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I had planned on doing a tutorial on making a Kindle Paperwhite sleeve, but my ReMarkable2's battery gave out in the middle of making the pdf, so we're going to go with something else instead.
COFFEE! YAY!
I have to preface this by saying that I got the idea for my "fancy coffee" when I saw a product in the store and thought, "hey, that looks interesting!" It was Copper Cow Vietnamese Pour Over Coffee (See affiliate coffee link HERE). I didn't buy mine from Amazon, I got mine at a local store, but it's the same product. I really liked it, and it is convenient. I got the lavender one (that's what the affiliate link takes you to) but they make others as well.
Anyway, I love these kinds of things and it's fun to try different products without the hassle of trying to figure it out for myself, but sometimes what I like is not the most popular thing and I get left behind as trends and tastes change. So I'm always looking for ways to keep my own tastes satisfied.
One of the things in the Copper Cow package were packets of sweetened condensed milk. I don't know why, but I had never considered using it to sweeten coffee. And in case you are lactose intolerant or lactose sensitive, or have other reasons for avoiding dairy, here's an alternative: Nature's Charm Sweetened Condensed Coconut Milk. I haven't tried this so I can't give you a recommendation on it except to say it's a dairy free option. At any rate, I found the idea of having the condensed milk packets to sweeten the pour over coffee an intriguing one. So I decided to try it myself.
I also had on hand some syrups. It's a 3 pack of Amoretti floral syrups that I got because I put like to put the violet lavender syrup in my sparkling water. I also like the idea of the rose flavored syrup. Someday I'm going to find the Rose Earl Grey Tea recipe and make that using the rose syrup. I'm less interested in the Orange Blossom. As the name suggested, it is not orange flavored but rather orange blossom flavored. Quite a different flavor to what you expect. At any rate I had on hand the ingredients to make a fancy coffee.
I had planned on doing a tutorial on making a Kindle Paperwhite sleeve, but my ReMarkable2's battery gave out in the middle of making the pdf, so we're going to go with something else instead.
COFFEE! YAY!
I have to preface this by saying that I got the idea for my "fancy coffee" when I saw a product in the store and thought, "hey, that looks interesting!" It was Copper Cow Vietnamese Pour Over Coffee (See affiliate coffee link HERE). I didn't buy mine from Amazon, I got mine at a local store, but it's the same product. I really liked it, and it is convenient. I got the lavender one (that's what the affiliate link takes you to) but they make others as well.
Anyway, I love these kinds of things and it's fun to try different products without the hassle of trying to figure it out for myself, but sometimes what I like is not the most popular thing and I get left behind as trends and tastes change. So I'm always looking for ways to keep my own tastes satisfied.
One of the things in the Copper Cow package were packets of sweetened condensed milk. I don't know why, but I had never considered using it to sweeten coffee. And in case you are lactose intolerant or lactose sensitive, or have other reasons for avoiding dairy, here's an alternative: Nature's Charm Sweetened Condensed Coconut Milk. I haven't tried this so I can't give you a recommendation on it except to say it's a dairy free option. At any rate, I found the idea of having the condensed milk packets to sweeten the pour over coffee an intriguing one. So I decided to try it myself.
I also had on hand some syrups. It's a 3 pack of Amoretti floral syrups that I got because I put like to put the violet lavender syrup in my sparkling water. I also like the idea of the rose flavored syrup. Someday I'm going to find the Rose Earl Grey Tea recipe and make that using the rose syrup. I'm less interested in the Orange Blossom. As the name suggested, it is not orange flavored but rather orange blossom flavored. Quite a different flavor to what you expect. At any rate I had on hand the ingredients to make a fancy coffee.
Do you like my coffee area? This is where the fun all starts. That crazy multi-color mat was something I made so that I could do my coffee pouring but not care too much if coffee spilled on it.
So there's the grinder, the Aeropress set up, the Bodum milk frother (not used today), the Sanka (which I only bought because of Sebastian Maniscalco, I also had a box of Entenmann's coffee cake) and my cute embroidery piece I did from a kit.
I used my hot toddy cup (and yes I did purchase it just because I thought it would be nice to have my hot toddies in, recipe for that to come later) this time because I thought it would be nice to see the coffee in a clear cup.
OH! This coffee takes some advance prep, by the way. Freeze some strong coffee in an ice cube tray at least overnight. You'll be glad you did.
So there's the grinder, the Aeropress set up, the Bodum milk frother (not used today), the Sanka (which I only bought because of Sebastian Maniscalco, I also had a box of Entenmann's coffee cake) and my cute embroidery piece I did from a kit.
I used my hot toddy cup (and yes I did purchase it just because I thought it would be nice to have my hot toddies in, recipe for that to come later) this time because I thought it would be nice to see the coffee in a clear cup.
OH! This coffee takes some advance prep, by the way. Freeze some strong coffee in an ice cube tray at least overnight. You'll be glad you did.
Boil about 6 oz of water in the microwave. You can do this on the stove, but for small amounts it's really easier in the microwave. I have several Pyrex measuring cups I love for doing this. I say "about" 6 oz because this is really according to your taste. It's kind of an "espresso like" coffee. The Aeropress doesn't make a true espresso (no crema that I've been able to come by with it) but it does make a strong little cup of coffee. Use the amount you like for one serving. I put mine in the micro for about two and half minutes. That's a bit much, but it ensures my water is at the right temp even if I'm busy doing something else with the Aeropress for a moment and I have to let it sit for a tiny bit.
