If you're anything like me, you drink at least two cups of coffee or tea a day, and might even go out to a place like Starbucks or a local coffee shop to get your fix. The cost can add up fast, but you could be making the same drinks in the comfort of your own home for much less money, and tailor them to your unique tastes! There are lots of ways to create a "home cafe" and getting creative with your drink combinations is so much fun!
This is the tea and coffee cabinet in my house and I love it. We have far too many mugs and I have a lot of tea. Many of my drinks start in here! There are loose and bagged teas, coffee filters, creamer, sugar, and other ingredients. A few of my smaller tools like tea infusers live in here.
These are my main tools. I have four tea infusers and even one that's shaped like the TARDIS from Doctor Who! The ones I use the most are the little round one second from the right and the gold pyramid that's on the far left. I also have a glass teapot, a moka pot to make small amounts of coffee, and a handheld milk frother.
The moka pot is perfect for someone who doesn't like coffee a whole lot but will put it in other drinks. These Italian inventions are also known as stove-top espresso makers, even though they don't make true espresso. But, they will make a stronger cup of coffee than your average drip machine. Water is poured into the bottom chamber and a basket of coffee grounds sits on top of it. A funnel runs the water through the coffee grounds and up into the top chamber as steam pressure from the heating water forces it upwards. It's definitely not an instant process, it takes about ten minutes to brew on a stove with high heat, but something I do love about coffee is the craft and the process that goes into it. Be patient and make your morning coffee or afternoon tea an experience :)
This is my tea kettle! I received it as a gift from my parents several years ago and it is something that I use every single day. It holds almost two liters of water and has different temperature settings for different types of tea you want to brew. It's so useful and I would highly recommend something like this for anyone who is kind of a tea snob.
I like to make both hot and cold lattes, and for this post I made an iced vanilla latte with my moka pot and a hot chai latte.
Normally I would like to use a flavored syrup for iced coffee, but I haven't made any this summer. I've found that a tiny bit of vanilla extract works just as well! For this drink, I used 1 cup of almond milk and mixed the vanilla extract (about 1/4 tsp) and a couple spoonfuls of sugar into it. I prepared all of this while the moka pot did its thing, and when it was ready I poured the milk into a glass filled with ice and poured the coffee slowly on top (about 1/2 a cup). Stir it together and you have a refreshing iced coffee!
For my hot chai latte, I start with a regular cup of chai tea. I use the tea bags because that's what I have on hand, but you could also use liquid concentrates (like the one I posted recently about here) or powder mixes. While my tea is steeping, I froth my milk. I really like the battery powered hand frothers, they're a decent price and they do their job! They're normally $10-$20 dollars and last for a long time if you take care of them.
I like to use half and half to froth because it makes a nicely textured foam and I like the creaminess it gives in the latte. I pour half and half into a glass with tall sides and froth it until it doubles in volume, and then I stick it in the microwave until I see the foam rising. It will overflow if you don't keep an eye on it, so pay attention! It only takes about ten seconds.
Discard the tea bag if you used one, pour your froth on top and garnish with ground spices (cinnamon is a favorite of mine!) or even loose tea. I always love to have a snack with tea or coffee, this time I had some double chocolate brioche (a brioche recipe is coming, I just need to work out some kinks that come along with high altitude baking!)
If you can, I would highly recommend taking a little bit of time out of the day to make yourself a nice drink and have a time to really enjoy it. You can make it however you like, and that's the beauty of it! I often swap chai for earl grey, or put different flavorings in a coffee drink. The sky is the limit!
Thanks for reading!
xx, Hannah
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