Uh-huh...

"Would you like cream or sugar?" I ask.

"Uh huh."

Pour a medium cup and attempt to add sugar.

"I don't want no sugar in there I want that blue stuff."

"Ok." I grab the cream.

"Don't put no milk in there I don't want no milk."

Wednesday = Recipe Day

COFFEE GRANITA

Granita, a traditional treat in Italy and France, is a mixture of sugar, liquid (like fruit juice, coffee or wine) and water that is stirred while freezing.

2 cups lukewarm espresso or double-strength coffee
1/3 cup sugar
3 tbsp. Kahlúa® or Irish whiskey
1 tsp. lemon zest
1 cup barely sweetened whipped cream
Coffee beans

1. Stir warm coffee, sugar, Kahlúa and lemon zest together until sugar dissolves. Cool.
2. Pour mixture into 8” square metal baking pan.
3. Freeze mixture until icy around the edges (about 45 minutes). Use a fork to rake the frozen edges toward the center. Repeat the raking several times, until frozen through—about 2 hours total.
4. Cover, keep frozen. Can be made up to 2 days ahead.

To Serve: Use a large spoon or ice cream scoop to mold. Serve in a martini glass, frosted parfait glass or in a small dish. Garnish with a dollop of barely sweetened whipped cream and 3 whole coffee beans.

Serves 4

Wednesday = Recipe Day

JAMAICA NUDGE

The traditional flavors of the Caribbean in a warming variation on an Irish coffee.

4–6 oz. strong black coffee
1 oz. Kahlúa®
1 oz. Bacardi Gold rum
1 tbsp. whipped cream
Pinch of ground allspice or nutmeg

To Serve: Pour the coffee into your mug. Add the alcohol. Stir to mix and top with whipped cream and a dusting of allspice.

Coco Mocha...

"What's in a coco mocha?" she asks.
"Coconut and chocolate."
"That sounds like it's full of calories and fat - I'll take a mocha."
"Would you like whipped cream on that?" I ask.
"Oh yes and give me extra."
I chuckle.

So Brazil is to blame for my pricey morning latte...

Your morning cup of Joe may start to cost more. Coffee production is likely to decline across Brazil due to a combination of recent dryness, the credit crunch, and biennial growth cycle. In an increasingly tough economic time, these factors are likely to urge prices higher.

The Brazilian government predicts that the country will harvest 39.2 million 132-pound sacks of coffee beans this year, a drop of 16.2% from 2008.

Over the past 30 days, major coffee growing regions in western Mato Grosso and eastern Rondonia have only seen about 75% of normal rainfall. In the past two weeks, areas in western Minas Gerias, where nearly 50% of Brazilian coffee is produced, have received only half of normal rainfall. The tiny province of Espirito Santo, which accounts for 25% of the coffee crop, saw above normal rainfall earlier this month. However, even that area has turned much drier over the past one to two weeks.

Nevertheless, the credit crunch has been forcing many coffee growers to forgo purchasing sufficient amounts of fertilizer. When enough fertilizer cannot be applied to the coffee plants, disease is more easily spread and yields are reduced. Unfortunately, the timing of this economic crisis is very poor as Brazil coffee is in the midst of a slower growth cycle that typically occurs every other year.

Brazil, the world’s largest producer of Arabica beans, is expected to see a 24% reduction in their harvest of this variety. Furthermore, the country is only second to Vietnam in robusta beans used by Nestle and Kraft to make instant coffee. While robusta may not be as severely affected, a five percent decline in production is still expected. With the drop in production, coffee prices are likely to rise. Currently the price of Brazilian coffee is around $1.18 per pound and is expected to trade between $1.25 and $1.35 in the coming months.

While it is unknown when the economy will recover, Mother Nature will be providing some beneficial rain to most coffee regions over the next week. Areas in Mato Grosso, Rondonia, and western Minas Gerias may see 3 to 6” of rain by next Wednesday, with isolated higher amounts. In comparison, only 2 to 4” fell in these provinces in the past 14 days.

