Paleo Double Mocha Biscotti

In our last blog post we talked a little bit about coffee on the Paleo diet – most people allow it in small to moderate amounts, and we gave you a fabulous Pumpkin Spice Latte recipe. This time we are moving on to the treat to go with it – Double Mocha Biscotti. Once again they are Paleo and vegan if you use agave nectar rather than honey.

Now, all you need is some real good quality cacao and fresh roasted coffee beans for this recipe. As we are obsessed with beans, we have to state that it’s always better to get good quality coffee beans and cacao. It’s what’s separate gourmet food, from average food. Coffee beans being our passion we know what we are talking about. You may not know why if you’re not a coffee connoisseur, but the biscotti will taste better with good quality coffee beans. Guaranteed.

So we got a bit sidetracked with our coffee obsession, but now onto the amazing, fabulous, most certainly healthy biscotti (cacao, honey, almonds and coffee all have antioxidants and other nutrients that are good for you). We found the recipe at Elana’s Pantry. Enjoy guys!

2 ¼ cups blanched almond flour
¼ cup cacao powder
2 tablespoons arrowroot powder
1 tablespoon organic decaf coffee, espresso grind
¼ teaspoon celtic sea salt
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ cup agave nectar or honey
½ cup chocolate chunks

  1. In a food processor, combine almond flour, cacao powder, arrowroot powder, ground coffee, salt and baking soda
  2. Pulse until ingredients are well combined
  3. Pulse in agave nectar until the dough forms a ball
  4. Remove dough from food processor and work in dark chocolate with your hands
  5. Form dough into 2 logs on a parchment paper lined baking sheet
  6. Bake at 325° for 25 minutes, then remove from oven and cool for 1 hour
  7. Cut the logs into ½ inch slices on the diagonal with a very sharp knife
  8. Spread slices out on a baking sheet and bake at 300° for 12-15 minutes
  9. Remove from oven and allow to cool, set, and become crispy
  10. Serve

Makes about 14 biscotti

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Paleo Coffee Treats

You’ve probably heard of the Paleo diet. Chances are if you are reading this you might be on the diet right now, or curious to try recipes from it. And therefore, you probably also know there will be no gluten, no refined sugars, and no dairy in the recipes. That doesn’t mean you don’t get treats, or coffee, even though strictly speaking, coffee isn’t part of the diet. For most people the important bit is health however and so long as coffee isn’t damaging your health, then it’s allowed, given you don’t so to speak over dose.

The Paleo diet is a lot about quality foods and sticking to what is natural. In other words: if you are to make a treat, or drink coffee, use the best quality options: organic, fairtrade and if decaffinated then use water processed coffee beans. And as always: fresh roasted coffee beans makes for the best cup. You don’t necessarily have to buy green coffee beans and roast them yourself, but if you have a grinder then it’s better to grind your own coffee! Or use Nespresso capsules!

Today we will share a Pumpkin Spice Latte Paleo recipe from Freckled Italian with you and our next blog will be Double Mocha Biscotti. Combined we figured they’d get you through the winter blues!

Pumpkin Spice Latte, the Paleo Way

Ingredients:

Makes at least two drinks.

5.46 (yep, that’s real) ounces of canned coconut milk

4 tablespoons of canned pumpkin (I just put the rest in a Tupperware)

1 tablespoon agave nectar

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon cloves, 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg

A tiny dash of ginger

(Feel free to add more or less of something if you really love or hate one of these spices)

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

An ounce or two of regular unsweetened coconut milk (in a carton)

A shot or two of espresso or some strongly-brewed coffee

1. Open your tiny can of coconut milk. Put a spoon under the thick part and pour the liquid underneath into a bowl. That’s what you’re using for your latte. The thick part will be whipped cream later, so put it in a separate bowl.

2. Mix everything except for the coconut milk in the carton together in a bowl and stir them up.

3. Once all the spices are incorporated into the pumpkin, add a few splashes of coconut milk from a carton to the mixture until it seems more liquid than thick. Heat up on the stove while you make some espresso or strongly-brewed coffee.

