In the Kitchen | Veggies & Cold Brew

One of my favorite times of the year is here...

CSA season!!! Our local CSA is Good Earth Farm and they are wonderful! We get a small share since it's just the two of us, and it's usually more than enough (and then some). Our first delivery looks great and I really can't wait to gobble this up!

Did you notice the jar of dark deliciouness back behind the veggies? Yeah, I love coffee and with the warm weather... it's cold brew season!

I recently ordered some cold brew CoffeeSock filters to add to the already amazing Cuppow products we stock at Firefly Fibers and this week I finally tried one out...

In summary... The CoffeeSock is fabulous - the clean up is so easy - and the cold brew is delicious! All you need is a 64oz (half gallon) canning jar, 6 oz of ground coffee, filtered water, and 12-14 hours of patience to wait for it to be ready. Sadly, staring at it doesn't make it brew any faster.

 It's well worth the wait and I'm sure to be full caffeinated the entire summer!

I'm off to get some packing done. We're getting ready to take a vacation next week - yes, you read correctly... a vacation. My dear cousin is kind enough to let Mr. Logan stay in her home, so he needed to get cleaned up. This last week we headed off to the doggie salon...

The poor boy had no idea of what torture laid ahead, but after some kicking and screaming with mama's departure during the drop off, he sure looks and smells awesome now!

Cheers!

Coffee Liqueur | a recipe for YOU!

We survived the holidays and I hope you did, too. All I have left to do is upload photos to Ravelry for the knitted gifts and try to clean up the tornado that seems to have gone through my house - I have a long weekend coming up, so I should be able to find some time to get some cleaning done. Fingers are crossed. It's no secret that I'm a coffee addict and last week on my snow day I mentioned that I made homemade coffee liqueur. The making and gifting of this lovely creation has become a tradition of ours during the holidays - this year was no exception and as the gifts were opened, cheers erupted over the bottles of Drunken Joe. Yes, we have given it a name and designed labels. We're weird that way.

We've been making this for several years now and it's been a learning process to get it just the way we want and this year I think the recipe might have been perfected! It's not only delicious, it's also easy and fast to make!

So, gather your supplies and let's get to making some Drunken Joe!

Note: We usually make a double or triple batch and the recipe below is for a single batch.

Drunken Joe Coffee Liqueur

• 1 - 10 cup pot double-strength dark roast coffee
• 2 lbs brown sugar
• 2 tbs dark molasses
• 4 tbs vanilla extract
• 1 - 750 ml bottle Everclear

First, brew your coffee - we use Black Gold which is our favorite from our local coffee roaster Black Waters Coffee. Use a high quality coffee, this is not a time to be thrifty and use cheap stuff.

Add your hot freshly brewed coffee to a large pot on the stove. Over medium heat, bring to a simmer and add brown sugar and molasses. Continue to heat while stirring until the brown sugar is dissolved.

Let cool to room temperature and add the Everclear and vanilla to taste.

It's ready to enjoy right away or you can let it rest for a few days for a little more flavor. It also stores really well. We pour ours into a large glass bottle (or bottles) and then fill smaller random bottles we've saved throughout the year for gifting. Easy, right?!

Enjoy and cheers!

"Almost" weekend...

My weekend begins after a short day on Saturday at 3PM, so Friday is my "almost" weekend. I'm already planning what to pack for my weekend projects and having the realization that I better make final decisions on holiday gifts - yes, I procrastinated horribly... again. I blame the crazy weather this year because it still doesn't feel like Christmas could be anywhere on the horizon with how warm it's been. I'll get everything done. I always do. I haven't cooked much this week, but I did find time to make a delicious meal on Monday - Gremolata & Mushroom Beef Stew. I didn't take any photos because, as delicious as the final product is, visually mine was less than impressive and the photos with the recipe link are awesome for the drool factor. This recipe intrigued me with the curious combination of balsamic vinegar, rosemary and sliced oranges - they are absolutely wonderful together. I cooked it in the crockpot on low for 8 hours instead of the Dutch oven and I added the mushrooms with about 2 hours left, otherwise I followed the recipe exactly. Yum!

I also found some time to dry some apples. Nothing fancy. I just slice them with a mandolin, dunk in lemon water, lay them out and let the dryer do it's thing for a few hours.

This week I did get some knitting underway for the shop and currently the most exciting project is the Churchmouse Mohair Bias Loop sample in our new Kidsilk Haze Glamour. I'm not big on yarn with sparkle or bling, but this one is an exception and had me anxiously waiting for it's arrival since I ordered in July - it was well worth the wait. I've knit a few more inches since this photo and I'm hoping to wrap this up this weekend so I can share the finished project next week. Cross your fingers for me.

I was out for coffee this morning with a friend at our local coffee shop, Blackwaters Coffee. They have amazing coffee and fabulous food (including treats) and I ended up getting some of their Chocolate-Covered Espresso Beans. They are delicious and should help me plow through the weekend knitting!

I hope everyone has a lovely weekend! Cheers!