Category: Blog

Dinner party desserts made with coffee – chocolate soufflé cake

Posted on by Sara Walker

cakeThis soufflé cake is really a baked chocolate mousse masquerading as a cake. It contains no flour, which gives it a lovely moist melting texture and an intense chocolaty hit. The addition of coffee makes the cake even darker and richer, and the recipe works best with espresso coffee.

Start by making the espresso, if possible from freshly ground coffee beans. (Don’t forget to make an extra cup for yourself, to keep you going while beating the eggs!)

Ingredients

  • 125g icing sugar, sifted
  • 200g of very dark chocolate, at least 70%
  • 125g butter
  • 2 tablespoons espresso
  • 6 eggs

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees centigrade, and prepare a 20cm round cake tin by greasing it and lining the bottom with a double layer of greaseproof paper. Using a springform tin will make life easier when it comes to removing the cake from the tin.

Separate the eggs into two different bowls and set the whites aside. Add 100g of the icing sugar to the egg yolks, and beat the mixture until it looks pale and fluffy. Break the chocolate into small pieces in a heat proof bowl, and add the butter. Melt the mixture gently in the microwave in short bursts until fully combined, and stir in the coffee. Let the chocolate mixture cool a little, then add it to the egg yolk mixture.

Now, add the remaining 25g of icing sugar to the egg whites, and whisk them until the mixture turns to a soft, floppy meringue (this is the point at which you’ll be glad you made that extra coffee!). Fold the meringue into the chocolate mixture, using a metal spoon so that you don’t break the volume up too much. Pour the mixture into the cake tin, flatten it out and put it in the oven for 30 minutes.

Once the cooking time is up, remove the cake and leave it in the tin until completely cooled. It may still look wobbly, but as it cools it will gradually reduce and become dense. Once cool, remove it from the tin, cut into slices and serve with vanilla ice cream and cups of espresso coffee.

For a wide range of top quality coffee beans, suitable for all uses, please visit our coffee beans page at the Wholesale Coffee Company website. We also stock a range of flavoured syrups in our coffee ingredients section, perfect for making coffee drinks or for using in recipes.

Easy dinner party desserts made with coffee – coffee granita

Posted on by Sara Walker

iceLooking for an easy dinner party dessert? Here’s a tried and tested recipe that uses our favourite ingredient, coffee. It’s very straightforward to make, and provides a light, refreshing end to the meal.

Granita is an Italian dessert consisting of roughly crushed, flavoured ice, which is often made with fruit juice. Our version is – of course – made with coffee.

The secret to this recipe is to use good quality coffee beans and freshly made coffee. You need no specialist equipment other than an ice-cube tray, a food processor and a domestic freezer. Start this recipe in plenty of time, ideally the day before you need it, to give the ice plenty of time to freeze.

Start by making the coffee. You’ll need half a litre (500ml) of strong, full flavoured black coffee, made from your favourite coffee beans. Stir in two rounded tablespoons of caster sugar until dissolved, then let the liquid stand until almost cold. Pour it into the ice-cube tray, and freeze until hard.

When you’re ready to serve, put a scoop of good quality vanilla ice cream into each serving dish. Turn out the coffee ice cubes, and crush them roughly in a food processor. If you don’t have a food processor, wrap the cubes in a clean tea towel, put them on a chopping board and bash them with a rolling pin. Spoon the coffee ice round the ice cream, and serve.  If you like, you can add a drizzle of flavoured syrup before serving – caramel, Irish cream and hazelnut all work well.

For a wide range of top quality coffee beans, suitable for all uses, please visit our coffee beans page at the Wholesale Coffee Company website. We also stock a range of flavoured syrups, perfect for making coffee drinks or for using in recipes.

Easy dinner party desserts made with coffee – ‘drowned ice cream’

Posted on by Sara Walker

ice creamCoffee’s normally on the menu at the end of every dinner party, when the favourite choice is espresso . If you’re a really coffee fan, though, there are dozens of coffee-flavoured puds to serve as well. Here’s one of our favourites – it’s icy cool, not too rich and looks a lot more complicated to prepare than it really is.

Perfect for rounding off a heavy meal, this is incredibly simple – all you need is some really good quality vanilla ice cream, some equally good quality espresso coffee made from freshly-roasted coffee beans, and the alcohol of your choice – Irish cream, Kahlua coffee liqueur and Tia Maria would all work well.

The secret of success with this recipe is timing. Have the coffee set up ready to brew, with the coffee beans ready ground and waiting. Put out the dishes that you’re using – glass sundae-style dishes work well – and have the alcohol ready to hand. Make the coffee, and take the ice cream out of the freezer at the last minute, so that it stays as hard as possible. Put two scoops of ice cream into each dish, and pour the hot coffee over it until each dish is about a third full. Add a little of your alcohol of choice, and top the dish with a  chocolate covered coffee bean if you like, or a few chocolate sprinkles.