4. Take the bowl with the thick portion of canned coconut milk and whisk it up with a bit more vanilla and agave.

5. Fill a mug halfway with coffee and add the pumpkin mixture from the stove. Stir it–this stuff separates. Don’t get freaked out.

6. Add a few dollops of the coconut cream and sprinkle a little cinnamon on top.

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Autumn Blueberry Cake

For you coffee fanatics out there it might be a challenge to find something that adds to your coffee, rather than subtracts from it. That is to say: it makes your fresh roasted coffee beans taste even sweeter than when just having a plain cup of Joe.

Here at the Wholesale Coffee Co. we consume quite a lot of coffee. Our favourite at the moment is the Tunki coffee – after all Tunki coffee did receive an award as best tasting coffee in the world! All in all, a cup of Tunki coffee therefore isn’t a bad way to start your morning!

We wanted to find something seasonal to pair with our Tunki coffee with as a treat and just found this gorgeous recipe for Blueberry-Lavender Coffee Cake with lemon drizzle at Healthy. Delicious., which is looking very promising. It even promises that it won’t taste too much like perfume from the lavender. Phew.

Try the cake and try our Tunki coffee with it!

Ingredients
For the filling
  • 1 cup blueberries
  • ¼ cup water
  • 2 tablespoons honey
  • ½ teaspoon dried lavender
For the cake1 cup Gold Medal white whole wheat flour
  • 1 cup Gold Medal all purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 6 tablespoons unsalted butter (3/4 stick), softened
  • ? cup sugar
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 cup buttermilk
For the glaze
  • ¼ cup confectioners sugar
  • 1 lemon, juiced
Preparation
  1. Prepare filling by combining blueberries, water, honey, and lavender in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil; cook 5 minutes, stirring frequently, until thick and syrupy. Let cool.
  2. Heat oven to 350*F. Grease the bottom and sides of a loaf pan.
  3. In a mixing bowl, combine the flours, baking soda and salt. In a second bowl, cream together the butter and sugar. Add the egg and vanilla. Stir in half the dry ingredients – the batter will be very thick and doughy. Stir in half the buttermilk – the batter will thin back out. Repeat.
  4. Pour half the batter into the prepared pan. Spread with blueberry filling. Top with remaining batter. (The pan will be ½ to ¾ full).
  5. Bake for 45-55 minutes. Let cool.
  6. Add the confectioners sugar and lemon juice to a small saucepan set over medium heat. Cook 1-2 minutes, stirring constantly, until sugar is melted. Immediately drizzle over the cake.

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Coffee Shop Window Displays

When setting up a coffee shop the first thing you think of is probably not the window display. The smell of fresh roasted coffee beans, yes. The idea of roasting green coffee beans to perfection, potentially yes (if you want to roast yourself). Splendid freshly brewed coffee, most certainly yes.

When people set up coffee shops they usually reckon that the best way to get patrons is to have patrons in the shop already. That’s the best window display – large windows that show the ambiance of the place and the people in it. How to get people in there? A big sign outside with some special deal, or temptation, the waft of freshly brewed coffee and potentially some freshly baked cakes too, and decent pricing, really great ambiance, and excellent treatment once you walk in the door. This might work, but by ignoring the windows altogether, you are missing out a great way of attracting potential customers.

If you have two windows you can definitively keep one as a “keyhole” where people can look to see what the people are doing inside. The other can be used for window displays, or you can simply keep the lower part of the window free all the way along the front of the coffee shop.

Window displays are your outlet for creativity and for coming up with little gimmicks that will attract attention – whether through extreme beauty, creativity, humor, or shock. What you have to bear in mind is to keep the display in style with the coffee shop, just like the decor of the place has to match the menu. In other words: don’t do neon lights in your window display if the rest of the place represents an 18th century style salon.

