If You Drink Coffee Make Sure it is Organic

Mesoamerican farmers here are starting to give up on organic coffee. The premium price that it used to fetch is disappearing.

From Mexico to Costa Rica, at least 10 percent of growers have returned to chemical fertilizers and pesticides in the past three years, at a significant cost to the environment.

Although organic still pays a premium of as much as 25 percent over conventional coffee, it’s not enough to cover the added cost of production and make up for the smaller yields.

Under specialty “green” labels at places like Wal-Mart and McDonald’s, organic beans and brews have become cheaper and more widely available recently.

Americans drink 400 million cups of coffee every day, which adds up to over $4-billion worth of imported coffee each year.

Now I am not a fan of coffee -- personally I never acquired a taste for it, and it is far from a health food.

But it is a sad state of affairs that Latin American farmers are abandoning their organic coffee crops faster than rats leaving a sinking ship.

These farmers were promised they would benefit financially from ditching their toxic pesticides in favor of organic crops, but in order to profit they need to be certified. And farmers cannot become certified organic until their soil is free of pesticides and chemical fertilizers for three years.

This means the farmers have to absorb the extra costs of organic farming for three years before they’ll start to see the returns, and many just could not do it.

Meanwhile, while there is some demand for organic coffee, the market is still very small. Starbucks, for example, reported that only 3 percent of its coffee purchases in 2009 were organic.

Now, as more organic coffee growers abandon their crops, it’s not only limiting the quantities available but also driving up prices. This, in turn, is keeping the organic coffee market from really merging into the mainstream …

And this is a very bad trend not only for the environment, but also for your health.

Most Coffee is Heavily Sprayed With Pesticides

Most people are not aware that regular coffee consumption can be a significant source of pesticides. According to the CS Monitor, conventional farmers apply up to 250 pounds of chemical fertilizers per acre!

Pesticides contribute to a wide range of health problems, including prostate and other types of cancers, Parkinson’s disease, and miscarriages in pregnant women.

So when you sip on your non-organic morning brew, you are also sipping on pesticide residues. Further, the U.S. has limited input and control over the type and quantity of pesticides used in the countries from which we import.

Since the vast majority of coffee, both organic and non-organic, consumed in the U.S. is grown outside this country, a return to non-organic farming of coffee beans in Latin America means a return to heavy use of pesticides.
Now is a Good Time to Kick Your Habit

If you’re going to drink coffee, going organic is the “healthiest” way to do it. Of course, coffee is really not healthy at all.

Caffeine is a drug.

It’s a legal and widely available drug, but a drug nonetheless, and very powerful. My position is that coffee is not nearly as bad for your health as soda or high fructose corn syrup, but nevertheless it is something you or your family would best be served by avoiding -- or strictly limiting your consumption.

Caffeine actually alters the way your brain works, and can cause temporary changes in your behavior and mood. If you are especially sensitive to the drug, as is the case with many protein nutritional types, the effects are even more pronounced.

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Green Mountain Coffee perks along

Sales at Green Mountain Coffee Roasters Inc. keep percolating, although earnings weren't quite as strong.

The Vermont-based company with a distribution plant in East Knoxville said Wednesday its first-quarter 2010 net sales for first quarter 2010 were up 77 percent to $349.4 million from $197 million recorded in the same period a year ago.

Earnings for the quarter totaled $12.5 million, or 27 cents per fully diluted share, compared to $14.4 million, or 37 cents per fully diluted share, in the first quarter 2009. The 2009 period included the favorable impact of a pre-tax $17 million, or 27-cent per fully diluted share, patent litigation settlement. Excluding the patent settlement, first quarter fully diluted earnings per share of 27 cents is a 163 percent increase over the same year-ago period.

In the quarter ended Dec. 26, Green Mountain posted transaction expenses from the Timothy's Coffees of the World and Diedrich Coffee Inc. acquisitions of approximately $5 million. The Timothy's purchase was completed Nov. 13 and the Diedrich Coffee purchase is pending.

During the quarter, Green Mountain said 650 million K-Cup portion packs were shipped by all Keurig licensed roasters, up 82 percent over the year-ago quarter. Supporting continued growth in K-Cup demand, there were 1,466,000 Keurig brewers shipped during the first quarter of fiscal 2010 compared to 711,000 shipped during the first quarter of fiscal 2009.