Take the dishes to the table immediately, just as the ice cream is starting to melt into the coffee. If you’re using sundae dishes, it might also be a good idea to provide long handled spoons so that your guests can finish the creamy coffee sauce with ease.

For a wide range of top quality coffee beans, suitable for all uses, please visit our coffee beans page at the Wholesale Coffee Company website.

Our guide to a great bonfire party

Posted on by Sara Walker

firewordsIf you’re having a Guy Fawkes party this year, we’ve got a few ideas to help your night run smoothly.

1. Top up on coffee

Knowing the British weather, there’s a good chance that November 5th will be cold or wet, so hot drinks will keep your guests from freezing. Lay in plenty of your favourite coffee beans so that you won’t run out of coffee drinks. Keep coffee warm in vacuum flasks, and offer hot chocolate, non-alcoholic punch or mulled wine as alternatives.

2. Plan the fire

Choose a safe location for your bonfire, away from overhanging trees, wooden buildings or power cables. If you’re tight for space, build a temporary fire pit by digging a hole around 12 – 18 inches deep and edging it with stones. This will help keep a fire from running out of control. Don’t forget to have a hosepipe or other water source on hand for emergencies.

3. Decide on the menu

Potatoes baked in the fire always sound romantic, but in reality your guests risk keeling over from hunger before anything’s ready to eat. Keep some alternative food on hand, such as sausages, cooked on a barbecue and finished on the fire for that authentic flavour; marshmallows on sticks; parkin cake and vegetarian vegetable kebabs. If the potatoes survive the fire and are still edible, it’s a bonus.

4. Plan ahead

As well as food and drink don’t forget to plan for chairs and blankets for older guests, as well as disposable cups, plates, napkins and cutlery. Make the clearing up easier by offering individual portions of milk and sugar to accompany hot drinks, and position some strategic bins for rubbish.

5. Keep safe

Even at a small private function, accidents happen. Put the fireworks in charge of one person, and ban them from hitting them mulled wine too early. Have buckets of water and a first aid kit on hand, and make sure that any pets or neighbours’ animals are safely shut up indoors.

We wish you an excellent Guy Fawkes night!

For a wide range of coffee beans for all occasions, please visit our coffee beans page. For disposable cups and other catering items to help you plan your event, see our coffee accessories page.

Coffee parkin for Bonfire Night

Posted on by Sara Walker

fireAs you might expect, we’re pretty fond of our coffee at the Wholesale Coffee Company, and we’re also partial to a bit of cake. As it’s coming up to bonfire night, here’s a recipe for a traditional oatmeal parkin, made just a little different with the addition of our favourite ingredient – coffee! You won’t taste the coffee in the finished cake, but it gives a darker texture and rich, moist feel. Best made a few days before required, and eaten in chunks together with a mug of your favourite coffee.

Ingredients

  • 225g butter or margarine
  • 120g soft dark brown sugar
  • 55g black treacle/molasses
  • 2 – 3 tablespoons of strong black coffee, made from freshly roasted coffee beans
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 5 teaspoons ground ginger
  • 2 teaspoons nutmeg
  • 1 teaspoons ground mixed spice
  • 2 large eggs
  • 200g golden syrup
  • 120g fine or medium oatmeal, available from supermarkets
  • 200g self raising flour
  1. Start by preheating the oven to 140 degrees centigrade, then grease a 20cm square shallow cake tin, and line it with greaseproof paper.
  2. Put the butter, sugar treacle and golden syrup in a saucepan, and melt them gently together over a low heat, stirring with a wooden spoon. Don’t overheat the mixture, or it’ll burn. Once fully combined, remove from the heat and set aside.
  3. Mix together the oats, flour, spices and baking powder in a large bowl, then add the sugar mixture from the saucepan. Stir everything together until the dry ingredients are coated.
  4. Add the eggs a little at a time, beating after each addition. Carefully add the coffee a spoonful at a time, until you have a stiff, sticky batter.
  5. Spoon the mixture into the tin, and place in the oven for about 1.25 – 1.5 hours until the cake is set and firm.
  6. Remove from the oven, and leave to cool in the tin until completely cold, then remove. If you’re not eating immediately, wrap the cake in tinfoil and store in an airtight container.

For a selection of top quality coffee beans, visit www.wholesalecoffeecompany.com. We also stock a great range of paper cups and lids suitable for outside use, to help your bonfire party go off with a bang.

