Tag: christmas coffee

Winter Blues and Nights as Dark as Coffee

Posted on by Sara Walker

If you live in the northern hemisphere the days are a lot shorter now, the nights longer, the air colder and Christmas cheer the thing to keep you awake and happy, apart from, of course, coffee. In the blistering cold and pitch black darkness you really do need a thing or two to keep you going. We have come up with various ideas for how to keep ourselves awake and happy during the day.

One of our fabulous ideas (if we may say so ourselves) is to combine the smell of gingerbread with coffee. Scent is a feel good factor and most people tend to wake up at the smell of fresh roasted coffee beans. Of course you need some light as well, so our recommendation is to get yourself a mighty nice gingerbread house, which you can put tea candles in. Next to it you keep a candle holder with coffee beans in it and a candle (be sure to watch this if you use a regular candle rather than a tea light, as the beans can catch fire when the candle get to the level of the beans!).

Year of Crafts 2013:  February Edition Coffee Bean Candle Holders Coffee Bean Candle Holders. Very easy, and the aroma is awesome.#DIY: #Coffee Bean #Candle Hurricane Project
The other feel-good factor you need is of course fresh roasted coffee beans in your cup – in other words: a fresh cup of java. If you want to make it to taste like Christmas you can add some cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg (potentially a dash of cardamom too), as well as a little bit of honey or maple syrup.

To really perk you up in the darkness serve your coffee with some chocolate. You can either turn it into a Mocha, have a square of really good quality dark chocolate with it, or a slice of some dark chocolate cake. The darker the better for added antioxidants (fight the cold system!) and if you can find some cake that’s sweetened by honey, or maple syrup, rather than sugar. In the two coming posts we will teach share a raw chocolate recipe, and a chocolate cake that is sweetened in this way.

Apart from fresh roasted coffee beans and divine chocolate, what will keep you going through winter is plenty of rest, exercise, fruits, vegetables, walks in the outdoors, and some vitamins, like added vitamin D in lieu of sunshine.

If you want to buy coffee for your winter blues, you can buy coffee online through our shop. We offer great prices and great coffee (that in and of itself should cheer you up instantly!).

Christmas Drinks

Posted on by Sara Walker

Christmas is coming up and we’ll…drink to that. Of course, when we drink we’d love if it includes coffee. Fresh roasted coffee beans that are freshly ground to be precise. We may even roast the green coffee beans ourselves to get the perfect blend.

As it’s usually cold around Christmas time a little bit of liquor with the coffee helps to keep you warm. Find below a nice Christmas drink to keep you warm and happy. And remember, whatever you do: use fresh roasted beans of a good quality. It’s the best you can do to ensure the drink turns out nice. And of course: freshly whipped cream. Not the stuff that comes out of a can – after all you want a traditional Christmas!

We found this recipe at Recipe Hub

Ingredients:

4 oz strong coffee
1 1/2 oz amaretto liqueur
1 1/2 oz coffee liqueur
1 oz butterscotch schnapps
1 oz creme de cocoa
fresh whipped cream
grated chocolate, for garnish

Directions:

Combine strong coffee and liqueurs in a glass. Stir to combine and top with fresh whipped cream. Garnish with grated chocolate.

Serve warm or over ice.

 

‘Tis the Season

Posted on by Sara Walker

‘Tis the season…to drink coffee. Naturally. It’s always the season to drink coffee. However, in Christmas time you can add some extra spice to those fresh roasted coffee beans of yours. You can do so by adding traditional Christmas spice into your regular blend, like cinnamon and nutmeg for example. You can also try candy cane lattes, or why not eggnog lattes?

Below we have listed some recipes we found. Of course you need to buy coffee online from us and then it’s just to get started. And if you really can’t buy from us then we recommend truly fresh roasted coffee beans that you grind at home. The fresher the better. You can even buy green coffee beans and roast them yourself.

Eggnog Latte – recipe from Mother Nature Network

Prep time: 5 minutes, Cook time: 1 minute
Ingredients
• 1/3 cup 2% milk
• 2/3 cup eggnog
• 1 shot (1.5 ounces) brewed espresso
• Nutmeg (optional)
Directions
1. Pour milk and eggnog into a steaming pitcher and heat to between 145-165 degrees F, using the steaming wand.
2. Brew the shot of espresso, then add to mug.
3. Pour the steamed milk and eggnog into the mug, using a spoon to hold back the foam. Spoon foam over the top. Sprinkle ground nutmeg (or grind fresh nutmeg yourself) on top of the foam. Serves one.

Candy Cane Latte

1 cup almond milk or regular organic milk
1/2 cup brewed coffee or 1 shot espresso
2 tbsp crushed peppermint candy canes + extra for decoration

Whipped cream (optional

Mix the coffee with the candy cane, then add the steamed milk (if you can’t steam it at home, whip it whilst heating it to get it frothy. Almond milk, however, does not really froth). Potentially add some sweetened whipped cream. Sprinkle some crushed candy cane on top and serve with a candy cane to the side.

Who doesn't want to wake up to a yummy peppermint latte on Christmas morning??

Homemade Chocolate Coffee Swizzle Sticks

Posted on by Sara Walker

These chocolate swizzle sticks are really easy to make, and are a great craft project for
children if you supervise them while they’re melting the chocolate. When stirred into a cup of hot coffee made from freshly-ground coffee beans, the swizzle sticks will gradually dissolve to give a rich, chocolaty taste. They’re a great Christmas gift for a coffee lover, and also ideal for dinner party favours or place settings.