"Our company continues to deliver superb financial results that demonstrate the resiliency and transformative nature of our unique business model," said Lawrence J. Blanford, Green Mountain president and CEO. "Due to our strong first quarter financial results, we are raising our expectations for fiscal 2010 EPS from prior estimates of $1.85 to $1.95 per fully diluted share to a range of $1.95 to $2.05 per fully diluted share excluding any one-time acquisition-related transaction expenses for the pending Diedrich acquisition above the amount incurred in the first quarter of fiscal 2010."

Blanford said the company's success relies on execution of initiatives for sustainable growth, including the acquisitions and the start-up of new higher speed packaging lines in Knoxville and Vermont.

Green Mountain's operations are managed through the Specialty Coffee business unit that produces coffee, tea and hot cocoa from its Tully's Coffee, Green Mountain Coffee, Newman's Own Organics coffee and Timothy's World Coffee brands. The Keurig business unit involves manufacturing of single-cup brewing systems for the K-Cup portion pack and Keurig Single-Cup Brewers lines of business.

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Five cuppas could prevent tumours, and a wireless device for tracking pacemakers

Drinking at least five cups of coffee or tea every day could help prevent brain tumours, suggests a new study from Imperial College, London.

In the study, published in the journal Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers And Prevention, researchers looked at more than 300 men and women diagnosed with glioma, a type of cancer that normally starts in the brain.

When they compared their caffeine drinking habits to patients without brain tumours, they found that those who drank five or more teas or coffees a day were 40 per cent less likely to have cancer.

Men benefited more from the 'protective' effects of the caffeine, though it's not clear why. One theory is that caffeine reduces blood supply to the brain, starving tumours of the high levels of oxygen and nutrients they need to flourish. Decaffeinated tea or coffee did not have the same benefits.

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Best Kenya coffee now gets global identity

Kenya will brand its top quality arabica coffee to give it a distinct global identity and distinguish it from beans of other origins, the Coffee Board of Kenya said on Friday. More than 95 per cent of Kenya coffee is currently exported as raw green beans without any identity, but from now on it will bear a green logo with a silhouette of Mount Kenya and the words Coffee Kenya. Although it is a tiny grower with average annual output of 50,000 tonnes, Kenyan coffee is popular with roasters who blend it with other beans. It is increasingly prized by high-end niche markets.

“People front coffee that is not Kenyan coffee and call it Kenyan coffee,” said Loise Njeru, chief executive at the regulatory board. “For now, we want to give Kenyan coffee a face, because you walk anywhere in the world and find coffee called AA, it could be AA from anywhere.”

Neighbouring Ethiopia has obtained trademark rights for at least three of its coffee brands and signed agreements with scores of global companies to promote them. Most of the best beans are grown on volcanic soils on foothills around the snow-peaked Mount Kenya at an altitude of between 1,400 and 2,100 metres above sea level.

Production in the east African country has fallen over the years from an all-time peak of 130,000 tonnes in 1988/89 season due to mismanagement, indebtedness and bad returns. The government sought to reform the sector by liberalising marketing and milling and took over 3.2 billion shillings ($42.19 million) owed by farmers in 2001.

Buyers are often willing to pay a premium for Kenyan coffee. In mid-December, the price for the benchmark AA grade soared to $601 per 50-kg bag. One of the reforms instituted in the sector, which accounts for 3.5 percent of Kenya’s gross domestic product, allowed farmers to sell their produce directly to buyers overseas without offering it at a central auction.

Njeru said the brand would help the increasing number of people globally that are demanding pure Kenyan coffee to pick it out from other coffees and blends. “With the opening up of direct sales and the growing niche markets in the US and other high end markets, we are seeing relationship buying coming in place where buyers and consumers recognise that pure Kenyan coffee is far much better or superior than what they have been getting,” Njeru said.

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British Rebound Gave Starbucks a Lift

Two years ago Starbucks (SBUX) had lost its way, but after the return of the group's founder, Howard Schultz, to the chief executive's chair, and a round of heavy cost-cutting measures and store closures, the ubiquitous coffee chain is back on its feet.

A blend of an overly ambitious expansion plan, too much attention paid to merchandise and the "brutal" economic crisis had put the company in trouble. But eight quarters of disappointing results later, Starbucks Wednesday reported its first rise in global like-for-like sales for two years.

In the UK, Starbucks said a strong Christmas on the high street helped like-for-like sales jump by 3.9 per cent in the three months to the end of December. In the final six weeks of the period, sales were up by 6 per cent.

