Coffee is as native to a college campus as the pi??a colada is to Hawaii. Should this obsessive coffee consumption suffer because winter finally ends? No'that would be like saying vacationers stop experiencing the tropics during an unexpected rainstorm!
College students define their experience as Dr. Rolf Ulrich, author of the book \Coffee and Caffeine,"" says ""slackening and fatigue appear prematurely and in many cases an attempt is made to compensate for this with coffee, and thus with caffeine.""
Finals are approaching and with this event looming, students once again prepare themselves with ways to combat the natural need for ZZZs.
Ulrich warns that coffee ""should not be drunk unthinkingly, but only with judgment."" This is because coffee is known to have an effect on the body.
The effect is caused not by the coffee itself, but an ingredient that appears in small quantity, caffeine, posing as more than just the solution for an all-nighter.
To a tired body, caffeine does have some positive effects: for example, it helps to raise falling blood pressure. Unfortunately, this effect also rushes bodily functions such as digestion, severely inhibiting the quality of the process.
Research also shows that the quality of sleep decreases with caffeine consumption. This is even true after the effects appear to have worn off, sometimes causing insomnia. Negative side effects merely brush over studious minds during the week of finals. The heat is what turns non-drinkers to Mountain Dew. As temperatures outside increase, a fan is wedged in the window and the thirst for hot coffee diminishes.
Students have three options. One: boycott. Two: Starbucks. Three: Clean the blender of that margarita mess, thus preparing it for some do-it-yourself chilled mocha alternatives.
Pick the third option? Perfect. Not only can you save some cash to donate to spring break 2003, but also generate extra time for studying.
First allow yourself to indulge in this do it yourself version of a Starbucks classic:
3 or 4 cups of ice
2 shots of cappuccino (shot glass)
3 shots of Hershey's chocolate syrup
1/2 cup of 2% reduced fat milk
Blend together until ice is liquefied.
Or for a milkshake craving:
18-22 ice cubes, crushed
7 ounces double strength coffee, chilled
2 tbsp granulated sugar
2 tbsp vanilla, raspberry, hazelnut or your favorite flavored syrup
Whipped cream for garnish
Place ice, coffee, sugar and your favorite flavored syrup in a blender. Blend until smooth. Pour into a large glass. Garnish with whipped cream.
5 oz. cold coffee
1 tbsp sugar
1 tsp vanilla sugar
5 oz. vanilla ice cream
First, sweeten the coffee with sugar. Second, mix the coffee, ice cream and vanilla sugar in the blender. Finally, once milkshake consistency is reached, pour and serve.
Or a finals time version of the root beer float:
2/3 cup cream
2 cups strong sweetened coffee
4 scoops coffee ice cream
1 bottle Coke
Stir cream into coffee, fill 4 glasses full, add a scoop of ice cream to each and top with Coke.
Or to celebrate, spice things up with sophisticated evening on the porch and a Vanilla-Coffee Frostee:
2 tbsp. chilled, brewed coffee
1/4 cup skim milk
1 cup coffee ice cream
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 tsp. very finely ground coffee beans
Puree all ingredients except the ground coffee beans in a blender until smooth. Pour into a tall, chilled glass and garnish with a dusting of the finely ground coffee beans.
More recipes like these can be found on-line at http://www.smellthecoffee.com or at http://www.sallys-place.com. Web sites such as these hold year round coffee creations; cold beverages are only a small part of the variety of recipes available.
Unfortunately, not everyone owns a blender. In this predicament there is another chilled alternative: ice cream. Along with many companies, Babcock produces its own variety of coffee ice cream, ""Coffee and Truffles."" It is simply a coffee-flavored ice cream loaded with chocolate truffle chunks.
Coffee is in abundance; there are many warm varieties to indulge in, so why not give the cool ones a chance during the summer months. Hopefully, a ice cold coffee drink will get you through finals season.
