Sweet • Sour • Savory

Food blog on scandinavian style food done right.

coffee

Red Velvet Latte

Brunch, Breakfast, Desserts, DrinksTove Balle-PedersenComment
Red Velvet Latte

Red Velvet Latte

The first time I tasted a red velvet latte was at Bitter+Sweet, a small but very good cafe in Cupertino. My friends and I keep going back to this place, because the coffee is that good. So if you're ever in the neighborhood, do stop by, you won't regret it.

I have been wanting to create the same latte at home, and finally I found the right mix to create the same perfect red velvet latte. I could do some reverse engineering and figure out what goes into the red velvet mix, but for now I'm happy with buying it. Sometimes you need an easy way out.

Ingredients:

Directions

Heat the cup with some really hot water.

Whisk the red velvet mix with some steamed milk in the heated cup. Add the espresso shot(s) to the mix. Finally add more steamed milk and some milk foam.

Enjoy!

The Ultimate Iced Coffee

Brunch, Desserts, DrinksTove Balle-PedersenComment
The Ultimate Iced Coffee

The Ultimate Iced Coffee

This iced coffee is a special treat. I look at it the same way as a ice cream cone or a slice of cake. It's not an every day occurrence. But It is really good on a hot day for a special day pick me up.

Ingredients:

Milky syrup:

  • 1 can (14 oz/396 g) sweetened condensed milk
  • 21 oz (1.5 times the can) of milk (i used non-fat milk) 

Directions:

Brew the coffee (it takes 12-14 hours)

Milky syrup:

Mix the two milks together and it's ready. I would try to freeze the mixture in ice cubes, because it do make quite a lot, and it is very rich.

 Stir in syrup in the coffee to taste, for me about half and half, and top with ice.

Enjoy!

Cold Brewed Coffee

Breakfast, Brunch, DrinksTove Balle-PedersenComment
Cold Brewed Coffee.

Cold Brewed Coffee.

Why do you want to brew you coffee cold? Well, if you like an iced coffee, and don't want a diluted cup of coffee, this is the way to go. The coffee actually tastes sweeter than the same coffee brewed with hot water. Why is that? Some of the more bitter oils in the roasted coffee will only be extracted using hot water, while the cold water only extracts the sweeter flavor components. The real downside to brewing the coffee cold is the time aspect. You can't make yourself a quick cup of coffee, if you didn't think ahead to brew the coffee in advance. In a way you are substituting heat for time. Heat is a catalyst in many processes, and here we have to put in a long steep time, to get all the flavors extracted from the beans.

I steep my cold brewed coffee for 12-14 hours, before filtering it. The filtered coffee will last about 3-4 days in the refrigerator, but somehow it never last as long in my home.

I have become picky with my coffee. I only buy whole coffee beans, and grind them myself. But coffee beans are very different. I don't like the shiny beans you gets from the regular coffee at Starbucks and similar places. The more dry-looking or matte beans are not as bitter, and my grinder don't get an oily build-up from these. So I started to buy my coffee beans fresh roasted from smaller companies. My local Whole Foods carries a small selection.

 For the last year we have had a subscription on fresh roasted coffee bean from Blue Bottle Coffee. Every other week we get a new bag of coffee delivered by mail. We get a new kind of coffee every time, and so far, we have liked them all. 

Ingredients:

  • 150 g (1½ cup) medium roasted coffee beans (I like fresh roasted beans)
  • 1000 ml  (1 liter or about 4 cups)

Directions:

Grind the coffee, and pour it in a suitable container, I use my 12 cups French press. Pour the cold water over the coffee, and stir to combine. Cover with plastic wrap and let it steep for 12-14 hours on the kitchen table. I stir the mixture a couple of times if steeping during daytime, but it's not mandatory.

When Steeping is done, you need to filter the coffee. Using my French press, I just put the press-part in the pitcher, and press down slowly. I decant the coffee into a new pitcher or bottle, to keep in my refrigerator.

When serving, dilute the coffee with cream, milk, water or syrup to your taste and top with ice. Or try my Ultimate Iced Coffee.

Enjoy!

The Danish Version:

Koldbrygget Kaffe

Ingredienser:

  • 150 g medium-ristede kaffe bønner
  • 1 liter kold vand

Fremgangsmåde:

Der er intet svært her. Kværn kaffebønnerne og kom dem i en passende beholder. Hæld vandet over, og lad kaffen trække tildækket i 12-14 timer på køkkenbordet. 

Si kaffen igennem et almindeligt kaffefilter. Jeg bruger en stor Bodum stempelkande, og trykker bare stemplet langsomt ned. Hæld kaffen på en kande og afkøl den helt i køleskabet. Kaffen kan holde sig i køleskabet i 3-4 dage.

Ved serveringen, fortyndes kaffen med fløde, mælk eller vand efter smag. Sød kaffen med en sirup.

Velbekomme!