Mr Schultz hailed an improving economic situation and a "leaner and stronger" Starbucks. Speaking to journalists, and without touching any of his own coffee—preferring instead to stick to mineral water—he said: "We have now come through what was a cataclysmic and brutal economic crisis to deliver a record quarter. From our point of view, continued innovation, the successful enhancement of the consumer experience and a transformed, more-efficient cost structure have brought Starbucks to a significant milestone—a return to profitable growth."

The recovery of the UK economy was stronger than he had imagined, Mr Schultz admitted. Last February he drew the ire of the Business Secretary Lord Mandelson after telling US television that he was worried about consumer confidence in Britain. "The concern for us is western Europe and specifically the UK. The UK is in a spiral," he said, prompting Lord Mandelson to ask: "Why should I have that guy running down the country? Who the f**k is he?"

The fact that he seemingly overestimated the problems in the UK economy does not worry Mr Schultz—he now reckons that 2010 will be stronger than last year, saying that consumers are more optimistic than they have been for some time. In Britain, that is true despite VAT returning to 17.5 per cent, the spectre of rising taxes and the likely end of the Bank of England's £200bn stimulus package.

But it is not just better economic fortunes in Britain and elsewhere that has helped the company.

Starbucks has closed branches in areas Mr Schultz describes as not being in a "demographic sweet spot," by which he means poorer locations. In the UK, the company has also started sourcing all its espresso coffee, which it uses in its lattes and cappuccinos, from Fairtrade. It is also launching new store formats, which it says is in response to customer feedback.

Starbucks' UK managing director Darcy Willson-Rymer adds that 30 new shops will open this year, including more in other stores. This is despite the group being forced to close a number of outlets when the book chain Borders UK collapsed at the end of last year.

The clothing chain New Look has agreed to take on five of Borders' old shops and Starbucks cafés will continue to refresh its customers, Mr Willson-Rymer confirmed yesterday.

Mr Shultz argues that that there is still plenty left to do. Easyjet (EJETF) recently began selling Starbucks' coffee to its passengers, a move that he describes as an opportunity to tap new channels of distribution. Similarly the introduction of range of instant coffee sachets and a cheaper coffee designed to lure customers back are also on their way to a café near you this year.

All froth: Starbucks backtracks on quality claim

Starbucks was yesterday forced to withdraw a claim that it has been barred from describing a new product as "instant coffee" on the insistence of the Food Standards Agency (FSA), because, the company said, it was of superior quality to alternatives in the market.

In fact, it was revealed that no discussion took place at all between the company and the FSA regarding the launch of Starbucks' Via coffee sachets, which are expected to go on sale in the UK later this year after impressive sales in the US. During a press conference, at which the chairman and chief executive, Howard Schultz, was present, Starbucks had openly claimed that it had been expressly told not to describe its new product as instant coffee because the quality of the coffee was better than other products, including brands such as Kenco and Nescafé. The claim was repeated by the company later in the day.

The FSA said that the company was free to call the product instant coffee if it wished to. "We have not spoken to Starbucks at all about this product," it said.

A press officer for Starbucks later admitted that the claim was false. "There is actually no issue with the FSA regarding Via, or its quality," he said. "Lawyers for Starbucks had advised that because Via contains both real and instant coffee, describing the product as instant coffee could be considered to be misleading."

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Bean Coffee Caf shuts its doors

For the second time in a month, a Learwood Square business has shut its doors for good. On Jan. 17 Bean Coffee Café on Lear Road closed its doors for good. “I’m so sad,” Yvette Hansel, who opened the large coffee shop on Dec. 11, 2008 said. “We closed as of Sunday.”

Hansel said she opened the store soon after the market took a huge drop. “I lost a lot of money I was going to invest,” she said. “But I wanted to forge ahead. You make a lot of sacrifices. For me, marketing was it. But if you don’t spend the money, you don’t make money.”

The coffee shop replaced Arabica, which had closed its doors approximately six months before. Hansel did some moderate redecorating, adding a conference room. Still, lack of funding for marketing hurt. “It never took off the way it should have,” she said. “I could not bankrupt my family. Many came through, but unfortunately not enough.

Hansel said she came close on several occasions to partnering with another company and put the business up on the market a few months ago hoping to stay on board. Neither plan came to fruition. “My landlord was awesome and worked with us throughout the year,” she said. The building is ideal for another business, especially a coffee house.

“It’s a good location; the layout is perfect,” she said. “I’m confident another company will come in.” TrueValue Hardware also closed for good at the end of December. That business had been located in the plaza for more than 20 years.

