending your money on good coffee. This seems like a no-brainer, but if you are going to go to certain ends to finally enjoy black coffee (and I promise you, you will get there) then don’t waste your time on cheap coffee. I don’t think, no matter how it was prepared, that I would appreciate a store brand coffee, black. And I LIKE black coffee.

Also, know that it will take more than just once or twice for your taste buds to decide that this is the way to go. It is the same thing when you cut sugar from your diet – it takes a bit before your body switches over and tells you that it is just too sweet; that simply does not happen overnight. The same thing goes for black coffee. And there is nothing saying that you can’t sloooowly start eradicating the sugar or creamer from your coffee – it doesn’t have to be cold turkey, unless you simply operate better that way.

Good luck, and black coffee on, my friends!