@Home Fix: Mexican Mocha

Spending $5 on a Mexican Mocha is not something I can do every day. But drinking one every day is something I wholeheartedly support.

Question: How can you get that same Mexican flavor at home in a minute?
Answer: Mexican Cocoa from Savory Spice Shop in Colorado Springs.

I recently discovered the Savory Spice Shop in Colorado Springs and found the missing link to my @Home Mexican Mocha. With a name like “Savory” I didn’t know when I was walking in that I’d discover the newest ingredient in my coffee world.

The Mexican Cocoa mix contains Dutch cocoa, Indonesian cinnamon, Ceylon cinnamon and vanilla powder. On its own it’s not very sweet, but with my recipe you can make this @Home drink as sweet as you want.

Here’s my trick:

1 tsp. Savory Spice Shop Mexican Cocoa
1 c. (skim) milk
2 shots homemade espresso
1 tsp. Agave Nectar, Cappuccino flavor

Brew espresso and steam milk as normal. Mix a little of the steamed milk with the cocoa powder and Agave Nectar until well mixed. Add espresso, mix well. Add remainder of milk and top with foam.

And voilà! You have a homemade Mexican Mocha – that I guarantee costs less than $5 to make for yourself.

arigato gozai mashta, Nico Style

Japan, world of fish, hashi, and ramen, has the best coffee I’ve ever tasted.

Who knew the Asian island was full of Italian coffee shops, French bakeries, and delicious sweets?

My next few entries seek to share my journeys through Japan via cappuccino.

First up:

Nico Style

Located in Naramachi (Nara Town), Nico Style is a small coffee shop tucked away amid old-style Japanese buildings. Perfectly preserved, these historic buildings show a peek of the traditional Japan not usually seen by tourists.

While walking through Naramachi visiting an art-shop owner, I was suddenly distracted by advertisements on a shop showing pictures of cappuccinos with Buddhas and reindeer delicately etched in the foam. I had to go in.

The shop owners immediately invited us in to sit down. I mistakenly thought I’d grab a quick cup to-go, but my US-mentality was quickly changed when we found ourselves at a table, casually looking at menus completely in Japanese. Luckily, pointing at photos of what you want is universal, so I was able to order a cappuccino with a Buddha (seen in the photo above).

But beyond the cute decorations on the coffee and the excitement of sitting in a coffeehouse in Naramachi, I say in all honesty that I had the best coffee I have ever had. The foam was perfectly creamy and the sugarcube gave just enough sweetness to contradict the bitter espresso.

The service was also great, considering a group of non-Japanese speaking tourists had just casually walked in. The waitress spoke no English, but easily and seamlessly took our orders, brought our drinks, and brought the checks. One person in our group spoke a little Japanese and was able to ask politely if I could take photos of them and their shop. The man quickly grabbed a machete and posed – for lack of a better way to describe it – like a samurai. The woman laughed, took the blade from him, and grabbed a fresh apple from the shelf. I wish I could’ve snapped a photo quickly before the scene changed, but I think the one we wound up with nicely characterizes the atmosphere of the shop.

Score: A+     Price for a cappuccino: around 600¥ (about $6)   Wait time: 1 min.

Starbucks Prices go Up, Up, Up!

Starbucks raised their prices on many drinks on Monday.

To be fair, they said in August that they were going to start raising prices, but according to the Chicago Tribune many people didn’t even notice they were paying more per drink. The article posted today at chicagotribune.com says that Starbucks raised prices on larger “more complicated” drinks and actually lowered prices on smaller drinks. In general, they said, small drinks were lowered in price by 10¢ and larger drinks went up by 10 to 15¢.

Not a big deal really. But let’s break that down.

Say a person buys four cups of coffee a week (based on my own average, not any real stats):

That’s 4 (cups of coffee per week) x 52 (weeks per year) = 208

Let’s make those small coffees at Starbucks. Savings: 10¢ per cup.