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Wake up and Smell the Coffee

The tea partiers are enjoying their day in the sun, but coffee is the beverage preferred by most Americans, and we don't have time to gang up and holler and wave our arms -- we prefer to sit quietly with coffee in hand and read a reliable newspaper and try to figure out what's going on in the world.

Great heaps of dead bodies are moved by front-loaders and dumped, uncounted, unidentified, into open pits in a stricken country while people feast and walk treadmills on enormous cruise ships sailing a hundred miles off the coast en route to the Bahamas and Jamaica. That's the real world, not the paranoid hallucinations of the right.

The problem for Democrats right now is that nobody can explain health-care reform in plain English, 50 words or less. It's all too murky. The price of constructing this intricate web of compromises for the benefit of Republican senators (who then decided to quit the game and sit on their thumbs) is a bill with strange hair and ill-fitting clothes that you hesitate to bring home to Mother. Like all murky stuff, it is liable to strike people as dangerous or unreliable. And demagogues thrive in dim light.

The basic question is simple: Should health care be a basic right or is it a privilege for those who can afford it? Rush says it's a privilege -- pay or die -- and for his colonoscopy, they use a golden probe with a diamond tip, but most Americans agree that health care is basic, like education or decent roads or clean water. Holy Scripture would seem to point us in that direction. And yet the churches, so far as I can see, have chosen to stay aloof from this issue. Churches that feed the hungry and house the homeless dare not offend the conservatives in their midst by suggesting that we also tend the sick. And the opposition has beaten on garbage cans and whooped and yelled and alarmed the populace, which they're quite good at. These people look at a clear blue sky and see a conspiracy.

Arousing alarm is easy, teaching is tough. It takes patience and discipline to teach; any bozo can drop a book on the floor and make people jump. This is true even in Massachusetts. And in Nevada, where Senator Harry Reid is facing a tough challenge in the fall.

Reid is the gentlest and most patient soul in the U.S. Senate and his presence there in a colony of bull walruses is a tribute to Nevada. He's a soft-spoken man from hardscrabble roots in the mining town of Searchlight who possesses Western honesty and openness and a degree of modesty startling for a senator, and if he goes down to defeat to some big bass drum, the Republic will be the poorer for it.

Sometimes you despair of common sense when you see an empty helmet like former Mayor Giuliani strutting up to the podium, or hear the Rev. Robertson opine on the earthquake in Haiti, or the lunatic congressman from Michigan who intimated that the president is somehow responsible for the Fort Hood massacre -- you just roll your eyes and hope these guys have friends who will take away the car keys.

Paranoia sells better in January than in November, however. And Sarah Palin was not elected vice president, and she is not in the West Wing advising President McCain on foreign policy. It didn't happen. She is investing her windfall profits from the book about how the Eastern media beat up on her, but we the people decided she was not vice presidential material. We don't choose our family doctor based on his ability to yodel, and we don't elect a woman vice president because she's perky.

And your high school civics teacher would not have given you a high mark for saying, as the Rev. Robertson did, that the earthquake in Haiti was God's judgment on voodoo. God has tolerated voodoo in Washington for years and not seen fit to shake the city yet. Priests and mojo men dance around the Capitol every day, waving skulls on sticks, scattering their magic powders, trying to stop progress with a hex, and God is content to observe them. So do we coffee drinkers. Government is in the hands of realists and in the end we shall prevail.

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Italian coffee at home

Italian coffee specialist Lavazza has launched the ultimate gadget for coffee-lovers looking to create the perfect Barista experience in the home. The electronic Modo Mio coffee maker, which means My Way in Italian, creates a range of coffee styles at the push of a button.

The fully-electronic system monitors everything from the heat of the coffee to the volume of the cup to prevent over-spilling. The Modo Mio has a steam arm for frothing milk in lattes and cappuccinos, and is available in a racy Ferrari-red colourscheme. Prices start from £119, and a premium version with added features costs £169. Lavazza coffee capsules are available in packs of 10 for £3.69

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Angolan coffee variety may join regional gourmet coffee project

The Angolan coffee variety known as Amboim may be included in the African gourmet coffee production project set to begin this year, the secretary-general of the Inter-African Coffee Organisation (IACO) has stated in Luanda.

During a Thursday conference on “The Coffee Cultivation Situation in Africa – future challenges and its contribution to development”, Josefa Leonel Correia Sacko said the IACO would work with Angola’s National Coffee Institute to determine how and where to implement the gourmet coffee project, a Ugandan initiative.

