Decaf Coffee Caffeine & Recipes

When a customer comes into one of our cafes and ask for suggestions on a new coffee. The question I am asked is, “What do you recommend?” My answer and I can say it is hard for me to admit this publicly, is, try our Decaf Original Blend Coffee.

While I love Weaver’s Legacy Blend Coffee, I started drinking decaffeinated coffee to lower my anxiety. I have been a Barista for seven years, and a Store Manager for three of those years, and I still drink caffeinated coffee.

Before working at Weaver’s Coffee & Tea, I shrugged off decaf coffee like everyone else, and frankly never considered drinking it at all until Renee mentioned I try the Decaf Original Blend. I was shocked at how deep and flavorful, yet smooth and sweet it tasted. Today, my go-to drink is an iced decaf americano. Decaf coffee is a popular choice for people who love the taste of coffee but want to avoid the caffeine. It is also a good option for people who are sensitive to caffeine or who have certain health conditions.

Swiss Water Process: The Best Way to Decaf Coffee

The Swiss Water Process is the best way to decaffeinate coffee beans because it uses water and green coffee extract to remove the caffeine without stripping the coffee of its flavor or aroma. This is in contrast to other decaffeination methods, such as solvent-based and carbon dioxide-based methods, which can leave the coffee tasting flat or metallic.

The Swiss Water Process is also a natural decaffeination method, meaning that it does not use any chemicals. This makes it a good choice for people who are sensitive to chemicals or who are looking for a healthier option.

Here is a step-by-step overview of the Swiss Water Process:

1. Green coffee beans are soaked in hot water to dissolve the caffeine.
2. The water is then passed through a charcoal filter, which traps the caffeine molecules.
3. The caffeine-free water is then used to soak a fresh batch of green coffee beans.
4. This process is repeated until the desired level of decaffeination is achieved.

The Swiss Water Process is a more expensive decaffeination method than other methods, but it is also the most effective way to produce decaffeinated coffee that still has a rich flavor and aroma.

If you are looking for a decaffeinated coffee that is delicious, healthy, and naturally decaffeinated, then look for coffee that has been decaffeinated using the Swiss Water Process. 

Image Courtesy of Swiss Water Coffee

Coffee Roaster working at the Sample Roaster

Check out the video below for a visual of the Swiss Water Process for Decaf Coffee:

So, is decaf coffee bad for you?  Is decaf coffee healthy?  We talked to experts including William D. Ristenpart, Ph.D., a professor of chemical engineering at the University of California, Davis, and director of the UC Davis Coffee Center, to understand the facts about how decaf coffee is made and its health benefits.

Which Decaf Coffee Should you Choose?

Experts say you shouldn’t be concerned about the chemicals used in the decaffeination process. But if you are looking to minimize your exposure, you might want to know which decaffeination method was used on a particular bag of coffee beans. This may be more challenging to find out than you think because there are no specific labeling rules that require disclosing exactly how coffee was decaffeinated.

Is Decaf Coffee as Healthy and Caffeinated Coffee?

Because decaffeination itself is generally considered safe, the bigger question is whether decaf coffee has the same health benefits as regular coffee.This is a tough question to answer, says Angela M. Zivkovic, Ph.D., an assistant professor in the department of nutrition at the University of California, Davis, and we don’t yet have a firm answer. A 2014 meta-analysis published in the journal Diabetes Care and led by researchers from Harvard found that those who drank six cups of coffee per day had a 33 percent lower risk of developing type 2 diabetes than those who drank no coffee. The reduced risk was seen for both decaf coffee and regular coffee. Another study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine in 2008 found that coffee-drinking, in general, was not associated with a higher risk of dying from any cause, and even further, those who drank decaf coffee were slightly less likely than those who drank regular coffee to die from any cause. Zivkovic says, however, that we should interpret such results with caution because “it is very possible and likely that people who choose decaf coffee are also making other healthy lifestyle choices.”  

What is the Best Decaf Coffee?

We still don’t know whether it’s the caffeine, or one of the thousands of other biologically active compounds and antioxidants (which decaf coffee seem to have, too, albeit at slightly lower levels), that may be responsible for coffee’s many health perks. What’s really clear, however, is that for people who experience insomnia, irritability, headaches, nausea, anxiety, jitters, and increased blood pressure after drinking too much caffeine, switching to decaf coffee may be a healthy option, says Edward Giovannucci, M.D., Ph.D., a researcher, and professor of nutrition and epidemiology at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.  

Decaf Coffee + Food Recipes

All-Purpose Coffee Rub

Recipe by Joyce / Pups with Chopsticks

2 tablespoons garlic powder

2 tablespoons Weaver’s Decaf French Roastground coffee

2 tablespoons paprika

2 tablespoon onion powder

1 tablespoon ground cumin

1 tablespoon salt

1 tablespoon brown sugar

2 tablespoon cayenne

Instructions:

1. Combine all the ingredients together and store in a cool, dark place.

This rub is used best for grilled steak and pork, but try it on slow-roasted potatoes for your vegetarian friends!

 Almond Butter Decaf Espresso Bars

Recipe by Annie Holmes

1 cup flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup coconut sugar

2 teaspoons Weaver’s Decaf Original Blendcoffee grounds

1/4 cup cocoa powder

1 cup almond butter 

1/2 cup coconut oil

1 egg

1 cup dark chocolate chips

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. In a mixing bowl combine all of the ingredients except the chocolate chips until a thick brownie-like batter forms.
3. Fold in half the chocolate chips.
4. Place lightly greased parchment paper in an 8x8 baking pan and spread the batter evenly in the pan. Sprinkle with the remaining chocolate chips.
5. Bake 20-22 minutes.
6. When you remove them from the oven allow them to cool in the pan for at least 10 minutes so they set. Remove bars by lifting parchment paper, allow them to cool completely before cutting.