Commuter Coffee - Cure the Ride-in Blues.

Many moons ago, I worked over sixty miles from home, through heavy urban traffic. Before we moved closer to work, I only saw daylight in my home town on a Sunday.

This recipe brought the world back into focus very quickly once I got to my desk.

(Confession - I didn't think you would want to see photos of my car's footwell - the images I have used are just stock photos).

Step 1: Ingredients and Equipment.

You need a decent ground coffee - I liked a dark-roasted arabica bean - a nutmeg, a fine grater and a decent "Thermos" type flask. I use a stainless-steel flask as it is much more likely to survive an hour or two rolling around the footwell of my car.

You can buy ground nutmeg if you want, but it loses its flavour a lot more quickly than a whole nutmeg.

I would use whole beans and grind my own, but there isn't a decent whole bean available within thirty miles of me. I blame Starbucks.

Step 2: Making the Coffee.

Pre-warm your flask. Pour in half a cup of hot water, put the lid on, slosh it around and pour it out.

Put four dessert spoons of your coffee in the flask, and add a generous pinch of freshly-ground nutmeg.

Top up with freshly-boiled water, put the lid on and put the flask safely in your car.

Safety note: doses of nutmeg of between 1-4 teaspoons cause hallucinations, visual distortions and euphoria. Doses larger than this can potentially induce convulsions, palpitations, nausea, eventual dehydration, and generalized body pain.

Step 3: Drink!

After a two-hour commute, jogged around by the start-stop of your car, the beans will be completely water-logged and have sunk to the bottom of the flask.

Allow a couple of minutes for the solids to settle (just enough time to remember where you left your coffee mug) and then gently pour it out - no need to filter.

Don't you dare pollute this drink with milk or sugar!

A few good slugs of this will set even a hung-over rhino up for the day, then welcome to the happy, jittery world of caffeine addiction.