Next time you are in town have a look at various shops and their window displays – note what attracts you to some, and what makes you step away from others! Below you can find some inspiration for fall decorations, albeit you might have to add some coffee beans to yours. And the smell of freshly brewed coffee…

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Monday Morning Coffee Wisdom

It’s that time of the week where you look at your schedule and have a potential meltdown…and pick up the week’s first cup of coffee and drink it like you mean business. Because you do – it’s Monday morning and you have a mountain of work, making your schedule look more like Mount Everest than a walk in the park. Thankfully the caffeine will soon kick in, you will start to feel happier, more relaxed…and potentially even excited about your week ahead. That’s what coffee does to you: it opens your mind to possibilities. It keeps you going until wine o’clock when it’s time to chill out and do your best to enjoy the view of where you got so far on Mount Everest. After all, each day you get a little bit further up the mountain and instead of stressing out the best thing to do is to relax and enjoy the view that is a little bit better than yesterday. Even if you actually managed to fall and go down the mountain that day, at least you know one more route that DOESN’T work. Edison found 100 ways of how not to make a light bulb, before he made a light bulb.

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Here at the Wholesale Coffee Co. we love Monday mornings. It’s time for strategy sessions surrounded by green coffee beans, fresh roasted coffee beans, espresso machines, and fresh espresso served all round – whether made by Nespresso machines, or we ground our own coffee beans and made the espresso with a traditional espresso machine. It’s quite a treat.

The best thing about Mondays though is love. No, seriously. If you love what you do Mount Everest looks kind of grand from the Monday morning perspective. Quite divine in fact – it’s your mission, your purpose in life. Or at least part of it. The other part might be friends, family, relationships, hobbies…and as with work they are all mountains as everything comes with obstacles. It should seem like a bad thing though, but rather like climbing a mountain – a mountain where every day you get a grander view.

Life is a loving work. Work fueled by coffee beans… And if you are looking to buy coffee online, you know where to find us 😉

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Barista Training Courses Worldwide

Fresh roasted coffee beans, maybe even some green coffee beans to roast yourself, great espresso and coffee machines, secret coffee ingredients…these are things that can make some people swoon and if this is you, it’s probably time to pack your bags and head to a barista school if you haven’t already. After all, if you love coffee so much you want to be able to make yourself the best coffee, don’t you? Know which the best coffee beans are and how to treat them for ultimate satisfaction when it comes to the end result.

Last week we talked about doing a barista vacation to the US, this week we talk about…the rest of the world. Of course we can’t cover all schools on here, so it makes sense if you want to go to first decide your budget and what area you want to go to.

London. Yep, if you like red double-decker buses, black taxis, the British accent, and rain, then you will be happy to know that you can also learn about coffee in London. In fact, the London School of Coffee (sounds just like Hogwarts to us) offers four different level barista trainings and various workshops around coffee, like how to set up your own coffee shop.

Like the UK, but would prefer a Scottish accent, or more mountains and less traffic? The Scottish Barista School will be your perfect match in that case. They offer a variety of courses and proper barista training.

Want something a bit more…exotic? Palm trees and all? Then there’s the Dormans Barista and Coffee Training Center in Kenya. They are the only Specialty Coffee Association of Europe (SCAE) certified Barista training centre in Africa. There you can learn how best to brew your coffee, do various levels of barista training and do things like sip coffee from Kilimanjaro.

If you’d prefer Asia to Africa, then you could go to the Philippine Barista & Coffee Academy. They offer a range of barista course, business training for coffee shop owners, or to be coffee shop owners as well as short courses i everything from holiday drinks, to how to pair different teas with food.

Want to browse the rest of the world? A good place to start is the Specialty Coffee Association of Europe. You can find out more about the courses their trainers hold around the world here. Also, if you want to partake in a great barista competition that’s the site to explore! On Barista Guide you can find a few more.