Total savings per year: 208 (cups per year) x 10¢ (savings per cup): = $20.80

Now, let’s make those large coffees at Starbucks. Increase: 10 to 15¢ per cup.

Total increase per year (10¢): 208 (cups per year) x 10¢ = $20.80
Total increase per year (15¢): 208 (cups per year) x 15¢ = $31.20

So look at this: If you buy a small cup of coffee three times per week instead of a large cup of coffee three times a week you could save $52 a year!

If you don’t think $52 a year is not much, send me a check for $200 in 2014 and see if you feel good about it.

Frothy milk: Help from the experts

If you’re like me, you love the velvety foamy layer of milk created by an ingenious barista sitting on top of your $3 cappuccino. If you’re like my mom, you scoop it off and throw it away. If you’re more like me, read on.

Today I want to talk about how to froth milk properly. Now, I’m no expert, so I’m going to consult a few Web sites and see if there is any agreement among them. The goal? Tonight I will froth the perfect milk, make a cappuccino, and get back to studying Flash.

Frothing expert #1: Nicholas Webb, and his article Cappuccino Secrets: Creating the Perfect Foam

Let’s see, first Nicholas says to purge the steam wand and get out extra water by turning on the steam and letting it out into a towel. Easy right? Next we need to submerge the wand and turn the steam onto full power. Check. Now, point the wand off center, creating a “circulating vortex” of milk. Sounds complicated. Okay, this next step is my favorite. He says to lowe the pitcher until the tip of the wand is just below the surface of the milk until you hear “a hissing noise, similar to bacon frying.” Awesome. Maintain the hissing noise, and continue steaming until you reach 145 degrees Farenheit. Oh, I suppose we need a thermometer to do this right.

On to the next source!

Frothing expert #2:  Jonna Vercellini, and the article How to Create the Perfect Cappuccino Foam: A Barista’s Guide to Home Coffee Brewing

Alright, we already know that we need a thermometer. This article also says straightaway that we’ll need a metal steaming pitcher. Check. Interestingly, Jonna also says that whole milk froths better than skim because it’s denser. I am forever loyal to skim milk, but this might be worth investigating. This article says to start with the tip of the steam wand just barely beneath the surface of the milk. Again, it says to hold the pitcher at a slight angle, then turn the steam on. You should hear a gurgling, hissing sound; continue until the milk reaches 100 degrees Farenheit, then lower the steam wand down and let the milk reach 160 degrees F.

These are very similar tips, but why the difference in temperature advice? Let’s find out when milk starts burning.

Frothing expert #3:  Megan B. Wyatt,  and the article How to Steam and Froth Milk: A Key Step to Creating a Coffeehouse-Style Beverage at Home

According to Megan’s article, milk should stay somewhere between 140 and 170 degrees Farenheit, but that milk is considered burnt at 180 degrees F. So I suppose our other two sources are right in their own ways – just don’t let the milk burn!

I hope this mini-how-to guide is helpful. I think tonight I’ll combine a few tips from them all – I want to create the bacon-frying sound from expert #1, make it hotter like expert #2, and keep it from burning with tips from expert #3. If you have your own frothing tips, or something to add, please leave a comment!

Coffee in the News

What’s the logical pair with hot coffee in the morning? A crisp newspaper hung on my apartment door. But let’s focus a little on a few stories about coffee and its close friends in the news lately. Here are a couple of snippets.

Health News

Coffee = Healthy?
Coffee is a superdrink that affects the whole body, according to self.com.  According to the health magazine’s Web site, coffee drinkers are less likely to develop Alzheimer’s, keeps cavity-causing bacteria from eating away teeth’s enamel, can help lower the risk for breast cancer, and can help lower risk for nonmelanoma skin cancer. Of course these all have caveats, so before you take my word for it take a look at the full article.

