A lot of us love our steaming cup of coffee to start our mornings with. Coffee is said to rejuvenate senses, energise and comfort the soul. If you ask me there is no better feeling than curling up with a book, a cup of coffee and a warm blanket at the end of a long, tiring day. But it is caffeine after all, and health experts warn against too much of it. Seems like there’s a solution for it too- caffeine-free coffee! Yes, you read that right. A coffee without caffeine exists and it tastes just like coffee. Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal recently shared a video where a group of kids presented a business idea to Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia and his team, regarding a ‘substitute of coffee which is 100% organic and caffeine-free.’ The students presented the idea under government’s ‘Business Blasters’ programme which aims at developing young entrepreneurs by providing students seed money to start a business.
The Chief Minister took to Instagram to share a short clip wherein the students present an organic coffee powder to the panel which includes the Deputy CM of Delhi as well. The panel was surprised at how it smells exactly like coffee, which is when they try it out and were surprised at how it tastes also exactly like coffee. When the impressed panel ask about the secret, one of the students revealed how his grandfather used to save the seeds of dates (khajur) and make this powder from them. Aren’t you also surprised now? Take a look at the video:
If you are inquisitive about how this caffeine-free coffee can be made, we’ve got you covered. While you do get date seed powder in the market, you can make your own at home too with a little more time in hand. Besides that, you would just need milk and a sweetener. You can also use date syrup. You can also season your date coffee with cinnamon and cardamom.
If you are making fresh date powder, here’s how you can do it:
1. Gather all of your date seeds, soak then for about an hour and then clean them well.
2. Make sure they are dry before going further. Roast the dried seeds and allow them to cool. This step helps in developing flavour.
3. Once cooled, transfer the dates to a grinder and grind into a fine powder. Make sure all the pieces are ground well.
Now to make the date seed coffee, follow these steps:
1. Heat some water until it begins to boil.
2. Combine the date seed powder and other ingredients for your coffee, and mix well. Transfer this mixture to a coffee filter over a glass.
3. Pour the water over the powder. Stir a little and enjoy.