The Surprising Ingredient Grandma Used for Unbeatable Coffee

Lauren CahnUpdated: Dec. 06, 2019

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Her secret ingredient elevates ordinary coffee to new heights of richly-flavored, well-balanced perfection.

If your family’s from the Midwest (especially Wisconsin or Minnesota), you might remember your grandma boiling up big batches of what she called Scandinavian coffee (or perhaps Norwegian or Swedish coffee, if she wanted to get specific). If she was making it for a church get-together, she might have called it church basement coffee and brought along one of these heavenly desserts.

But what was the secret ingredient in coffee that Gran made? If you peeked in the percolator, you might have seen it.

What’s in Scandinavian coffee?

Eggs!

They are what make Scandinavian coffee the richly-flavored, amber-hued, perfectly-balanced brew that it is. Or more specifically, a raw egg—shell and all—which you crack over and mix it into your coffee grounds to form a thick slurry. (We’ll get to the how-to just below.)

But why?

Not everyone knows this, but eggs have a seemingly magical power to “clarify” liquids from broth to wine to… yes, coffee. As the liquid is heated, the egg coagulates, drawing impurities out of the liquid and into itself. In the case of coffee, those impurities include substances that can cause coffee to taste bitter or burnt. Ultimately, the impurities also include the grounds, themselves. In other words, the egg acts as an “ick” magnet, filtering your coffee without the need for a paper or mesh filter (yay!). After a mere three minutes, the egg and grounds have formed a unified lump that you can easily strain as you pour yourself a cup.

How to make Scandinavian coffee

What you’ll need:

3 tablespoons ground coffee
1 egg, including the shell
4 cups plus 3 tablespoons of water

What to do:

Set three cups of water to boil in a pot. Set aside one cup of cold water.
In a small bowl, combine coffee grounds, egg (crush the shell as you mix it up), and the remaining 3 tablespoons of water. This is your slurry.
When the water is boiling, add the slurry to the water and set a timer for three minutes.
When the timer goes off, remove the pot from the heat source and pour in the cold water.
Strain into a pitcher (you’ll leave behind a large clump of egg and grounds) and serve.

A word about salmonella

Raw eggs are perhaps the most common source of salmonella food poisoning. Scandinavian coffee eliminates that risk by boiling the eggs for three minutes, meaning they are fully cooked and you can drink with confidence.

Try these coffee cake recipes with that delectable coffee:

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Taste of Home

Cinnamon Coffee Cake

I love the excellent texture of this easy coffee cake recipe. Always a crowd-pleaser, its pleasing vanilla flavor enriched by sour cream may remind you of breakfast at Grandma's! —Eleanor Harris, Cape Coral, Florida

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Blueberries and Cream Coffee Cake

This blueberry coffee cake is my go-to recipe for all of our holiday get-togethers because it's perfect for breakfast or dessert. It's easy to make, and it's the most delicious coffee cake I've ever had. —Susan Ober, Franconia, New Hampshire