Celebrity News

Carly Simon sues Starbucks?
According to Reurters, Carly Simon is suing Starbucks coffee for dropping her album from the Starbucks music line with no prior warning to her. She’s suing for deceit, tortious interference and unfair business practices.

Freeze it? Fridge it? Air tight? What do I do with my beans??

How do I store my coffee beans? I’ve heard them all – Keep it in the bag you bought it in. Freeze it. Freeze it, but make sure it’s air tight. Keep it on the counter in an airtight container. What is a coffee drinker to do?

FREEZING
The first source of infinite wisdom I’ve turned to is whatscookingamerica.net for advice. Freezing your beans, they say, is a one time bet. According to the Web site, after the beans are removed from the freezer, “Condensation can form and adversely affect taste, as the frozen moisture on your coffee will melt and be absorbed into the bean, which deplete the flavorful oils.” Another site – coffeetea.about.com – added that it’s critical to keep the beans in an airtight container in the freezer to keep out moisture. Storing beans in the freezer should let them last up to a month or so.

But remember, freezing the beans is not the same thing as putting them in the refrigerator. That’s a big no-no. According to specialty-coffee-advisor.com, coffee beans will dehumidify and deodorize the fridge just like baking soda. That would be bad for the coffee.

COUNTER TOP
What about storing them on the counter instead of the freezer? Again, air tight containers are the key to fresh beans, but they won’t stay as long as they would if kept in the freezer. If you’re going for the counter top method, try to use up the beans by two weeks.

No air tight containers around? According to whatscookingamerica.net, simply forcing the air out of the bag the coffee came in and taping it closed should keep beans ready-to-use for about a week.

What’s the bottom line?

How fresh the coffee tastes, that’s my bottom line. Some say freezing takes away flavor from the beans, but I’ve never noticed. Some say just buy fresh beans once a week, but I think they taste okay for about two weeks. What’s your bottom line?

Just remember – don’t put them in the fridge!

“How much should I spend on an espresso machine?”

Do you find yourself asking this question? I know I did. I owned a hand-me-down machine for a while and it finally died. While mourning my loss I decided that it might be time to step up and buy a “nice” machine; one that would give me the best cup of coffee every morning before class. Months went by, no machine. Months went by, still no coffee in the morning. How could I choose the best machine? Was the lady at the mall pulling a fast one when she said the best would cost around a thousand dollars? Was it a good deal when I saw one at Tuesday Morning for $1200? What exactly is so bad about a $30 machine? I know what I finally went with, but I wanted to see what the experts said first.

my little espresso machine

I found some great advice at a site called CoffeeGeek. There are a couple of points from the site that I found critical in making my choice for a home coffee machine, but you can read the whole article by clicking the link. The two points are (1) usability and (2) switches & buttons. Start by looking at all of the features on the machine and make sure it will work for your lifestyle. Is the spout far enough from the drip tray for the cup you want to use? Are the buttons easy to figure out – will it be so complicated that you don’t want to use it in the morning? Now, the rest depends on if you are a veteran home-brewer, or just starting out. I’d say I’m a medium-veteran. I’ve been making espresso for myself for a few years, but still don’t know anywhere close to everything I should about machines – but I do know that I like to be able to control the steam when I’m frothing milk. A machine with a button to froth the milk automatically would take away from the experience, and take away my control in frothing. The editor at CoffeeGeek describes it better: “Whenever you’re frothing and steaming milk, stop introducing air into the milk by the time the steaming pitcher reaches about your skin temperature – about 95F maximum. At that point, sink the steaming wand deep into the milk and continue heating the liquid. The result will be milk froth that tastes like you added sugar to it.”

Now, CoffeeGeek goes into great detail about what is and what isn’t an espresso machine. In a conversation with a woman at Sur Le Table in Denver, I learned that espresso is made with steam, so a stove-top espresso machine doesn’t technically make espresso at all. Let me say now that I’m not one for technicalities. If it tastes like delicious espresso then I’m happy. If that’s not you, my blog might not be so helpful.