Source: http://supermarketguru.com

Saturday Matinee

Latte with Chocolate or a Mocha...

"I want a latte with some chocolate in it," she orders.
"A mocha?" I ask.
"What's the difference between a latte and a mocha?"
"A mocha is basically a latte with chocolate in it."
"What's a latte?"
"It's espresso with steamed milk."
"Oh yeah I want that! Espresso with steamed milk. Can I get some choclate in that?"
"One mocha coming up."

Saturday Matinee

Wednesday = Recipe Day

Colonial Coffee

Kahlua and brandy make this a fine coffee cocktail to warm you up. Serve this after your next dinner party, to start a relaxing evening with friends.

Ingredients:
6 cups hot coffee
3/4 cup Kahlua
1/2 cup brandy
Whipped cream
Cinnamon

Preparation:
Blend the coffee and liqueurs together and pour into 8 mugs. Top with whipped cream and a sprinkle of cinnamon.
Serves 8

Just regular ol coffee...

"Just a large regular 'ol coffee please - I just like my coffee plain and simple," she says.
"Cream or sugar?"
"Yes, cream and six sugars." "A little more cream please." "A little more than that - I like a lot of cream." "Can you steam that?
Takes a sip of her regular 'ol coffee.
"This is really hot!"

Sunday Funnies

Saturday Matinee

Wednesday = Recipe Day

Black & White

“I’ll take a large black and white with one Splenda.” She says. I start setting up the shot. “What’s the difference between a black and white and a café au lait?” “Well a black and white is a latte with chocolate and vanilla syrup and a café au lait is half coffee and half steamed milk.” I reply. “Oh, I forgot there was a difference.” “Did you still want Splenda added?” I ask. “Yes, I like Splenda.” I finish off the black and white latte and hand it over. After taking a sip she squits and says, “this is too sweet.”

Sunday Funnies

Freddie was eighteen years old, friendly, and eager to do things right. Unfortunately, he wasn't especially bright. He had just started his first job, as a delivery boy and general go-fer at a furniture warehouse.
His first task was to go out for coffee. He walked into a nearby coffee shop carrying a large thermos. When the counterman finally noticed him, he held up the thermos.
"Is this big enough to hold six cups of coffee?" he said. The counterman looked at the thermos, hesitated for a few seconds, then finally said,
"Yeah. It looks like about six cups to me."
"Good," Freddie said. "Give me two regular, two black, and two decaf."

Saturday Matinee

Oh Boys...

"I'll take that coffee with two sugars and cream," he says.

"How would you like the other?" I ask him.

"I want six splenda in mine - I like my coffee like I like my women."

"Sweet and black."

He looks nervous.

"I bet you get that all the time it probably gets old."

"I'm sure it would if I were black."

I'm easy...

"I'm easy," she says. "Small coffee."
"Would you like cream?" I ask her.
"Yes!"
"Sweetener?"
"What kinds have you got?" she says.
"Sugar, Sweet-N-Low, Splenda and Equal."
"Why would I want to know what kinds of sugars you have - what kind of coffee do you have?"
I say: "Oh, Tanzanian, decaf and French roast."
"Give me half decaf and half house."
After pouring the coffee. "Do you make cappuccinos?"
I tell her: "Yes we do and lattes."
"If I had known that I would have asked for a cappuccino instead."
"I can make you a cappuccino instead."
Start grinding for a small.
"What flavor cappuccinos do you have?" she asks.
"Uh, we'll we have just about every flavor syrup if you want that in it."
"I want pumpkin spice."
"Just about every flavor except that - I have cinnamon."
"Ok better make it a medium then - it's not too late is it?"
"Nope, I can make it medium," I say.
"Can you make it really dry?"
"You mean with a lot of foam, sure."
Very loud steamer sounds like a plane landing. Pour steamed milk before adding foam.
"I like it really foamy,” she says. “Do you have extra foam you can put in a separate cup for me? I like foam."
I have no extra foam so I just top of her cappuccino and hand it to her over the counter. "Wow,” she says, “this is really light. Why is this so light?"