Coffee, Coffee, and More Coffee

Yesterday was National Coffee Day.  I am not a huge coffee drinker.  If I do drink it, I get something like an iced latte.  Feels more like a milkshake rather than a coffee drink.  Kind of like a snack rather than a vice or a morning habit.

So, I decided to turn my coffee creation into a sweet.  No duh ( as Levi has been known to say).  These bars pack a huge jolt.  With that said, I decided to cut them into small portions.  Eat them sparingly!

Coffee Crunch Bars
adapted from here
yield: 48 pieces

ingredients:
2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1 cup plus 2 Tbls. unsalted butter, room temperature
1 1/4 cups dark brown sugar
2 Tbls. instant espresso powder
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup sliced almonds

instructions:
• preheat oven to 325*.  set aside a 9 x 13" baking pan
• whisk flour, baking powder, and salt.  set aside.
• in the bowl of an electric mixer, beat butter and sugar until blended.
• add espresso powder and vanilla.
• add flour, in 3 additions, mixing until well combined
• stir in chocolate and almonds
• turn dough into baking pan.  spread evenly with an off set spatula.  pierce with a fork
• bake until edges are lightly browned and beginning to crisp, 45-50.  cool on a rack and after one minute,
score.
• can store in an airtight container for 5 days.

Frozen Mocha Lattes - Kahlua Style!

I had a very brief moment (stressing on the "very brief")to sit down and read my newest Bon Appetit Magazine.  I savor those moments and am always overly inspired. I love reading cooking magazines, cook books, food blogs and the New York Times Food section.  The problem is, upon reading these various periodicals, I want to make and create almost everything on the pages.  My "recipes to try" folder is overflowing and I am hoping, in this lifetime, I get to make each and every one of them.

This recipe didn't make it into the "recipes to try" file.  This drink was made immediately.  It was served to  at the end of a weeknight meal, neighbors included.  Prior to devouring this drink, we dined on roasted pulled pork sandwiches, pickled veggies (cucumbers, radish's, + red onions), broccoli slaw, twice fried, fries!  Although we were all stuffed, we all felt the meal would not have been complete without this "dessert" drink.

I made a slightly less mocha version for the kids ( used more cocoa, non fat milk, and WAY less espresso - 1 tsp. ).  Blended theirs with a little bit of whole milk, goats milk yogurt and a little cinnamon.  They LOVED it!  Add a little protein powder and some blueberries and you a perfectly delicious breakfast!

Kahlua-Spiked Frozen Mocha Lattes
adapted from here
yield: 8 servings

ingredients:
mocha ice cubes
3/4 cup sugar
5 1/2 tsp. instant espresso powder
4 tsp. natural unsweetened cocoa powder
2 pinches of salt
2 1/2 cups water, divided
2 cups half and half
3/4 cup Kahlua or other flavored coffee drink

vanilla whipped cream (optional)
3/4 cup chilled heavy whipping cream
1 1/2 Tbls. packed, light brown sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

instructions:
for the mocha cubes
• whisk first three ingredients and pinch of salt in a medium saucepan
• gradually whisk in 1 cup of water, whisking until smooth
• cook over medium high heat until sugar dissolves and mixture just begins to boil
• remove pan from heat.  add 1 1/2 cups water and half and half, whisk to blend
• pour espresso mixture into ice cube trays, filling almost to the top ( made about 48 cubes)
• freeze ( can be stored for 1 month in Ziploc freezer bags.
for the whipped cream
• using an electric mixer ( I used my and held one ), beat the cream, brown sugar, vanilla, and pinch of salt in medium bowl until peaks form.  cover and chill.

• freeze mugs or glasses in freezer for at least 15 minutes.
• working in batches, place 14 espresso ice cubes and 1/4 cup Kahlua in the blender. blend until smooth.
• divide among the glasses and either drink right away or store in the freezer.  when ready to serve, top with the whipped cream.

frozen mochas for breakfast, anyone?  I cannot wait to start
my day off with this frozen beverage (sans the Kahlua)!