“At an IACO meeting in London in September 2009, Uganda presented a project on gourmet coffee and the members present decided to choose Angola and Tanzania to be included in the programme and to endow it with a regional aspect,” Sacko added.

Regarding other projects for Angola, she said the IACO wants to include the Angolan coffee sector in its projects to set up excellence centres for germ plasm preservation, with a view to ensuring the supply of genetic material.

Angola’s deputy minister of agriculture, Zacarias Sambeny, recalled that his country had once been the world’s fourth-ranking coffee producer, with annual revenues in the past of more than US$300 million.

The Agriculture Ministry is thus shaping policies and projects that it expects will lead to a recovery, re-launch and commercialisation of coffee, an activity which plays a vital role in creating jobs and generating wealth.

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Mexico Coffee Trade Inspects Harvest For Possible Frost Damage

Mexican coffee traders and exporters are investigating the potential damage to the current 2009-10 harvest after farms in several central regions have been hit by a week of severe cold weather, traders and exporters said Tuesday.

Mexico is currently hit by a severe cold front that has seen temperatures dipping to just a few degrees above zero in the last week, causing speculation in the New York arabica futures market as to the exposure of frost damage.

"We have talked to a number of exporters in Mexico and they have told us that effectively there has been frost in several regions of Puebla and Veracruz, but we don't know yet if there has been any damage," said one trader.

"There was definitively frost in the regions of northern Puebla and neighboring Veracruz, but it's still too early to tell whether there actually has been any damage to the crop," another trader with an exporter told Dow Jones Newswires.

The Mexican coffee growing areas which traditionally have been exposed to frost damage include the very northern most part of the central state of Puebla around Xicotepec de Juarez, and the same region in neighboring Veracruz state.

Veracruz is Mexico's second largest producing state while Puebla is the country's third largest coffee growing state, but the regions exposed to frost damage have traditionally only accounted for up to 150,000 60-kilograms of production.

Both exporters and traders said they expect to get a more clear view of the potential damage in the next few days, but the cold front is expected to continue with temperatures forecast to dip lower again from Thursday.

Frost damage to coffee can occur after extended periods for at least 10 hours of continuing cold weather with temperatures below 3 degrees Celsius, which can cause the coffee cherries to "burn" before wilting and falling of the tree.

Even if coffee trees are hit with frost, it doesn't necessarily result in the crop being damaged unless the time in which the branches and cherries are exposed to frost is prolonged. Mexican producers recently started harvesting of the 2009-10 cr and ripe cherries are therefore more vulnerable to the effects of adverse weather.

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Linking Coffee and Pancreatic Cancer

Q: In your column on the health pros and cons of coffee on Dec. 29, I'm surprised you didn't discuss the effect of coffee on pancreatic cancer. Isn't that a major concern?—A.K. A: A New England Journal of Medicine study in 1981 did find that patients hospitalized with pancreatic cancer were more likely to be coffee drinkers than other patients. Earlier studies noted low rates of pancreatic cancer in Mormons and Seventh-day Adventists, who generally don't drink coffee. But several major studies since then find no such association.

In 2001, the American Cancer Society concluded there was no relationship between pancreatic cancer and consumption of tea, decaffeinated coffee or caffeine from soda or food. Q: You left out one important bad factor with coffee. After my kidney stone attack my urologist took me off caffeinated coffee.— B.S.

A: Some urologists do tell kidney-stone patients to avoid coffee, but others don't. This is another area where the effects of coffee and caffeine may cancel each other out. Caffeine increases calcium in the urine, which can be a factor in forming kidney stones. But several epidemiological studies have found that drinking coffee is associated with a lower risk, for reasons not well understood. Discuss the pros and cons with your doctor—and try to avoid cola beverages, which do seem to raise the risk of kidney stones.

Q: Does anyone make a substitute pill for a cup of coffee ... for people who can't stand the taste of coffee?—D.S. A: Over-the-counter caffeine pills have been available for years. But evidence suggests it's probably some of coffee's other components that provide the health benefits.

There are hundreds of trace components, including vitamins, minerals and antioxidants, and nobody knows which create which effects, so it's hard to know which to replicate. You can get antioxidants from other sources—especially bright-colored berries, vegetables and legumes.

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IRISH COFFEE

Ingredients:

* 2 1/2 oz strong, hot coffee
* 1 1/2 oz Irish whiskey
* 1 tsp brown sugar
* 1 oz whipping cream

Preparation:

1. Pour the coffee, Irish whiskey and brown sugar into an Irish coffee glass or mug.
2. Stir well.
3. Float the cream on top.