On to our next expert! The Coffee Detective makes an important point: think about how much time you want to commit to brewing your espresso. The site warns that many people love the novelty of a fully manual machine, but keeping an eye on the water pressure and monitoring the machine can get boring in the long run. Instead, they say, it’s better to buy a semi-manual machine.

All of these different features affect price, which – as a student – was really my bottom line. I couldn’t afford to invest in a really nice machine unless I was convinced it was well worth it. I’m still not convinced. I bought a $36 machine in a well-known big-box store and am happily caffeinated every morning, afternoon, and most evenings. My favorite trick is to mix a little amaretto flavored agave nectar for a sweet, delicious, all-natural latte.

What was your experience? How did you handle buying an espresso machine – and what would you change if you could do it all over again?

Pajama Baking Company, here I come!

With rolling garage-style doors lining the front of the store open most days, Pajama Baking Co. has the best of both worlds: a cozy table to sit at with a mug of hot chocolate and a crisp breeze blowing in reminiscent of a romantic fall picnic. The corner store on South Peal Street brings together the entire community with a range of sweets, treats, and coffees that would make anyone – from a toddler to a business woman – swoon.

Walking in the front door or through the wide-open garage doors, the first thing you’ll see is a bright case of ice cream and a group of families deciding their favorite flavor. Just past the ice cream case is the espresso counter, with a full menu of classic espresso drinks. When I visited I ordered a decaf skinny latte with sugar-free caramel. I know what you’re thinking – none of that’s real. However, I am shocked and happy to say that this is the only “non-real” latte I’ve ever had that didn’t have the  unnaturally sweet taste that usually comes with sugar-free drinks.

After I ordered I asked Sammy, one of the baristas, what her favorite drink to make is. I was surprised to hear her say, “Regular ol’ lattes. cappuccinos are fun, too, but they waste a lot of milk.” Gavin, the other barista, walked over to us and they both agreed on another favorite – “Neal’s Mocha.” Not on their menu, Neal’s Mocha is what a regular – Neal – always orders. A mocha, in a mug ‘for here,’ with whipped cream – and if it’s to-go, no lid! “He never wants a lid,” Gavin said with a laugh. “And, I always draw an ‘N’ and a spider on top,” she added.

Pajama Baking Co. offers one extra that many coffee shops don’t – they have a wide selection of food without feeling like a restaurant. Half of the store is filled with baskets of breads, shelves of ready-to-heat foods made there, and cases of delicious desserts. “We have real food,” Gavin said. I had a turkey sandwich made to order and it tasted like a homemade sandwich from my mom’s house. It came out fast and was piled high with turkey, tomatoes, cheese, lettuce, and chipotle aioli. It had all of the flavor of a restaurant and the speed of a fast-food joint.

All food aside, there’s really only one thing that students, like myself, look for in a coffee house: study-ability. Is it quiet? Are there tables? Is there Internet? Are they friendly? The answer for Pajama Baking Company is yes. Despite the sometimes crowded atmosphere, it’s always quiet enough to study without feeling like a library. Soft music plays in the background, but it’s not overbearing. They have free Wi-Fi Internet and plenty of plugs for laptops. I asked Gavin what she thought of the atmosphere from a barista’s perspective. “Coffee houses can be a little exclusive,” she said, “but here, not so much.”

The only downfall is that the place is so popular it can be hard at times to find a big enough table for a study group, but there’s usually space for everyone. There are even low tables with kiddie chairs for the little ones if you bring them along. Overall, I’d give Pajama Baking Co. an A-. It’s a great place to eat, drink, and study – but you might have to fight for your place to sit!

Score: A-     Price for a latte: around $3     Wait time: 1 min.     Best Food: Coconut macaroon

Pajama Baking Company

1595 S Pearl St
Denver, CO 80210-2634

303-733-3622