You’ll need:

Star-shaped chocolate lollipop mould
Lollipop sticks
2 x 100g bars of good quality dark chocolate
Edible gold lustre (optional)
Two different colours of cellophane, for example gold and clear
Ribbon

What to do:

Before you start, make sure everything you need to use is clean and dry, as melted
chocolate splits on contact with water.

Break the chocolate into small pieces and put it in a microwave-proof bowl. Melt the
chocolate slowly in the microwave in twenty-second bursts, stirring the chocolate between
each burst. Don’t rush this stage, as it’s easy to burn the chocolate and ruin it.

When the chocolate’s fully melted, stir it for one to two minutes until it looks shiny. This will
help stop it separating when it’s poured into the mould.

Place a lollipop stick in each mould, then carefully spoon the chocolate in. Smooth it off with the back of a spoon, and place the mould in the fridge until the chocolate is set.

Turn the lollipops out onto a clean, dry surface, and carefully brush each star with edible
gold dust.Cut two squares of cellophane, and wrap them round the star, tying them round the lollipop stick with ribbon. Store the swizzle sticks in a cool, dry place alongside your coffee beans until it’s time to use them – don’t keep them in the fridge, as this may cause the chocolate to bloom and look unattractive.

To use the sticks as place settings, write each person’s name on a luggage label and tie it
just below the star with ribbon.

Coffee At Christmas

Posted on by Sara Walker

We’ve all got our opinions as to why we celebrate Christmas, what we like about the festival and what Christmas means to us – the birth of Jesus, presents, togetherness…

If you like and celebrate December 25, I’m sure you’ll agree that it’s a time when people are generally warmer, kinder and more pleasant to each other. For example, you’re probably more likely to give to a homeless person on Christmas Eve than at any other time of the year or be more generous to strangers – providing you haven’t left your Christmas Shopping to the last minute and you’re now in a frantic hurry!

But, did you know that coffee also plays a part in the tradition of bringing people together too? In the 19th century, roasting coffee beans at Christmas was a traditional family activity that was supposed to bring the whole family together. For many families today, drinking coffee at Christmas is still seen as an important Christmas tradition.

Hot mugs of coffee can also help people to feel more connected according to some psychologists. A study was conducted with hot and iced coffee to determine whether participants would feel warmer and more connected to people when they had a hot cup of coffee in their hands.

Approximately 40 participants took part in the study; they were then shown a series of photographs of people who they had to rate according to how warm they felt each person was.

The results show that the people who were given hot mugs of coffee wrote more positive things about the pictures of people they had to identify, as opposed to the participants who were given iced coffee. Similar experiments show that holding hot objects can make us more generous and trusting towards other people.

So, if things start to get a bit too prickly this Christmas – you know what to do – just make everyone a hot mug coffee and sit by a fire.

Christmas Coffee Drinks

Posted on by Sara Walker

Christmas Coffee Drinks

Christmas is party season, and if you’re looking for something a little unusual to
serve with the mince pies this year, why not try one of our special Christmas coffee
recipes?

Festive Spiced Christmas Coffee

With its aroma of cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg and orange, this is the ultimate
Christmas coffee. Serve mid-morning with a slice of cake on the morning of the 25th
December to get the festivities off to a flying start.

Ingredients (serves 4)

Freshly-ground coffee of your choice
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon cloves
4 good teaspoons shredless orange marmalade
Sugar to taste
Whipped cream
Chocolate powder to decorate
Edible gold stars (optional)

Place the coffee and spices into your coffee machine, and allow to brew as normal.
Pour the coffee into four mugs, and stir a spoonful of marmalade into each. Add
sugar to taste. Top with a dollop of cream, a sprinkle of chocolate powder and an
edible gold star.

Chocolate and Almond Coffee

This sweet treat is perfect for warming up after a chilly walk.

Ingredients (serves 4)

Freshly ground coffee of your choice
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon natural almond extract
4 good teaspoons dark chocolate chips

Whipped cream and toasted almonds, to serveMake the coffee as usual in your coffee machine, and pour it into four mugs. To each mug, add a few drops of almond essence and a heaped teaspoon of chocolate chips. Serve with whipped cream and a few toasted almonds on top.

Greek Iced Coffee

This refreshing drink is perfect served after Christmas lunch as a quick pick-me-up
when everyone’s feeling a little jaded. It needs to be made well before the meal to
allow it to cool properly.

Ingredients (serves 4)

Freshly ground coffee of your choice
Icing sugar to taste
8 ice cubes
Chilled milk to taste

Make the coffee as usual in your coffee machine, and allow to it to cool. Wrap the
ice cubes in a tea towel, and crush then roughly with a rolling pin. Put the coffee and
ice in a container with a well-fitting lid, and add the milk and sugar to taste. Shake
vigorously until well-mixed, then serve in tall glasses.

Cinnamon and Maple Coffee

This is a really simple idea that won’t take up too much time if you’re busy on the
day.

Ingredients (serves 4)

Freshly ground coffee of your choice
1 teaspoon of cinnamon
Maple syrup
Whipping cream and cinnamon sticks, to serve

Place the coffee and cinnamon in your coffee machine together, and brew as usual.
Pour the coffee into four mugs, and add a good squirt of syrup to each one. Serve
topped with whipped cream and a cinnamon stick.