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A Barista Vacation to the USA

Are you one of the millions who absolutely love coffee? Do you wake up for the sake of smelling the smell of fresh roasted coffee beans? Do you order your own green coffee beans so you can toast them to perfection? Do you experiment to make different patterns with the foam of the coffee, or coffee art as it is known as? Maybe, just maybe it’s time for a barista vacation? In other words – it’s time to take a vacation to indulge in your passion for the little bean known as coffee.

There are many different barista schools worldwide that offers day, week and month long courses and in this article we will look at some in the States and in the next article some barista schools in other countries.

Portland and Seattle are known as the coffee capitals of America, so not surprisingly you find one of the best schools in Portland. It’s the American Barista & Coffee School The school boasts of having had clients from over 40 countries. Portland might not be your city of call if you want sunshine, but if you want a very eco-friendly town, with tons of hipsters and incredible cafes, you will be very pleased.

If, on the other hand, it is the beaches you want, what better than sunny California? They may have earthquakes, but on the upside you can drive to the desert (and even Vegas if you go out of state), mountains (for skiing), nature reserves for hiking, wine farms for well, wine and the big city, usually within an hour or two of where you are, if you are in Southern California. SoCal is also where the Ivy League Barista Academy is. It’s actually in picturesque San Diego, which offers a nice small town vibe. They offer consulting as well as hands-on barista training…and 247 days of sunshine a year.

If you want lakes instead of beaches Holland in Michigan is another alternative, as it is home of the Midwest Barista School. The school offers clients both hands-on coffee classes and courses to help entrepreneurs start or improve their cafe business. In summer you will want to bring your bathing suit and enjoy the fabulous lakes and in winter ice skates and really, really warm clothing! It might be a nice summer holiday, cozy autumn break, or beautiful summer vacation!

If you are looking for a vacation in a city that never sleeps and where the latest trends mingle with the fresh arts, the sophisticated views of centuries gone past and the craze of new entrepreneurs and old school economics, then New York will probably be your best bet. After all, there’s something for everyone in that town, including the Kitten Coffee Barista School in Brooklyn, who offers Espresso 100 and Advanced Espresso classes.

We hope this might have given you some ideas and inspiration, and as mentioned in our next blog we will cover barista schools worldwide. For now though, sit back and smell the smell of those fresh roasted coffee beans…

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Going of Coffee Vacation? Why Not?!

Buying coffee online might be one of the latest fads in the coffee industry (after all you have the whole world within reach – just Google whatever coffee you want to buy), but there is something about exploring coffee in person as well. Recently we caught a show on Discovery Channel, or similar, where a man went to Ethiopia in search of a new coffee bean he could export. There’s a reason this made for adventure TV – he was driving through the wilderness trying good and bad coffee in far off villages and plantations you probably couldn’t find with a map. That’s an extreme coffee adventure. Some would probably prefer to order their fresh roasted coffee beans from all over the world with a click of a button. However, if you want to go explore there are alternatives.

If you are looking for a coffee vacation to taste new varieties of coffee, or simply go see where your favourite coffee is grown, Google will once again be your best friend. You see all over the world coffee plantations are opening their doors for overnight guests. Many tours where you stay at a regular hotel but take trips to coffee plantations are also available. We have heard that Costa Rica and Kona Island (Hawaii, where the famous Kona coffee is grown) are particularly good destinations. We think the idea of beaches and palm trees sound fabulous, so why not? Also, why not make a trip to Jamaica to try some of the famous Blue Mountain coffee on location? If you fancy Africa, Ethiopia is the obvious answer, but you can visit coffee farms even in South Africa, if you prefer a more westernized trip. Peru where you can find the Tunki coffee (which we sell!) is another popular destination, not least because the coffee won an award for best tasting coffee in the world!

In short: there are coffee plantations all over the world, the questions you need to ask yourself is: 1) What coffee am I the most interested in? 2) What places would I most like to visit? 3) What am I prepared to pay for my trip?