Cafe au Lait Pots de Creme

Doesn't this sound intimidating?  Well, it isn't.  Pots de Creme is just a really fancy way of saying, PUDDING!  Yet, with the volume turned up.

Isaac loves Pot de Creme.  I make mine in little 2 ounce custard dishes ( actually, they are Chinese tea cups ) and on a good day I can get 8 custards out of one recipe.  All 8 disappear within 2-3 days and most likely it is Isaac whom has eaten them all!

I licked the spoon.  These are creamy, flavorful from the espresso, and bowl lickin good!  I believe the secret ingredient in this recipe is the brown sugar.  I altered the original recipe just a tad, regardless the results were delicious!  This is the perfect week night dessert as it takes minutes to make and can be ready in a flash.

Cafe au Lait Pots de Creme
adapted from Melissa d'Arabian

ingredients:
3/4 cups milk
1/2 cup cream
2 Tbls. sugar
2 Tbls sucanat
1 Tbls. espresso powder
1/2 vanilla bean ( beans scraped from the pod)
pinch of salt
1 egg plus 2 egg yolks

instructions:
• preheat oven to 325*
• warm some water in a tea kettle
• in a small saucepan, combine the milk, cream, sugars, espresso, vanilla bean ( scrape the beans from the pod and put both the pod and the beans into the saucepan ), and salt.  Heat over low heat just until starting to boil.
• in a measuring cup whisk the egg yolks and the one egg.
• once milk mixture reaches the almost boiling point, pour about a 1/4 cup of the mixture into the egg mixture.  do this slowly, you don't want to "cook" the eggs.  keep adding the milk mixture a little at a time until all is incorporated.
• pour the custard into 8-2 oz. ramekins or 4-4oz ramekins and place in a baking dish.
• fill the baking dish to the halfway point of the ramekins with the heated water ( I like to put my ramekins into the baking dish and put it in the oven.  once steady, i pour the hot water into the pan.  push the oven tray back, gently and close the oven door).
• bake until the edges are set, but still a little wobbly, about 20-25 minutes.
• remove ramekins from the water and place on a small sheet pan filled with ice water.  let cool.
• refrigerate until serving

I dusted each custard dish with a little cocoa powder

Coffee - Chocolate Milk Shakes

I was in Cost Plus today and found these fun, cute straws.  I had to buy them.  My kids like to use their straws.  Yet, these are just too fun to waste.  They deserved a special after school snack.

Both Eli and Isaac had friends over after school today.  I put the straws to the test.  I made coffee - chocolate chip malts.  Growing up, my dad loved making malts for me and my friends.  He never measured anything and just threw stuff into the blender.  My personal favorite was his coffee malt.  I loved malt powder.  I remember eating it with a spoon right out of the glass jar.  Couldn't imagine doing that today, however when you are 12, why the check not?  What I also remember are Horlicks Tablets.  They were similiar to a malted milk ball, but without the chocolate coating, they were flat and they were much more dense.  I can still feel the way they felt when I bit into them.  They were so addicting.  I ate them like candy.  I just read on Wikipedia that they promoted sleep.  Wish I had a jar of those today for little Levi!

For our shake today, I chopped some good bittersweet chocolate (callebaut) and threw it into the blender after everything was combined and smooth.  Blended until just combined.  Then poured into glasses topped off with this festive straw.  Too bad we are all not on lounge chairs on  a beach in Kona.

Everyone was joyful!

Coffee Malts

ingredients:

• coffee ice cream

• organic whole milk

• 1-2 Tbls. malted milk powder

• a little splash of chocolate syrup

• 2-3 oz. of good bittersweet chocolate chopped

directions:

• put desired amount of ice cream in the blender.  add milk (about 1/4- 1/3 the amount of ice cream).  blend to smooth - you may have to add a dash more milk.

