We’re getting into the good stuff tonight. Not that I don’t enjoy the drinks we’ve talked about previously. Each drink has its time and place but tonight we’re discussing some of the lesser known yet incredibly delicious drinks. Let’s just say there will be cream, lemon zest and brandy involved. It’s a good night indeed.

So to celebrate I baked us some Brown Butter blondies. Coffee and blondies – seriously.

I really wish you were all in my kitchen with me right now. We would have just finished dinner, slowing sipping on the last few drags of red wine. We would be laughing at my son licking the bowl clean, seeking any remaining globs of butter and sugar. And we would be intoxicated by the smell of butterscotch and brown butter wafting from the pan of blondies that had just emerged from the oven.

Alright, while we anxiously wait for the blondies to cool – which is proving to be a very difficult task – let’s talk about coffee. Ms. Slivia is fired up and ready to pour us some beautiful shots with a cap of crema to thick and satisfying we might even forget about the bondies. hahahaha – not going to happen.

Espresso Con Panna – espresso capped with whipped cream. I’m not kidding you right now. Doesn’t that just sound rich, intense and incredibly decadent? Well, I’ll tell you from experience – it is just that. The complexity of a well extracted shot with a beautiful balance of acid, sweetness and bitterness topped with cold whipped cream. Simple, clean, smooth cream.

Cafe Creme – A single shot of espresso finished with cream – one ounce to be exact. I’ve been known on occasion to dump some heavy cream into my espresso and now I have a fancy name for it. Oh and just to clarify  – we are not talking about half and half right now – we’re talking HEAVY cream. Cream so thick it hesitates to pour. Cream so full of fat you question whether it’s a liquid or a solid. That, my friends, is cream.

Cafe Romano – espresso finished with a piece of lemon peel.

Cafe Correto – espresso that has been “corrected” with liquor – brandy or cognac will do rather nicely.

Our drinks are made and the blondies are cool. I may have snuck a bite while you weren’t looking – just to make sure they were okay to serve. Good news! They’re serveable.

Rich butterscotch flavor with a deep nuttiness that comes from one of my favorite ingredients – brown butter. They’re chewy and sweet and the perfect partner with all this coffee we have.

Brown Butter Blondies
adapted from Honey & Jam – a beautiful blog with stunning photography

1 1/4 cups (2 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 cups packed dark brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
3 large eggs
2 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 9-by-13-inch baking pan. Line bottom of pan with parchment paper; butter and flour parchment paper.
2. In a saucepan over medium heat, cook the butter until it turns golden brown. The butter will bubble up to stay with it and watch closely. Turn off the heat when you see a nice golden color. It will continue to cook a bit as it cools. Stir it around a bit to see the color underneath the foam. Remove from heat, and let cool. Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt.
3. In the bowl, combine browned butter and both sugars; stir with a wooden spoon until combined. Add eggs and vanilla and mix well.  Add flour mixture. Mix until thoroughly combined, and pour into prepared pan.
4. Bake until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, 35 to 40 minutes (do not overbake). Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before cutting. Blondies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature up to 3 days – but seriously, I bet you a latte you won’t have any remnants in the house after day one.

I’ve saved the sweetest for last. Tomorrow we will talk about Mochas and how to make homemade syrups and sauces to flavor your coffee. Which I know I will get flack from the anti-flavored coffee purists but just wait until you see what I have to add.

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Boy do I need coffee today. It’s grey outside, I stayed up far too late and woke up far too early. On top of that I am going to dinner tonight in a room filled with people I don’t know. Eek. I’m going by myself. Double eek. You see I am much more comfortable talking to people through a computer screen. Put me in a room full of strangers and I clam up like a little girl on her first day of school. So nervous and intimidated wanting to crawl under a desk and wait for mommy to come pick her up.

Well, I’ve already talked to my mom on the phone today and she assured me I will survive the dinner. She also said, as a good mother would, “It’s good for you.” So basically, “suck it up you introverted baby.” And I will, and I’ll have a great time eating fantastic food and meeting new people -but the coffee will help perk me up a bit.

Today we will go over the Americano, Latte and Cappuccino.

1. Americano – When I lived in Italy I learned the origins of the Americano. When American soldiers where stationed in Italy they had a hard time drinking the Italians coffee. They thought it too strong. Wimps. So they would ask thebaristas to put hot water in their espresso to water it down. Reluctantly the Italians did as they were asked and the watered down Americano was born. Now I am trying hard not to sound biased – I’m failing miserably – because there comes a time when an Americano is so satisfying. It has the taste of an espresso without the jaw-tightening, teeth-clenching harshness of a single shot.
An Americano is a single shot of espresso with 6-8 ounces of water added. The resulting beverage is stronger than drip cofffee but very watered down. You can however, order a double Americano to up the ratio a bit.

2. Caffe Latte – One of the most popular espresso drinks. In Italy Lattes are mostly prepared at home. Using the Moka – Italian stove-top espresso maker – they make a shot then pour into heated milk. In cafes a Latte is typically 1/3 espresso and 2/3 steamed milk with a cap of foamed milk about 5 mm thick. If you like it real fancy sometimes they will be topped with a dusting of cocoa, cinnamon or nutmeg. I prefer mine with a teaspoon of Turbinado sugar but I’ll be honest – I don’t drink a lot of Lattes – I’m more of a Macchiato girl myself. Or Espresso Con Panna – we’ll get there.

3. Cappuccino – My first encounter with a Cappuccino was in New York when I was in the 7th grade. I fell immediately in love with that city. The lights, the theater, the food and the Cappuccino. After every meal my mother would order one and occasionally I would get to order my very own. The demitasse cup was capped with a white velvet hat ringed with a mahogany brim where the espresso met the foam. Resting next to the cup were two cubes of golden brown unrefined sugar. *Plop* *Plop* I would drop both in cutting the bitterness of the espresso with an massive amount of sugar. Sipping and smiling I would enjoy every taste feeling so fancy and adult-like. My mother still drinks her Cappuccino almost every day.

The Cappuccino gets its name from the Capuchin friars. Their deep brown robes are topped with a white cap covering their head. And although they don’t look exactly like the delightful beverage I love the story and even more I love the old wooden bench that sits under the grape vines in the middle of their garden at the monastary. We were practically neighbors while I lived in Italy.

A good Cappuccino is dependent upon the foam. Let’s even get so technical as to talk about the microfoam shall we? Microfoam is creating by introducing teeny tiny air bubbles into the milk producing a velvety texture with a sweet taste. That microfoam milk is poured over the espresso creating a thick cap about 2 cm deep. The ratio of espresso to frothed milk is equal.

I really don’t know how I got on the subject of coffee – weren’t we talking about apples. Oopsy. We’ll get back there – or we won’t – who knows really. But first there are many more drinks to discuss. The fun ones are coming soon and by fun I mean – chocolate, cream, homemade vanilla syrup, caramel, liquor and lemon peel. Exciting right?! I sure think so.

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