Have you ever heard of dried cherry husks coffee flour? We stumbled across this item in the bulk section of our new local Sprouts grocery store. I had never heard of this product in fact neither has the produce clerk, produce manager and Sprouts store manager. I asked the produce clerk and he told me it was a baking additive. I wanted more information so I was passed on to the manager. The manager really did not know much about coffee flour and handed me off to the store manager. The store manager in all his corporate wisdom told the clerk in my earshot to “Google” it. We did ‘Google” it when I got home.
The coffee plant is considered a fruit. When the berries ripen on the vine they turn a bright red. The ripened fruit are called cherries. The outer skin is removed to reveal the coffee bean which is dried and then roasted. Usually the byproduct of the outer skin (cherry husk) is composted and turned back into the field. Recently in search of alternative flours, as for gluten free cooking has brought this unique flour to the table. This is from the coffee plant and does have some caffeine properties. It is supposed to have the same amount of caffeine as chocolate.
The flour is very fine and resembles a type of cocoa powder. It has a strong floral aroma. While doing research (Google) it recommends using it sparingly with all-purpose flour. Today we are going to make a simple bread. I followed a basic recipe that used four cups of all-purpose flour. I swapped out one cup of all-purpose for the coffee flour. Even though I used only 1 cup of coffee flour it seemed to dominate the mix. I used fresh active yeast but the bread did not seem to rise as normal. This was one dense brick of dough. I cooked it on a baking stone.
We never did get a good rise to this loaf. It was very dense. It still had a very floral aroma. The taste was sort of like a bitter cocoa. It was not the most pleasant flavor. The texture and flavor was a fail. Dried Cherry Husks Coffee Flour may have some nutritional values. It may be a supplemental flavor and additive for a gluten free diet. It does not have the properties of traditional white baking flour. It is not something we will be using. It was fun to give it a try. You learn something new everyday.
3 comments:
As I understand it, only 10% of coffee flour should replace AP flour. Based on your recipe you should only have used 1/4 cup coffee flour. You might want to try again to see if you have have better results.
Try it in a batch of homemade Chili ~ I think that is where this "flour" belongs: It has the bitter flavor reminiscent of cocoa, which is a key ingredient in Mexican chili recipes. I am about to try this, mixing about 3 Tbsp. of the 'coffee flour' in warm oil which I will then add to the pot of 1 gallon chili [made with beans, ground beef, onions and garlic,tomatoes, green and red sweet peppers, and other spices.] Let's enjoy!
[LATER] It worked! Delicious in a chili recipe, adding a nice heft of flavor to the mix. I will try it in other savory and sweet recipes as well.
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