The Complete Guide to Brewing the Perfect Cup of Coffee

It seems easy to make coffee for yourself in the morning, but incase you don't, here are the simply steps you need to follow in order to enjoy a wonderful cup of coffee. Step One: The Coffee Always purchase whole bean coffee, preferably farm-direct and from a single estate. Make sure the whole bean coffee is freshly roasted and shipped to you in a valve-sealed bag. Store the premium coffee beans in dry, cool, and dark place, either in a zip-locked bag or a sealed container. -you should not keep your coffee in the freezer if you want the best results, because the porous beans will absorb moisture, which will in turn deteriorate the coffee’s fine aroma Step Two: Grinding Use a Burr Grinder, grind the whole beans just before you brew the coffee and only grind as much coffee as you are going to use at the time. -make sure you don’t grind the coffee too finely because that will break up the fibers of the coffee beans and overexpose their aromatic oils to oxygen, causing an excess flavor extraction that creates a bitterness. Step Three: Equipment Use a French Press to brew the coffee and make sure all parts of it are perfectly clean. The Press should have a stainless steel or gold mesh filter. Make sure the pot you use to boil the water is also extremely clean as even small amounts of contaminants in the pot can affect the subtle flavors of the gourmet coffee and cause an undesirable bitterness. -You can neutralize any remaining coffee oils or acids that remain on the coffee-making equipment by washing and rinsing it with baking soda and water Step Four: The Water Use cold filtered or bottled spring water to brew the coffee. Boil the water and then let it sit for just a short time before pouring it into the French Press. The water should cool to 200 degrees Fahrenheit before pouring. By pouring the water at just the right temperature you will maximize the release of the flavorful oils and aromas. -Use a thermometer once or twice to get an idea of how long you should let your water sit before pouring it into the French Press Step Five: Brewing process Always use the Steeping method when brewing the perfect cup of coffee. Use about 1½ to 2 tablespoons of coffee for each 6 ounces of water. A larger grind size requires a longer brewing time. After you pour the hot water into the French Press, wait about four minutes. This allows the coffee to steep as the flavors are released. Plunge the press down very slowly when the coffee is ready. This allows the ground coffee and hot water to have optimal interaction, again maximizing the release of the flavorful and aromatic oils. -Pre-warm your cup before pouring the coffee into it. You can do this by pouring some hot water into the cup and letting it sit a few moments before pouring the water out Step Six: Enjoy!

Some history and facts of coffee

Ever wonder about how coffee came to existence? Well to begin, the coffee plant was first discovered in Ethiopia in the tenth century and has a white blossom that smells like jasmine and a red, cherry-like fruit. Back then, the leaves of the so-called "magical fruit" were boiled in water and the resulting concoction was thought to have medicinal properties. As the fame of the coffee plant spread to other lands, and would soon become one of the most popular drinks worldwide from pure enjoyment or needing a boost of energy. The coffee plant was discovered in the tenth century; however, it did not reach North America until 1668. The first coffeehouse to open in New York, my home state, opened in 1696. In 1714, the Dutch presented Louis XIV with a coffee sapling from their plantations on Java. The sapling was planted in the royal Jardin des Plantes in Paris. In 1723, a French mariner named Gabriel du Clieu took a sapling from the Jardin des Plantes to the island of Martinique. From here, the coffee plant spread to other Caribbean islands, as well as to Central and South America. In 1727, a Portuguese sailor named de Mello Palheta carried coffee saplings to Brazil from French Guyana. Today, Brazil is the number one producer of coffee in the world, accounting for 35% of global coffee production. In 1730, the British began cultivating coffee in Jamaica. By the mid 19th century, coffee had become one of the most important commodities in world trade.

The Easter Bunny will be coming soon!