Keeping coffee hot for bonfire night

Posted on by Sara Walker

flasksIf your catering company, pub or restaurant is running or catering for a bonfire on November 5th, then it’s time to think about how to serve hot drinks at your outdoor event.

The ideal solution is to have electricity and running water available, to enable you to operate as normal, but that might not always be practical from a logistical or cost point of view.

Other options include catering vacuum flasks. more commonly known as Thermos flasks after the best-known manufacturer, vacuum flasks are insulating storage flasks that keep the contents hot or cold. They consist of two flasks, one placed inside the other, and both joined at the neck. The space between the two flasks is emptied of air, leaving a partial vacuum which prevents heat transfer. There are many styles and models on the market today, specifically designed for commercial use. These include large-capacity dispensing flasks, operated by a lever or handle, and smaller thermos jugs which are designed to be picked up and poured. Any commercial flask should keep the contents hot for between six and ten hours, and they’re a relatively inexpensive option that will last for years.

Alternatively, if you have access to power, perhaps from running an extension lead, but not mains water, you could consider a manual fill water boiler. These require a permanent electricity supply, but don’t need a plumbed-in water supply. They’re available in different capacities, normally 10 litre, 20 litre and 27 litre to suit the scale of your function, and will keep water at boiling point for as long as you need it. If you have the choice, they’re a better option than thermos flasks as the coffee is brewed freshly as needed, rather than being made in advance and stewing.

However you choose to keep your coffee hot on bonfire night, make sure that you start out with the very best in coffee beans for a perfect drink. Browse our range of coffee beans, coffee accessories and coffee ingredients at www.wholesalecoffeecompany.co.uk.

Bonfire coffee and treacle toffee

Posted on by Sara Walker

fireIt’ll soon be November 5th: traditional time of bonfires, fireworks, parkin cake, treacle toffee and, knowing the British weather, hot drinks. Keep yourself and your customers warm on a chilly night with our special gingerbread coffee and treacle toffee recipes.

Gingerbread coffee (makes six servings)

In a small, heatproof bowl, mix six tablespoons of treacle, one heaped teaspoon of ginger and four tablespoons of brown sugar. Put in the microwave and melt together for 30 – 40 seconds, until well combined. Divide the mixture evenly between six sturdy mugs, suitable for outside use. Pour on a little black coffee made from freshly roasted and ground coffee beans, and stir vigorously to dissolve the spice mixture. Fill the cups with coffee until about 2/3 full. Add milk or cream, then top with a dollop of whipped cream and a sprinkling of extra ginger.

Treacle toffee

  • 450g dark brown soft sugar
  • 150ml water
  • 75g unsalted butter
  • 125g treacle
  • 75g golden syrup

Grease a shallow18cm square baking, and line it with greaseproof paper, silicone paper or aluminium foil. If you use foil, press it down carefully into all the corners of the tin.

Using your largest pan (a preserving or maslin pan is ideal), heat the sugar and water together until the sugar has dissolved. Stir the mixture a couple of times to make sure there are no remaining sugar crystals. Add all the remaining ingredients and allow to heat for a few minutes to soften, then stir a couple of times. Let the mixture come to the boil, and watch it carefully – it will foam up inside the pan, and if your pan is too small you risk a treacle-flavoured sugar flood!

Using a sugar thermometer, test for the ‘soft crack’ stage (132 to 143 degrees centigrade) – this will be marked on the thermometer. Once it’s reached this point, pour the mixture carefully into the prepared tin, making sure it’s evenly spread. Mark it into squares with a knife (greasing the knife blade first will make this easier).

Leave the tin at room temperature until the toffee is completely set, then break it into pieces and store in an airtight tin until required.

Serve with gingerbread coffee. For the best coffee beans for use in all your recipes, browse our range at www.wholesalecoffeecompany.co.uk

Pumpkin cake and Hallowe’en coffee

Posted on by Sara Walker

Halloween-lanternIf you’re running a commercial coffee business, such as a coffee shop or restaurant, you’ll now how important seasonal sales can be. Gear up for Hallowe’en with our pumpkin cake and Hallowe’en special coffee.

For the cake:

Pre-heat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius, and prepare a shallow 23cm square baking tin by greasing and lining with greaseproof paper.