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Drinking Coffee at Its Very Best

Kenneth Davids, a professional coffee reviewer and author, says that coffee's flavor is best when it's "pleasingly warm but not too hot." For the best temperature/flavor combo, Mr. Davids recommends rinsing an insulated thermos or mug with hot water, then filling it with freshly brewed coffee. If you drink it black, you have an edge: adding milk will cool coffee. "If you do all that, it will hold its heat without diminishing its flavor."

Now available are beverage-warming devices powered though a computer's USB port. One such device works like a hot plate for the mug to sit on, with models costing $10-$25. Mr. Davids says hot plates in general tend "to drive off aromatics and bake the coffee." There also are insulated mugs with USB cords that keep drinks hot after being plugged into a computer for a while. Prices range from $15 to $25, and some come with a cigarette-lighter adapters for the car. Timing also matters. "In general, coffee is best to drink it right after you brew it. It starts to go pretty fast," he says.

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Diabetes Risk May Be Reduced by Coffee and Tea

If you enjoy a cup of joe as part of your morning routine, we have good news. Researchers at the University of Sydney in Australia have found that both coffee and tea may be strong weapons against diabetes.

Coffee has been both blamed for heart attacks and credited for protecting parts of the body against cancer. Whether it’s beneficial to your health depends on who you ask.

But now, new research shows that each daily cup of coffee or tea may also reduce a person’s risk of Type 2 diabetes by up to 7 percent – whether or not it has caffeine.

The new report is based on data from more than 30 other studies that involved almost a million participants. The researchers say the benefits of coffee and tea appeared evident in spite of other lifestyle factors. This may mean that there’s something biologically powerful within coffee and tea – such as antioxidants – that can be protective.

But why only 7 percent? The reason may be that since these chemicals don’t last in the body very long, it takes several cups a day for them to make a serious difference.

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Coffee Bar Saves 40,000 Cups From Landfill

It may have seemed like a lofty goal: Save 40,000 paper cups from the landfill. But it only took a Denver coffee bar 102 hours to do it. "We did it at noon today," said Nick Berry, who works at the Fluid Coffee Bar on the corner of 19th Avenue and Pennsylvania Street. "It was awesome." The coffee bar had been open nonstop since 6 a.m. on Dec. 30. Instead of using paper cups, all drinks were served in in-house mugs or travel mugs. At noon Sunday, employees served the 40,000th drink without a paper cup.

"The idea was to get people more focused on sustainability," Berry said Sunday. Berry said the shop's owner, Jeff Aitken, wanted to promote sustainability by using less materials and then donating the money saved to nonprofits.

An estimated 41 million coffee cups are thrown away each day, Aitken said, citing the Rocky Mountain Sustainable Living Association. Aitken will donate 5 cents from each paper cup saved to non-profit organizations. That's $2,000 that will go to charity.

“This is a big deal, not just because it has a positive impact on the environment, community and business but because it is a giant step in demonstrating how collaboration and creativity between small business and the local community can lead to positive change," Aitken said.

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Coffee-Flavored Roast Beef

Prep time: 35 min – Cook: 6 hours

• 6 medium Red potatoes cut into wedges

• 6 medium Carrots - cut into 1 inch lengths

• 2 Beef sirloin tip roasts (2 to 3 lbs each)

• 1 teaspoon Salt, divided

• ½ teaspoon Pepper, divided

• 2 teaspoons Canola oil

• 1 medium Onion, halved and sliced

• 2 cups Whole fresh mushrooms, quartered

• 2 Garlic cloves, minced

• 1 ½ cups Brewed coffee

• 1 teaspoon Chili powder

• 3 tablespoons Cornstarch

• ¼ cup Cold water

• Place the potatoes and carrots in a 6-qt. slow cooker. Sprinkle the beef with half of the salt and pepper. In a large skillet, brown the beef in oil on all sides. Transfer to slow cooker. In the same skillet, saute the onion in the drippings for 2 minutes. Add the mushrooms and garlic; cook 2 minutes longer. Stir in the coffee, chili powder and remaining salt and pepper. Pour over meat. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours or until meat is tender.

• Remove the meat and vegetables to a serving platter; keep warm. Skim fat from the cooking juices; transfer liquid to a small saucepan. Bring to a boil. Combine cornstarch and water until smooth; gradually stir into the pan. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 min or until thickened. Serve with meat and vegetables.

Yields 8 servings (2 cups gravy)

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