Everyone seems to have a strong opinion of coffee. I have friends who don’t touch it at all or those who use it like a drug to help them get through a night of cramming for exams, then there are people who depend on caffeine to jolt them awake lest they crash with a mind-numbing headache. I fall in neither of those categories, although when I do drink it, I want it strong and bold, with nothing else but milk swirled in.
I am particularly fond of café au lait. At Premiere Moisson, you can order it in a cup or bowl, and of course being a Francophile, I order a bowl, because what is better than sipping a bowl of coffee alongside your chocolatine? I could dive into that café and lather myself in that milky foam. I haven't discovered many cafes here in Toronto that offers the same thing, but if you do, please share!
I’m not an expert in coffee, but I’ve been a loyal consumer of Lazzava
coffee for a while, particularly the 100% Arabica brand, vacuum packed in
gold foil, shining brightly on the supermarket aisle like a piece of the yellow
brick road. Its dizzying aroma and sweet, almost vanilla-like flavour was my go-to comfort drink. But then I met Kicking Horse and I can’t seem to go
back.
A few weeks ago, I went to Longo’s to pick up a few items, among them was coffee. I was hovering around the coffee station, eyeing French presses and milk foamers (I excel at hovering and eyeing kitchen equipment) and the man at the coffee counter, Michel, came bustling over, bellowed Hello! and offered to give me a Coffee 101 class, to which I responded why of course.
A few weeks ago, I went to Longo’s to pick up a few items, among them was coffee. I was hovering around the coffee station, eyeing French presses and milk foamers (I excel at hovering and eyeing kitchen equipment) and the man at the coffee counter, Michel, came bustling over, bellowed Hello! and offered to give me a Coffee 101 class, to which I responded why of course.
I learned: the best coffee are made from 100% Arabica beans and roasted beans should always be bought in small quantities to retain freshness, they
should never be stored in the fridge and depending on what machine is used to
brew coffee, the degree to which the beans are ground varies. For example,
I use a percolator at home and as opposed to the powdery coffee in the Lazzava
brand, the beans should be ground to a slightly coarser texture, which means I've been doing it all wrong the past few years.
I left with pound of Kicking Horse coffee, its scent intoxicating my car on the ride home. I was thrilled with my new purchase and
charmed by Michel’s passion, his eyes shone with joy as he talked about coffee
and his enthusiasm was contagious. He bid me farewell with a
shot of espresso, leaving my mouth winey and tannic.
I chose Kicking Horse for a two reasons: I wanted something
new and local. I don’t know what took me so long to buy real coffee beans, but now they're the sole reason I get up in the mornings and they make one hell of a
baking ingredient. I usually add a little coffee to chocolate desserts like I
did here, enhancing the chocolatleyness. Besides, if
you’re a coffee fiend, why wouldn't you?
These cookies are originally called Chocolate Black Pepper Cookies, yet that didn’t do justice to the brillant addition of coffee so I added espresso to its name. These are icebox cookies, meaning the dough is shaped into a log, chilled and then sliced and baked to your heart's desire. What you get are cakey, crumbly nibbles, an adult version of chocolate wafer cookies if you will. A hefty dose of pepper dials down the sweetness, there’s plenty of espresso powder to give that unique, grainy texture and the ring of sugar crystals sparking around each cookie adds an extra crunch.
I know you won't need me to tell you that these make a fine accompaniment to coffee. So go on, roll up your sleeves and march to the kitchen, they await.
