Tag Archives: coffee

Cold Brew Coffee (with Cardamom!)

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In honor of International Coffee Day yesterday, we’re bringing you an international coffee recipe!

I’m sure by now you’ve heard of cold brew coffee. Especially now that Starbucks has started featuring it. For those of you who aren’t sure about it: No, it’s not cold coffee. You can still drink it hot. Yes, it’s so much more delicious, flavorful and fresh than regular brewed. No, you don’t have to use it all at once. It can stay in the fridge for up to two weeks. Yes, it gives you an excuse to use one of your cute mason jars for real (and not just decoration).

My British friend (told you this would be international) recently introduced me to this British fellow, Mike Cooper, after discussing homemade cold brew coffee. I thought I needed huge special equipment and my own goddamn coffee tree to make cold brew. But therein lies the beauty – you only need a bowl and a strainer. (Oh, and that cute mason jar.) That’s it. However, I will warn you – it does take about 24 hours to make, but it’s well worth the wait. Trust.

  • 2 cups fresh coffee grinds
  • 4 cups filtered water
  • 1/4 cup cardmom pods (optional)*
  • Paper towel or a sieve

In a large bowl, pour in the coffee grinds and water. *If you’re making cardamom coffee, mix in the pods. Cover it with a tea towel and place in the fridge. Our British fellow says to leave it for 20 hours but I’ve been doing between 24-28. You’ll see a nice foam at the top when you take it out.

After the wait is finally over, you’re going to strain the grinds. If you’re using a sieve, strain the coffee into a medium sized bowl. Once strained, covered another bowl with the paper towel and pour the coffee over it.

If you’re using paper towel, you’ve already cut to the second part and will only need to strain once. Cover a medium sized bowl with the paper towel and pour the coffee over slowly, letting it strain through.

At this point the coffee is really concentrated, but it gives you the freedom to choose how strong you want your cup to be. Pour a little coffee into a cup, and using piping hot water (or cold for iced coffee) fill it to your liking. If you’re a big fan of iced coffee like my husband, you can also use the concentrate to make a few iced cubes for next time.

cold-brew-coffee

 

Happy Drinking, XO.

Almond Biscotti

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As I sat down to write this post I remembered, “Oh yeah, I should grab some of this biscotti I have leftover in the fridge.” This is the third batch I’ve made in two weeks…

The first time I made this biscotti I tested it on my family and it was gone in two days, followed by threats that they needed more asap. The second time, I made it for my husband and myself to make sure I could make it just as good. I did. It was. The third time I made it as a gift. I obviously became confident in it quickly. All I’m saying guys, is that this recipe is versatile. You can make it for anyone, for any occasion and it will be amazing no matter what.

  • 1 1/4 cups whole almonds, no salt
  • 1 3/4 cups flour
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 2 large eggs, plus 1 large white beaten with pinch salt
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 4 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
  • 1 1/2 tsp almond extract
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
  • Oil spray

This is going to seem like a ton of steps, but I promise, once you make it once, you won’t forget how to do it.

Preheat oven to 375. Pulse 1 cup of almonds in a food processor until finely ground, place in a bowl and set aside. Pulse the remaining 1/4 cup into roughly chopped chunks and also set aside in a bowl. Again in the processor, combine the flour, baking powder, and salt and transfer to a bowl. (Yes, you’ll need a lot of bowls, and yes, the food processor is your best friend for this recipe.)

“Scramble” the eggs in the processor until they’ve lightened and almost doubled in volume. While the eggs are being scrambled, slowly add sugar until thoroughly combined, as well as the melted butter, almond extract, and vanilla. Transfer egg mixture to medium bowl. Sprinkle half of flour mixture over egg mixture and gently fold until just combined. Add the ground and chopped almonds. Fold in remaining flour until a dough begins to form.

At this point you can either refrigerate the dough for a couple of hours, or bake right away. When you’re ready to bake, separate the dough into two rectangles, flattening them slightly to roughly 2″ high. Coat the spatula with a little bit of oil and smooth over the loaves. Beat the egg white until foamy, then brush on top of the two loaves to give them a crisp finish.

Bake the loaves for 25 minutes. They’ll begin to crack on the top. At this point, take them out of the oven and let them cool for 30 minutes. Before putting them back in the oven, slice them on an angle roughly 1″ thick. Lay the slices on their side and bake for the last 30 minutes until golden brown.

Biscotti

 

Happy Eating, XO.