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Swedish Cinnamon Rolls or “Kanelbullar”

Kanelbullar which directly translates to cinnamonbuns are a Swedish delicacy that you eat with…you guessed it: a good cup of coffee! (The Swedes are in the top five coffee drinking nations in the world, with Finland topping the list…maybe because it’s dark in winter the Nordic countries love some coffee to keep them going?) In Sweden the smell of fresh roasted coffee beans gingerly mingles with the smell of freshly made cinnamon rolls and once you get used to that smell you might want more…

We decided to share two different recipes with you – one is a bit unusual using pumpkin in it, but you could exchange that for applesauce (potentially sweetened). These delicious rolls will be the perfect companion to the coffee beans you buy from us. By buying coffee online you save yourself the trip to the shop, so why not use that time to bake instead?

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Cinnamon Rolls, original recipe can be found here.

DOugh

  • 3 dl yoghurt (300g)
  • 25 g fresh yeast
  • Just about 7 dl wheatflour (400g)
  • 1/2 dl honey (60g)
  • 1/2-1 tsp ground cardamom
  • 1 tbsp rapeseed oil
  • 1/2 tsp salt

FILLing

  • 100 g marzipan (or almond paste – it contains sugar and almond)
  • 1 dl almonds, whole (NOT blanched) (ca.50g)
  • 1 dl raisins (ca.50g)
  • 1 1/2 tbsp ground cinnamon
  • 1 dl applesauce
  • 1 egg for glazing

Instructions:

Ca. 24 buns

Crumble the yeast and add yoghurt at room temperature.

Add the flour whilst kneading, make sure you don’t get too much flour! Add honey, cardamom, oil and salt. Knead till you have a smooth dough.

Knead for about 10 min with a bread maker, or by hand. Let the dough rise to about double the size in a bowl covered by a clean towel in a room with no draft.

Take out the dough and roll with a rolling pin to an even square ca. 40×40 cm.

Grate the marzipan/almond paste. Chop or blend the almonds roughly, save 2 tablespoons for decoration. Mix marzipan, chopped almonds, raisins, cinnamon and applesauce.

Spread the filling over the dough, but save one thin line at one edge. Whisk the egg and brush the edge with no filling with it.

Roll the dough with the filling in it – roll so that you save the edge with the egg on it for last, using that to make the roll stick together properly.

Measure and cut the dough roll into 24 pieces for medium size cinnamon rolls. Cut it as soon as you’ve made the roll as if you wait it will be more difficult to cut as the dough will continue to rise. Use a sharp knife, preferably a bread knife.

Put baking paper on a baking tray and place the buns on it. You can also just put them straight on the tray if you butter it first, however, the buns might leave a mess for you to clean up on the tray. The buns will rise a lot, so leave a lot of space around each bun.

Brush the buns with the whisked egg and toss the chopped almond you have left over them for decoration.

Let the buns rise for about 50-60 mins (double in size – if they aren’t yet double in size let them stand for a while longer). Whilst rising cover them with a clean towel and ensure they are in a room with no draft and not in a cold spot either.

Then put the tray(s) in the bottom part of the oven – 225 degrees Celsius for 10-12 minutes. If you use a convection oven, you can keep it at 200 degrees instead. Once ready take them out to cool down on a grid covered by a clean towel once more. Serve warm.

Alternatively you can use butter, sugar, cinnamon and cardamom as filling.

Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls, original recipe here. 

Ingredients:

40 cinnamon rolls

  • 50 g fresh yeast for sweet dough
  • 900 g wheat or spelt flour
  • 1 dl granulated sugar
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 2 tsp freshly ground cardamom
  • 150 g butter
  • 3 dl milk
  • 2 yoghurt
  • 1 egg

Pumpkin filling

  • 100 g margarine, room temperature
  • 100 g  granulated sugar
  • 2 tbsp ground cinnamon
  • 2 dl pumpkin puree
  • ½ dl pearl sugar (also known as nib or hail sugar)

Instructions:

  • Heat up milk and yoghurt to luke warm (no warmer than 36 degrees C). Crumble the yeast to small pieces with your fingers and add to the fluid once warm. Add cardamom, flour, and soft butter cut into pieces. Knead into a soft, smooth dough. Let it rise in a place with no draft, covered by a clean towel, for 40 mins.
  • Prepare the pumpkin puree by roasting, or boiling the pumpkin and then put it in a blender till it reaches the desired, smooth, consistency.
  • Mix all ingredients for the filling.
  • Using a rolling pin roll the dough into two rectangles about 0.5-1cm thick. Spread the pumpkin filling evenly over the rectangles.
  • Roll the dough (so that you start folding from the longest side, ie you end up witha  roll the length of the rectangle) and cut in 2cm slices. Cover a baking tray with baking paper. Whisk the egg lightly, brush the cinnamon rolls with the egg and toss some pearl sugar atop.
  • Let the cinnamon rolls rise for 20 mins, then put them in an oven for 10-15 mins, 220ºC in a convection oven (ie an oven that blows hot air around inside…).

Coffee Chilli Con Carne

As winter is coming up we believe this coffee chilli con carne will be just what you need for the dinner table – perfect for a night by the fire! Yep, that’s right – you heard us – you can use coffee in your cooking, not just in your desserts! In fact coffee can be used as a meat tenderizer as well, but this recipe simply calls for well, freshly brewed coffee. We always recommend using fresh roasted coffee beans, which you grind and use immediately for the very best flavour. However, as there are many other ingredients in here, even if you don’t have access to fresh roasted coffee beans, you should be fine!
This recipe comes from Great British Chefs.

chilli

  • 800g of diced beef
  • 3 large onions, finely sliced
  • 4 garlic cloves, finely sliced
  • 395g of red kidney beans in chilli sauce
  • 1/2 tsp of chilli flakes
  • 960ml of coffee, can use decaffeinated
  • 2 tsp of cumin seeds, toasted
  • 1 tsp of dried oregano
  • 4 tsp of chilli powder, mild
  • 1 tsp of muscovado sugar
  • 2 tbsp of olive oil
  • 1 pinch of salt
  • 1 pinch of black pepper
  • 2 tsp of smoked paprika

Basmati rice

  • 300g of basmati rice
  • 450ml of water

To serve

  • 1 bunch of coriander
  • 150ml of half-fat sour cream
  • 2 limes
  • 2 green chillies, optional
  • 2 tomatoes, diced
1. Soak the dried chilli flakes in a little hot water for 2 minutes, then drain
2. Place a pan over a high heat and add olive oil. Once hot, add the diced beef and sear until nicely coloured. Set aside
3. Clean the pan, place over a medium heat and add a tablespoon of oil. Once hot, add the onions and garlic and cook until just beginning to brown
4. Add the meat back to the pan along with the sugar, chilli powder, paprika, cumin and oregano. Stir to combine
5. Add the coffee and the soaked chilli flakes to the pan, making sure the meat is covered
6. Cover and cook on the lowest heat possible. Simmer until the meat starts to fall apart, approximately 60-90 minutes
7. Meanwhile, add the rice to a small pot, cover in cold water. Rinse by moving the rice around with your hands. Pour off the white milky water and repeat twice more
8. Drain the excess water, leave to stand for 20 minutes. Add the 450ml of water and place the pot over a high heat. Bring to the boil, cover with a lid and turn down to the lowest heat possible
9. Cook for 12 minutes, or until the rice is just cooked. Remove from the heat and allow to stand, covered, for 2 minutes before serving
10. Remove the lid and add the beans, allow to cook until thickened and rich in flavour. Add a pinch of salt and pepper
11. Divide the chilli across 4 warmed bowls along with the rice. Garnish with the sour cream, chopped coriander, fresh chilli and diced tomato. Serve immediately with wedges of lime to lighten it up. Sour cream is not absolutely essential but will add a refreshing taste to counter the spice of the chilli