Cinnamon and coffee are a classic combination. Since the early days of coffee in the Middle East, people have been using cinnamon to boost and enhance the flavor and aroma of our favorite beverage.
So, what is cinnamon coffee? And how can you make it?
What is Cinnamon Coffee?
The name “cinnamon coffee” is given to most beverages that use cinnamon as the main spice. Pumpkin spice latte, for example, has cinnamon, but it is only a part of the pumpkin spice mix.
Instead, cinnamon coffee tends to only use one single spice: cinnamon.
Cinnamon is obtained from the inner bark of a certain species of trees. The most common of these is the cassia, a type of cinnamon tree native to China. Most of the cinnamon consumed in the US comes from this type of tree.
The taste and flavor of cinnamon are the reason why people love it so much. It has a naturally sweet, warm, and earthy taste. Its aroma is fragrant and can make you salivate instantly. There is a specific aromatic essential oil that gives it these properties, and it makes up to 1% of cinnamon. But in total, there are more than 80 different compounds that are responsible for cinnamon’s exotic taste and aroma.
Later, we’ll cover the various benefits of cinnamon and its advantages. But first, let’s get straight to the recipe on how to make cinnamon coffee.
How to Make Cinnamon Coffee?
There are three ways to make cinnamon, some of them more complicated than others. Let’s start with the easiest one and work our way up.
#1. The Sprinkle Method
This is quite self-explanatory. In this method, you merely sprinkle ground cinnamon on top of your beverage. It can be done with any type of coffee, although a latte is the most popular beverage that is enjoyed with cinnamon sprinkled on top of it.
#2. The Stirring Method
If just sprinkling cinnamon isn’t enough to satisfy your spice cravings, we’re with you. Sometimes, you need more and more deeply tied into the flavor of your coffee—that’s where this method comes in. It uses more cinnamon than just a few dashes (usually around a teaspoon), and it mixes thoroughly in the beverage.
Simply take about a teaspoon of cinnamon, pour it into your cup, and stir for ten seconds.
#3. The Brewing Method
There’s an even better method to get that sweet cinnamon flavor in your coffee. This method works by mixing ground cinnamon with ground coffee and brewing coffee with this mix of coffee and cinnamon. The amount of cinnamon you should use is directly proportional to the amount of coffee—if you’re brewing one cup, only add around one teaspoon.
This method creates a beverage that has a deeper and richer taste along with a much more fragrant aroma than if you would simply sprinkle or stir in some cinnamon into an already brewed coffee.
Plus, this way, you can avoid loose ground cinnamon spoiling the perfect texture of a latte or a cappuccino.
Benefits of Consuming Cinnamon
Beyond the obvious reason—it’s delicious—there is something to be said for cinnamon coffee as a health-boosting beverage. Coffee is already recognized as being good for your health, but did you know that cinnamon is considered a superfood?
Here are some of the advantages of consuming cinnamon:
It’s full of antioxidants
Cinnamon has a lot of antioxidants, just like coffee. But out of all foods, cinnamon is higher in antioxidants than all of them—a healthy dose of cinnamon a day, combined with coffee, is enough to help your body combat aging and diseases like cancer.
It lowers blood sugar
Cinnamon has a surprising property: it increases your sensitivity to insulin. This means that when you consume food, your body is quicker and better at absorbing nutrients and vitamins from it.
Thanks to this boost in effectiveness, your blood sugar does not spike as much whenever you eat a meal. It has also been shown that, apart from this effect, cinnamon also acts as a natural aid in processing ingested sugar better, helping it become glucose.
It’s anti-inflammatory
Cinnamon contains powerful anti-inflammatory agents. Consuming cinnamon is a great tool for helping the whole body fight inflammation, and it is commonly prescribed in India and China to fight many different types of conditions.
It’s good for your skin
Ground cinnamon is a great exfoliating agent. And, because it acts as an anti-inflammatory, it’s the perfect ingredient for using on your skin since it will help it fight inflammation that can arise from several skin conditions, like acne.
Oil derived from cinnamon is also used for soothing the skin and to treat different skin conditions.
FAQ
What type of cinnamon should I use?
The type of cinnamon you use can make a difference in flavor. Ceylon cinnamon is often considered “true cinnamon”. This Ceylon cinnamon does differ in taste and smell and can be much more flavorful, but it is also rarer and more expensive.
In practice, the best way to go about it is to buy properly stored cinnamon that is as fresh as possible.
Is cinnamon good for my health?
Yes, however, cinnamon can also be toxic for your body. If you consume too much of it per day, it can take a toll on your body. Different types of cinnamon have different amounts of toxic components, so it’s actually hard to tell how much your particular cinnamon has.
In general, however, cinnamon seems to be safe in doses under 50 grams. This, of course, can vary from type to type.
Can I use other spices?
It depends on your preferences. Many people use other spices along with cinnamon. More commonly, nutmeg, ground clove, and cardamom are used in combination with cinnamon. Spiced coffee in Africa and the Middle East usually uses a combination of many of these spices, with the simplest of them consisting of cinnamon and cardamom. You can try the latter at home yourself for an enhanced cinnamon coffee!