How do you take your coffee? Cream and sugar, black, or butter? Wait, you want butter in your coffee? At first I was thinking that sounds completely ridiculous, who in their right mind would put butter in their coffee. That can’t be good for you, right? So I Googled “buttered coffee” and discovered that it is a rising trend that is supposedly good for your health and really good for your brain. Makes you wonder if that flavored creamer you pour into your coffee is any good for you, probably not.

Now I enjoy a good cup of coffee, in fact I would say I’m a bit of a snob when it comes to enjoying a good cup of joe. I like my coffee strong and refined in small amounts with a touch of honey and cream. At home we have a Odea Giro Plus, a fully automatic espresso machine that makes a phenomenal cup of espresso or coffee with that perfect layer of crema on the top. We’ve been hooked on it for the last several years.

After hearing about buttered coffee and doing a little research online I thought I’d give it a try. Another term is called Bulletproof Coffee, which has been coined by a small company selling their healthy coffee products to help make the perfect cup of joe. When you think about it, butter is just cream that has been churned into butter. We’ve been putting cream into our coffee for ages, so technically it is the same thing. Now you don’t want to use just any old butter, what you want is a good pure grass-fed natural butter, unsalted and it should be yellow. Kerrygold seems to be the popular one to use.

In addition to using butter it also appears that adding high quality coconut oil has benefits as well. As a pescatarian (a vegetarian that occasionally eats seafood) I’ve tended to avoid using butter in my daily cooking, but I don’t mind the idea as long as I’m using pure grass-fed natural butter. I’ve also read for those of you that are vegan, only using high quality coconut oil will still have similar benefits. I’m using a combination of the two. Obviously all in moderation, don’t go crazy with this stuff.

The benefits claim to boost energy levels, improve cognitive brain function, and even help you lose weight.

That’s right, it’s actually fueling our body and brain to work better.  Not only are you getting a caffeine kick but the oils actually help boost your metabolism and feed your brain to help make you more focused and aware.  For the last week and half I’ve been trying this technique and enjoying it. I definitely noticed that my senses seemed sharper and more focused in addition to feeling less hungry.

It requires a little bit of extra work to make it. You don’t want add the butter to your cup of coffee and stir it with a spoon, instead you need to use a blender to emulsify it all together.  First off you should be using good coffee, preferably a low-toxin roasted bean, nothing flavored or cheaply made. I’ve been a long time Peet’s Coffee user, but I’m looking to try some new low-toxin based beans once I find them.

Buttered Coffee Recipe

• 1 cup freshly brewed coffee
• 1 tablespoon of butter
• 1 teaspoon of coconut oil
• 1/2 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract (optional)
• 1/2 teaspoon of good honey or two second squeeze (optional)

It’s a good idea to pre-heat your blender and even your coffee cup with hot water to help keep your coffee hot. Immediately after brewing the coffee, add it to the blender along with the rest of the ingredients. Turn the blender on high for 20 seconds, until nice and frothy, then pour into your cup and enjoy. The first time you try this it might not be what you expect, depending on how you normally take your coffee it might not be as creamy or sweet, or as bitter. Instead the pure coffee flavor comes through with a slight nuttiness from the butter and oil.

You’ll feel a warm sensation followed with your energy and focus spiking up.

There you have it. So far, I’ve noticed the difference everyday and I’m really enjoying the buttered coffee, but we’ll see if it sticks around for the long run.  I want to make sure that I’m not gaining weight by doing this, but instead either maintaining or losing weight.  Obviously I’m still eating healthy and exercising regularly to help maintain a healthy lifestyle. This is a new twist into one of my favorite drinks of the morning. Also as I mentioned earlier, I usually have one cup of coffee a day, I don’t drink coffee all day long and this technique definitely fuels me enough for the entire day. If you’re the type who drinks a lot of coffee throughout your day then you might reconsider as I would not recommend doing this multiple times a day.

Have you tried buttered coffee? Please feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below and thanks for taking the time to read my ramblings about this new discovery.