Easter is in a little over three weeks. With all the holiday themed coffee being sold at coffee shops and available to brew yourself, there definitely are different kinds of Easter coffee to make. Easter Egg 3/4 oz chambord (raspberry liquor) 3/4 oz coffee liqueur (tia maria) 3/4 oz cream 1. Layer each of these into a Pony glass in the order given. 2. The secret is to pour slowly, barely dribble the liqueurs into your glass. 3. Start with your first liqueur and pour it into your glass, now take your spoon and place the tip of the spoon very close to your first liqueur, now carefully and slowly pour in your second liqueur over the back of the spoon and into the glass, then your third. Still can't get enough coffee in your Easter day? Try this great Easter coffee cake: •½ cup milk •1½ tablespoons honey •2 tablespoons vegetable oil •4½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour, sifted twice •1 package active dry yeast •1/3 cup lukewarm water (105° to 115°F) •9 large egg yolks •1 cup sugar •½ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg •¼ teaspoon ground cardamom •1 teaspoon vanilla extract •2 tablespoons Cointreau •2 tablespoons brandy •Grated zest and juice of 1 orange •1½ large vanilla beans, split lengthwise •12 tablespoons (1½ sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled to lukewarm •½ cup golden raisins •½ cup finely chopped almonds •½ teaspoon almond extract •1 large egg white 1. In a medium-size saucepan, bring the milk to a boil over medium heat. Remove from the heat and add the honey and oil, stirring until the honey is dissolved. 2. Gradually add ½ cup of the flour, beating until the mixture is completely smooth. Cool to lukewarm. 3. In a large bowl, add the yeast to the water, stir, and let stand until foamy, about 5 minutes. 4. Add the milk and flour mixture to the yeast and stir until smooth. Cover with a linen or cotton (not terry cloth) kitchen towel and let rise in a warm place until the sponge doubles in bulk, about 1 hour. 5. In a second large bowl, beat the egg yolks and the sugar until thick and pale yellow. Add the nutmeg, cardamom, vanilla extract, Cointreau, brandy, orange zest, and orange juice and beat for few more seconds. 6. Scrape out the seeds from the vanilla beans and add them to the yolk mixture. Add the butter, raisins, almonds, and almond extract. 7. With a clean dry beater, beat the egg white until it forms soft peaks and fold it into the egg yolk mixture. 8. Combine the yolk mixture with the risen sponge and mix gently but thoroughly. Using an electric mixer, gradually beat in the remaining 4 cups flour until you have a very smooth, loose dough. Transfer the dough to a clean, well-greased bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and let rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, 1½ hours. 9. Cut two 1½-inch strips of parchment paper, each long enough to be molded down one side, then across the bottom and up the opposite side of a clean 2-pound coffee tin. The ends should extend above the top of the tin. Butter the tin and the strips, then set them into the tin crisscross to each other. Fold the ends over the outside of the tin. 10. Punch the dough down and place it in the tin. Let rise again, covered, until doubled in bulk, about 45 minutes. 11. While the dough is rising, preheat the oven to 325°F. 12. Bake the kulich until it is golden brown and a cake tester comes out clean, about 1 hour to 1 hour 10 minutes. Cool slightly, then carefully lift the kulich from the tin by pulling up on the ends of the parchment strips. Remove the parchment and let the kulich cool on a rack. With these delicious recipes, you are bound to have a great easter. Hope the easter bunny is good to everyone!

The end to cold coffee

Last week I had my birthday, and for one of the presents I recieved was a stainless steel tumbler (coffee mug) from Starbucks. Before I had this coffee cup I always drank my coffee out of a regular thermos or coffee mug, but now with the stainless steel tumbler I LOVE IT. If you don't know what is so different about a stainless steel coffee cup compared to a regular cup is the coffee ALWAYS stays hot. It was always annoying when I would drink coffee but never drank it fast enough to the point where the coffee would get cold. But now drinking it from this stainless steel tumbler, it is always hot. I made coffee this morning at 8:30, I'm still drinking it now and it's almost 10:30 and it is still as hot as it was when i first poured it from the coffee maker. So my suggestion to you is if you love coffee and hate drinking it cold, to invest in a stainless steel tumbler. They can be purchased at Starbucks for a good price!

Coffee Compared to Guinness

The word on the street is coffee tastes like the Irish beer Guinness, but is this really true. I would say the reason people say Guinness tastes like coffee is because both beverages have a rich bitter taste. After experiencing a trip to a Guinness Factory, due to the fashion they malt their barley and also because it is a stout. Barley is one of the substitues used in coffee so they are similar in this aspect.

CoFfEe AsSoRtMeNtS.

Marketing a Cup of Coffee like a Leprechaun

I'm sure when most people think of St. Patrick's day and coffee, whether it be the coffee drinkers or the coffee shop owners, people wonder how can coffee be marketed in an Irish way to celebrate the holiday this month. When going in grocery stores or drug stores around a holiday, they are always displaying decorations and candy for the upcoming holiday. So it's easy for store owners to do marketing for a holiday but what exactly do coffee owners do around the holidays besides come up with a special holiday drink?? Well here are a couple of suggestions on how to market for St. Patrick's Day:

1. Coffee business owners should think of the day after St. Patrick's Day as their best opportunity for business- people need to find a way to cure their hangover from celebrating their heritage or pretending to celebrate their heritage the night before, so it might as well be in your coffee shop. 2. Have a Pot of Gold drawing or raffle for a week's worth of free coffee drinks of their choice. 3. Use green whipped cream, green sprinkles, or green milk, and give out gold coin chocolates with each coffee purchase. 4. Give out green buttons to customers.. "it's a cinch to avoid a pinch." 5. Have a “Go Green” contest- take pictures of customers in their green garments, post them on a display wall and then choose a winner who gets a week’s worth of coffee drinks. 6. Have a "Save Green" promotion where anyone wearing green receives a 10% discount. 7. Have a "Re-Green" environmental awareness day and ask customers to bring in their recyclables. 8. Serve green bagels with green cream cheese. 9. Have trivia about St. Patrick's Day and give rewards. 10. Serve a Shamrock Cappuccino.

Besides marketing for St. Patrick's Day, I'm sure everyone would love to have an Irish Coffee recipe up their sleeve, so here is a phenomenal Irish Coffee recipe: Irish Coffeeone satisfying beverage Ingredients 25 ml/1 fl oz Irish Whiskey 1 teaspoon brown raw cane sugar 1 heaping tablespoon whipped pouring cream 1 hot double espresso with a small measure of hot water to fill glass Cooking Directions Use warmed coffee glasses and add the whiskey. Add the sugar and dissolve in the whiskey. Add the coffee and stir well. Whip the cream lightly but still be able to pour. The lightly whipped cream is carefully poured over the back of a spoon initially held just above the surface of the coffee and gradually raised a little as you pour, the cream should float on top. Serve and enjoy this all Irish classic