• when smooth add your malt powder + chocolate syrup

• add chopped chocolate, blend

• pour into desired glasses

Levi needed 2 straws

Coffee Ice Cream

I have so many egg yolks crowding my fridge at the moment.  Between the macaroons and my scrambled egg whites in the mornings, I probably have about 14 yolks on hand.

The best way to use lonely egg yolks is to make ice cream.  Eli choose coffee and Isaac choose mint chip ( I have to get some more fresh mint).

For this recipe, I had to seep the coffee beans with the milk, sugar and some of the cream for an hour.  My house smelt like Peet's!  I am not a coffee drinker, but there is something about the smell of fresh coffee beans that is so intoxicating

This recipe is from my guy, David Lebovitz's The Perfect Scoop.  I love this book.  The photos are perfect, the paper is perfect and the recipes are so friendly.  I often search the internet for ice cream recipes, but none are as concise as his.  Plus, his writing is brilliant.  If you haven't visited his blog, you must.

This is the creamiest, lightest coffee ice cream you will ever eat.  I am not a lover of ice cream (would rather eat a hunk of chocolate), but...this was spoon lick'n good!

A little history on my Yogi Bear spoon.  I have had it my whole life.  I love this little spoon.  He had a friend, a Huckleberry Hound spoon.  The other day, I was telling Isaac the story of how much I loved this spoon as a child and how he had a mate.  When I was packing up my mom's house last year, I couldn't find Huckleberry.  Isaac confessed that on one of his many sleepovers at Nana's house he made a an experiment.  He told me that he froze the spoon in some ice concoction and when he tried to pull the spoon out of the experiment, the spoon cracked in half. He had no idea how sentimental I was about both of these spoons.  The way he told the story was so endearing that the only thing I could do in that very moment was hug him.  I will miss my Huckleberry spoon, but I am grateful that Yogi has lasted as long has he has!

Ice Cream, Ice Cream & More Ice Cream

Eli has been bugging me to get an ice cream maker for EVER! I researched a little and came to the the conclusion that the simple Cuisinart machine was the best one for our culinary purpose.

I brought it home, cleaned it and immediately started experimenting. I started with a strawberry recipe from the August issue of Gourmet Magazine. I had tons of strawberry's. Usually, when I have too many strawberry's I freeze them for morning smoothies. Using pantry items for our first attempt at ice cream was super satisfying.

Ice cream has always seemed intimidating. Ice cream is my new found crush. I can't get enough of it and it is all I think about. And to be honest with you, I don't particularly love ice cream. It is not my go to dessert when I need something sweet. Yet, a little taste, straight from the ice cream maker is pretty darn goooood!

After the successful attempt at the strawberry ice cream, I decided to make the Vanilla Bean from the Cuisinart booklet. This was a good test for me as I really didn't get the full usage of the ice cream maker with the first go around. I really wanted to watch the machine do its magic. This recipe allowed me to full fill my fantasy. At first, this ice cream tasted a little too "eggy". However, once frozen it was good, not great. Need way more vanilla beans! I have researched a few other vanilla bean recipes. I am dying to make the vanilla bean from Sherry Yard, however the recipe calls for SEVEN, yes SEVEN vanilla beans. If I were to make this particular recipe, which I won't, I will have to invest approximately $77.00 in vanilla beans! I'd rather have a new pair of yoga pants for 77.00 bucks!

Next stop was Sherry Yard's coffee ice cream. Pure perfection. This was so amazingly good. It may have to become a staple in our freezer! Everyone in my house voted on what was their favorite. Coffee won by a landslide. Eli and Isaac are requesting Mint Chip. With all the cream and milk I have in the fridge their wish could come true. Be on the lookout for our next ice cream adventure!

Using the snickerdoodles that I had made the day before, the kids and their friends enjoyed homemade ice cream sandwiches!