Of course this also hinges on what wattage your micro might be--you can see mine is 1,000 watts.
Be careful when you take it out in case you've superheated the water. I've done this a couple times. It boils in the micro to the point where you don't see the bubbles anymore, but when you take it out and jiggle it or put something in it **POOF** boils over violently. BE CAREFUL WITH BOILING WATER PLEASE. I want you to have a nice cup of coffee but I don't want you to get burned. Keep aloe in your kitchen just in case of very minor burns. BE CAREFUL.
Of course this also hinges on what wattage your micro might be--you can see mine is 1,000 watts.
Be careful when you take it out in case you've superheated the water. I've done this a couple times. It boils in the micro to the point where you don't see the bubbles anymore, but when you take it out and jiggle it or put something in it **POOF** boils over violently. BE CAREFUL WITH BOILING WATER PLEASE. I want you to have a nice cup of coffee but I don't want you to get burned. Keep aloe in your kitchen just in case of very minor burns. BE CAREFUL.
Here's another part of my coffee set-up. The little containers are pre-measured amounts of different coffee measured perfectly to make a full pot of coffee in our full-size coffee maker.
My fave right now is Community Coffee Pecan Praline. But I'm not going to use that for my fancy coffee today. You'll see what I've got in a moment.
BUT I did use some leftover Pecan Praline for the coffee cubes I froze in some silicone ice cube trays. I'm still getting used to those. I didn't think they were that great at first, but now they're growing on me.
Make sure you store your coffee cubes in something with a lid that can keep out flavors and smells from other foods. Keep a box of baking sode in the freezer, too. No matter how hard you try, every once in a while smells get out of hand in fridge and freezer. Just keep an eye (nostril?) on it.
Here's the main coffee selection for today. I had previously ground up a bit of the Dunkin' coffee as fine as I could manage in my hand grinder. I'm still getting used to it. It's kind of a cheap one, but not bad for the price. I think it was less than $20 if I am remembering correctly. I don't like for it to sit for too long even in the sealed jar so I figured I had better use it. I don't know exactly how much this was but it was about an Aeropress scoop full (maybe 15 g? I think). Again, this is personal taste. Use about as much as you think you'd like for a single small serving of strong coffee.
Now, get ready, because I'm going to use the Inverted Method for using the Aeropress. I think it's better because I can just leave my coffee to steep while I'm doing other things, like getting sugar and flavorings and whatnots ready.
Ok, so you've got your Aeropress ready, you've just taken your water out of the micro (BE CAREFUL). Carefully dip your filter in the water (watch for super-heated water!!!!) to moisten it and put it in the plastic filter thing. That's all I use, I don't have any fancy after-market add-ons. This is an older model of the Aeropress that I've had for a while so I don't know if the accessories are different now.
I put my coffee in the Aeropress and poured in the water and put the filter thing on top.
I don't do any of the fancy "blooming" of the coffee (well, sometimes I do, but not usually) so I just pour all the water in and let it steep while I do some other things.
Oh, make sure you've got your condensed milk out. I keep mine in a glass jar in the fridge, so I take mine out at the start so it's warm enough to pour out easy.
I put my coffee in the Aeropress and poured in the water and put the filter thing on top.
I don't do any of the fancy "blooming" of the coffee (well, sometimes I do, but not usually) so I just pour all the water in and let it steep while I do some other things.
Oh, make sure you've got your condensed milk out. I keep mine in a glass jar in the fridge, so I take mine out at the start so it's warm enough to pour out easy.
 I pour a little of the syrup into the cup. I didn't measure. Again, this is to taste. It's probably somewhere between a teaspoon and a tablespoon of syrup. |  Here's the syrup I use. I don't have any plain lavender syrup but this stuff is really good. When I get brave I'm going to try more flavors of syrup. |
Pour the condensed milk right over the syrup. No measuring it because it is syrupy and sticky. About a tablespoon or so. Maybe even a bit more. This coffee is strong, and we're going to use the ice coffee cubes, too. Make it super sweet.
All this time your coffee has been steeping. It's ready by now for sure. Invert the Aeropress over your cup. Coffee is going to start pouring into your cup. It's ok. It's how the Aeropress do.
Just press your coffee out CAREFULLY into your cup.
After pressing out the coffee but before the stirring.
Do I have to tell you to stir your coffee?
Of course I don't.
Stir all that magic together.
I usually put three or four coffee cubes in my coffee. Stir well first to distribute the syrup and condensed milk before you put the coffee cubes in.
It's glorious.
It's not a lot, but you really don't want to drink too much of super sweet, strong coffee all at once.
Of course you can skip the coffee cubes if you want.
You can make it more Americano by adding plain water to make it to the level of a regular cup of coffee.
You could froth milk and put that in instead of the sweetened condensed milk or along with it.
Obviously flavoring is up to you. Try different syrups, different flavors of coffee, no syrup, whatever.
Enjoy!!!!
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