Coffee

I saw this article and I had to comment. 

I love coffee. It's one of the things I treat myself with. I buy a good slightly more expensive than normal brand to brew at home normally.

I know that the coffee industry is huge and everyone is trying to put their brand at the forefront. We have Kona, and sumatra, and arabica just to name a few. And then we talk about the roasting, then the brewing process. Rubusto, espresso, city, full city, or french? Drip, perk, or french press?

Now they're adding what animal ate then excreted the beans before they were roasted - cat or elephant? This is horrifying. I don't feel I have the right to take away someone's choice on what to eat or drink. I do however have the right to tell you I think you're crazy. If you're willing to drink something that has been first eaten, then passed through the digestive system of an animal, go right ahead. I will not be joining you. I don't care how complex the flavors are I can't get past the idea that the bean my coffee was made with passed through an elephant.

Beyond the gross out factor I don't need complexity in my morning coffee. I'm not looking for the earthy fruity flavors. I want, as my friend says, "coffee flavored coffee". Dark, rich, and full of body.

The Apartment Husband raises an excellent question: who decided it was a good idea to go poking around in elephant poo for something to eat or make a drink? Gross.

What are your thoughts on this or its cousin in weird coffee - kopi luwak? Am I the only one who thinks this trend (if you can call it that) is just bizarre?

Pre-Thanksgiving Feast

Thanksgiving is a time of gathering your family close and remembering all that we have and how very blessed we are. And how much we as Americans love to eat.

This year, thanks to my sister running the Philly 1/2 marathon, we decided to gather the family a few days early to gorge ourselves on a non traditional feast of caprese salad, braised beef, carrots, green beans, sweet potato casserole, lush and breads. I figured everyone would be having turkey in a few days time so I didn't want to over do it. Sadly I forgot to take pictures in the rush to get everything to the table.

Normally I tell people to never make something that you've never tried before for a dinner party but I never follow my own rules and this was no exception. Luckily everything turned out well and I know why. Julia Child and Ruth, owner of Ruth's Chris Steak House (actually I'm sure it's not Ruth's recipe but some awesome chef who works or worked there).

Most of what we made was simple. The green beans were steamed and I poured butter over them. The carrots were braised in beef broth.I left the breads and lush to my mother-in-law and my sister.

The major challenge, as is with every meal, was the main course of braised beef.The only reason I didn't miss something was by reading the recipe 4 times. The meat marinated over night in red wine, onion, and spices. The major dilemma was the size. I had 10 lbs of meat to cook. 2 stock pots worked nicely, however my refrigerator was a tad over stuffed the evening before. Julia Child wrote her recipes without much regard for how long things take. Good food takes time, how much times appears to be a mystery. Had I not read the recipe almost obsessively I would have missed how long it takes to brown the meat, and not had the beef on the table in time. Or I might have missed the carrots and onions, which are actually not necessary, and she calls for WAY too much carrot. 2 lbs of carrots is a lot. Even for 20 people. Everything turned out great, the gravy made from the marinade was amazing.

Disclaimer: If you're not confident with your recipe reading and following abilities don't try this at home! Make the recipe once first to make sure you don't miss something. I like to live on the edge a little. And I know I can make Julia's recipes, I understand them; but they're not for the feint of heart.

The real winner of the day had to be the Sweet Potato Casserole. It was like eating dessert made with a vegetable. Really it could be passed off as a dessert.
I can't take any responsibility for this recipe. It was pulled from the internet.

Ruth's Chris Sweet Potato Casserole:

Sweet Potato Mix:
3 cups mashed sweet potatoes
1 cup sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
2 eggs (well beaten)
1/4 cup butter melted

Crust ingredients:
1 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup flour
1 cup chopped nuts (pecans preferred)
1/2 cup butter (melted)

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Mix sweet potatoes, sugar, salt, vanilla, eggs, and butter.
3. Pour misture into a buttered baking dish (I used a 10 inch cast iron skillet)
4. Bake for 30 minutes.
5. While that bakes mix brown sugar, flour, chopped nuts and 1/2 cup butter together.
6. After 30 minutes sprinkle the surface of the sweet potato mixture with the crust mixture
7. Bake for 10 minutes.
8. Allow casserole to set for 30 minutes before serving.

If you want the casserole to be hot you can put it back in the oven right before you put it on the table for a minute or 2, but the cast iron should hold the heat pretty well.