Coffee

This is one of a series of books introducing young children to all aspects of everyday foods. Taking the theme of a familiar food, each book examines the reasons why we eat it, how and where it is grown and produced, its nutritional value, who eats it and where, and its historical background. Each book contains step-by-step recipes which the reader can follow.;This book looks at one of the world's favourite drinks, coffee, taking the reader through all the stages in its production, from the tree to the percolator, and some of the many different ways it is drunk across the globe.;Coffee is one of the world's most important crops. The author begins by relating the popular legend of how Kaldi, an Ethiopian goat herder, discovered that the beans contained in the fruit of the coffee plant could be used to make a delicious, stimulating drink. The book describes how the coffee beans are grown, and the fruits harvested, and how they are removed and then dried, roasted and often ground before they reach the high street shops.;We learn of the spread of coffee as a crop, and of the history of the coffee trade through the centuries. We also discover the processes used to make instant and decaffeinated coffee. There are three step-by-step recipes to try out, showing how coffee is used as a flavouring in food.