The Perfect Cup of Coffee and Friendship

There is nothing better than a perfect cup of coffee in the morning. I love coffee, I like the saying that says: "I am not addicted to coffee, but we are in a committed relationship." I guess my passion for coffee started in my high school and college days when I worked at a cafe in my home town. I worked the evening shift so I always got either the coffee drinkers or the ice cream lovers. We had a lady from Italy come to train us on how to make the perfect cup of espresso. Therefor, I am very particular about my coffee.

One thing that many people who are recently diagnosed Celiac is that they don't realize that coffee can become "an off limits" food; flavored coffee that is, but don't fret you can still enjoy your cup of joe. Have you ever looked at the back of the bag of flavored coffee? There is more than just coffee and flavor. Gluten performs one main role in most foods: as a binder. Gluten holds together things in foods, it keeps flour and other ingredient together in baked goods, that is why gluten free baked goods can fall apart if not done right. Gluten also holds flavorings on to foods, like that french vanilla flavor on to your coffee beans. That is why it is best to buy just plain beans and use flavored coffee creamer; yay for Coffee Mates creamers which are gluten free and Silk creamers too.

Making Coffee
 As a person who use to work in a cafe you might assume I have a fancy machine to make my coffee and I do, but I only use it when my husband, who doesn't drink coffee, wants a chia latte or when I want an ice latte coffee in the summer. For my everyday coffee I like to use a French Press, it is what is used in Europe. I just add the coffee grounds (don't use fine ground) to the beaker and fill with boiling water. About 1 Tbs of coffee for 6 oz of water.

After the coffee and hot water sit of 4 minutes it is time to plunge the coffee. This makes those grounds go to the bottom of the beaker so they don't end up in your cup. Grounds that are too fine, may find their way into your cup that is why you don't want fine grounds for a French Press.

Now one of the big misconceptions about coffee is that it is bitter. Good coffee, including espresso is not bitter. The key is pressure. Espresso is pressed before being made into coffee, you might have seen them do this at Starbucks. If the coffee is bitter after it's been made, it was not pressed right, which is why I don't frequent most coffee shops, plus it's cheaper to make it yourself. If you are using a coffee maker you can still get great pressed like coffee. The key in a drip coffee maker is to make sure the grounds are in an even layer, don't press them or tap them down, just shake the basket the filter sits in to even out the grounds, if they are in a pile you will not get the best flavor from your coffee. Now how can you tell if your coffee is pressed right? By the cream. See that layer of foam on top of the coffee? That is how you can tell that it is good coffee. Now I still add a little stevia and cream, but that is how I like it.

Friends
The next best thing to a perfect cup of coffee is enjoying with good friends. When first going off gluten it's easy to see who your true friends are. Most won't understand; some will try, and some will won't even try. Hopefully, you all have found good friends that support your new way of eating and hopefully you have good family members who will support you too. But there is always a few friends or maybe it's that one family member that just don't get it or think you are doing it because of some fad. It can be hard to explain to someone who has never heard of Celiac to comprehend how food can mess up our bodies. Isn't food suppose to be what gives us energy, the means to life? But for a Celiac food can be the enemy, it represents pain and sickness and it can be scary going to a restaurant or even a friends house for dinner and then worrying if you can even eat anything there. No one wants to be a rude guest and after awhile you may not even want to talk about your food allergies. I've known people for years and ate with them and they never knew.

Going gluten free isn't just a diet, it is a life change. We don't eat this way because we want to (I really miss hamburgers on the bun), but we have to eat this way because our bodies won't function the way they should with gluten. There is no cure and even if science one day finds one I bet it won't work very well. Diet is the cure, it is a way of living. It can be very hard for people who don't understand Celiac that this is now a big part of our life. That is when Celiac disease can become lonely.

In these lonely hours that sometimes last for days or even a month, I turn to Jesus. If there is anyone who can truly understand what it is like to be an out cast and to be alone it's Jesus. He wasn't even accepted by his own family (John 7:2-5) and his friends the apostles didn't truly understand him before the crucifixion (see any of the Gospels). Psalm 46 is great to read when I need to remember that God is my helper, my strength and my friend as long as I continue to put my trust in him. I also like what John Phillips said about Psalm 23:

 "I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leadeth me beside the still waters." His own resources, His own restfulness is shared with His own people. They need have no worries. He understands to look after everything. That is something the world cannot give and something it cannot take away.

 I like to think that someday in heaven when we sit down at the feast that there will be pizza and hamburgers with the buns and it will all have gluten in it because we will have our heavenly bodies and there will be no side affects.

I am blessed that I have family who understands and make it their point on holidays to prepare a complete allergy free meal, which is not easy with my list but we make it work. I am also blessed that I have friends who go out of their way to learn what they can about my way of eating so when I come over for ladies night or their Christmas party I can enjoy myself too. Not every friend and family member understands and that is ok. I don't expect everyone to understand, but those who try to make the journey a little sweeter. When that doesn't happen trust in God, he is the ultimate provider and friend.