Ingredients:

  • 200g sultanas, raisins, dried cherries, cranberries, orange peel or a mixture
  • 300g self raising flour
  • 300g sugar
  • 200g butter or margarine, melted
  • 1 teaspoon each of ginger, nutmeg and cinnamon
  • 4 eggs
  • 500g pumpkin flesh, roughly grated (this is most easily done in a food processor)

In a large bowl, mix all the ingredients together except the pumpkin and the dried fruit. Beat together thoroughly until you have a smooth batter. Stir in the pumpkin and fruit, and spoon the batter into the prepared tin. Smooth it out evenly with the back of a spoon, and tap the tin on the kitchen worktop to remove any air bubbles. Put the tin in the oven for 25 – 30 minutes, until the cake is well risen and the top is slightly springy to the touch. Prick the cake in the centre with a clean skewer, and if the skewer comes out cleanly with no trace of cake mixture, the cake is ready. Leave to cool slightly in the tin, then turn out onto a cooling rack. When fully cool, cut into squares. Serve with Hallowe’en coffee.

For the coffee:

Make a latte as per normal, but add spoonfuls of cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger to the coffee before brewing, so that the spices are brewed along with the drink. Sweeten to taste, then hold a pumpkin or other Hallowe’en template over the drink and dust it with cocoa.

For the best coffee ingredients, coffee beans and other coffee recipe ideas, please visit our website at www.wholesalecoffeecompany.co.uk.

Chocolate syrup cake recipe

Posted on by Sara Walker

cakeIf you’re a fan of flavoured coffee syrups, you’ll know what fantastic coffee ingredients they make, transforming a plain coffee into a luxury treat. Flavoured syrups, though, are also very useful additions to the kitchen shelf. This moist, chocolatey cake uses chocolate coffee syrup as a main ingredient, and is great for a range of occasions .

Before starting, pre-heat the oven to 180 degrees centigrade.

Ingredients

  • 125g butter or margarine
  • 100g chocolate syrup, plus extra for drizzling
  • 4 medium eggs
  • 200g sugar
  • 225g self-raising flour
  • 50g cocoa powder

Put the butter and syrup in a heatproof bowl, and melt gently in the microwave until fully combined. Beat in the sugar. Allow to cool slightly, then add the eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition. Roughly mix the flour and cocoa together, then sieve them into the batter, adding a little at a time and beating after each addition.

Prepare a 23cm square shallow cake tin by greasing it and lining with greaseproof paper. Pour in the batter, and smooth it out with the back of a spoon. Tap the tin sharply on the kitchen counter to release any air bubbles, then put in the pre-heated oven.

Let the cake bake for around an hour, checking frequently. Once well risen and slightly springy to the touch, remove from the oven and test it by inserting a clean skewer into the middle of the cake. If the skewer comes out cleanly, with no residue of cake mixture, then the cake is ready. Otherwise, return it to the oven for a few more minutes.

Once ready, let the cake cool slightly then remove it from the pan and remove any lining paper. While still slightly warm, prick the cake all over with a skewer and pour a little extra syrup over it. When completely cool, cut into pieces and serve with ice cream or cream.

If you’ve used up all your chocolate syrup making this delicious cake, visit the coffee ingredients page of our website for a full range of flavoured syrups, priced at £7.29 a litre.

International coffee festivals and events

Posted on by Sara Walker

file0001037455968Love coffee? So do billions of other people, worldwide. All over the world, coffee and catering companies hold events and festivals dedicated to showcasing the best coffee-related innovations. For example:

Dubai, Middle East

The International Tea and Coffee festival is a trade event held annually in Dubai. This year’s event is from 6th – 9th November, and features everything to do with coffee, tea, bar and café products, equipment and services. The event is now in its fourth year, and is helping to support and expand the Middle East’s flourishing tea and coffee industry. For more information about this year’s event, visit www.coffeeteafest.com.

Philadelphia, USA

Philadelphia is holding its first-ever tea and coffee festival, aimed at individuals rather than trade. More than forty exhibitors will provide tastings, information, instruction and products aimed at the discerning coffee lover. The festival is on the 2nd and 3rd November 2013; for more information visit www.coffeeandteafestival.com/philly.

Seoul, Korea

Two events run consecutively during November in Seoul. The World Coffee Leaders Forum is held from 20st to 21st November 2013. Running for the second year, the event features speakers on a range of topics relevant to the coffee industry. Last year’s event attracted over 1,000 attendees from 30 countries, and this year’s is set to be even bigger and better. For more information, visit www.wclforum.org.

The Forum will be followed by the 12th Seoul International Café Show, featuring dozens of exhibitors as well as the Korean Barista Championships. Although the event concentrates on coffee, exhibitors will also be present representing bakery goods, ice-cream, café machines and equipment, chocolate, desserts, café design, franchising and new business start-ups and restaurants. For more information, visit www.cafeshow.com.

Don’t forget to check out what’s available nearer home, as well – here at the Wholesale Coffee Company, we have a wide range of everything you could need for a coffee-related business, from coffee beans, coffee ingredients and cups to flavoured coffee syrups. Browse our range at www.wholesalecoffeecompany.co.uk.