In Which We Try a New Coffee-Bar…

Just so you know, it’s NOT a French franchise…

My siblings and I were at the mall a couple weeks ago on one of those rare occasions when all three of us were off from work and could just chill out and relax.  After lunch and a happy browse-through at Book Sale which turned into a full-scale hunt for inspirational tomes (for my brother), manga (for my sister), and Brit and/or Aussie food magazines (mine), we decided to hie off and grab some coffee and dessert.

“Is there any other place that does coffee here aside from Starbucks?” my brother asked rather plaintively.

I pointed in the direction of Hollys Coffee which was, ironically, just a hop-skip-and-jump away from Starbucks.  ”That place looks promising,” I said.

It does look a bit more posh than the competition…

Hollys (no apostrophes, mind you) is a franchise of a popular chain of coffee-bars in South Korea.  It’s supposed to be based on a Parisian cafe (hence the poster at the top of this particular blog entry) where patrons are encouraged to sit and relax for a while with some coffee and a slice of cake as opposed to barking one’s order out at the barista and sprinting out as soon as you’ve paid and your order’s in hand.

The decor features plush armchairs and couches flanking low wood and wrought iron tables, softly ambient lighting, wood panels and old-school cabinets, and the chairs for the regular cafe tables are cushioned.  Jazz music (I’m not sure if it’s the New York or Paris sort; I was never a big jazz fan, really.) plays softly in the background.

Oh, what to pick…!

“Ooh, look at what they’ve got in the display case!” my sister exclaimed, pointing at the array of cakes, buns, cold sarnies, biscuits, and pastries in the refrigerated case.

The selection is a bit more interesting than at the Yankee coffee bars: steamed and baked meat buns appear on the menu, tea-infused sweets such as a blondie infused with black tea are supposed to be best-sellers, Korean flavors like kimchi and bulgogi are added to sandwiches and pasta, and you can opt to top your Belgian waffles with powdered sugar, chocolate syrup, whipped cream, or cream cheese.

The drinks are rather unusual, too.  Aside from the regular coffee bar drinks – your cappuccini, espressi, and whatnot – they also have such unusual things as sweet potato lattes and a yam macchiato, house-blended sparkling sippers, and decadent spins on hot chocolate.

Coffee, cake…

Since it was a hot day, we decided to give the Hollycino, Hollys’ spin on the ice-blended coffee, a shot.  The sibs each ordered the mint chocolate Hollycino which features proper creme de menthe vert blended into an iced mocha; the drink is topped with a fluffy swirl of aerosol whipped cream and a generous drizzle of creme de menthe syrup.  The sibs pronounced it an excellent drink: not too sweet or bitter, the flavor of the mint well-balanced and not reeking of toothpaste.

My choice was a Hollys specialty: the dark forest Hollycino.  For this particular ice-blended, dark chocolate and black Morello cherries in syrup were whizzed into a white mocha, topped with cream, drizzled over with syrup, and completed with a whole, pitted Morello.  Most cherry-infused drinks in this country taste disturbingly of cough syrup and either candied glace cherries or Maraschinos are used for garnishes; this drink was neither.  You get a proper cherry flavor: the slight tartness providing a bold yet tasteful counterpoint to the bittersweet chocolate and the vanilla-ish notes of the white mocha.  Seriously good stuff.

My sister chose a slice of the red velvet cake for the three of us to share, but this proved to be the only misfire for an otherwise perfect dessert.  While it was moist, buttery, and not too sweet, the cake fell flavorwise as it was neither cocoa nor vanilla to our tastebuds and the cream cheese icing was run of the mill.  Nevertheless, it was considerably better than the red velvet flogged by other local purveyors.

Red velvet cake aside, I am definitely stopping by Hollys again soon as the weather gets a bit cooler.  I am so intrigued by the sweet potato bevvies…

 

 

In Which Strawberries Make a Summer Drink More Refreshing…

Sweet, tart, and totally refreshing

Despite the torrential downpour that cooled off the southern suburbs on Friday afternoon, the weather continues to be scorching hot and utterly dismal to a cool weather-loving gal like myself.  (It is presently 35°C where I am at the moment.)  That said, people are resorting to everything from plain iced water to iced tea, frozen juice pops, and chunks of ice to stay cool in the blistering heat.

Iced tea and lemonade are the coolers of choice at my house: the tall blue plastic carafes in the fridge are always filled with chilled tea (instant, but refreshing nevertheless) and the tall bottle of honey-sweetened calamansi (calamondin – a local fruit, something like a cross between a lemon and a thin-skinned green orange) concentrate has become totally indispensable.  And, since my brother left a punnet of strawberries in the fridge from his last visit, I decided to take a cue from the strawberry lemonsweet recipe from the Game of Thrones-inspired food blog The Inn at the Crossroads.

Lemonsweet is, essentially, a rather medieval spin on lemonade but the flavors are allegedly more intensely lemony, even sharper than drinks made to modern lemonade recipes which tend to err on the overly sweet side.  This is due in part to the fact that most old-school recipes for lemonade call for sweetening it with honey rather than sugar or simple syrup.  The resulting drink is, thus, just subtly sweet with a wonted “in your face” vibrant lemon flavor.

For my concentrate-based lemonsweet, much of the tartness is derived from the slices of fresh strawberry floating atop the lemonade: the strawberry juice infuses the drink and adds a delicate, almost floral fragrance and gives the golden juice a slightly pinkish cast.  Poured over ice with a few berry slices on top, it makes for a very pretty and certainly soothing summer cooler.  It’s perfect enough as it is, though you may wish to add fresh mint or a sprinkle of instant salabat (ginger tea) powder to give it a bit more kick.

Summer Lemonsweet

• scant 1/2 cup calamansi concentrate with honey (I used Citrus Farms) + enough cold water to make 1 liter
  
• 1 cup fresh strawberries, hulled and sliced
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint or 1 tablespoon salabat (ginger tea) powder (optional)

In a large pitcher, stir together the concentrate and the water until well-combined.  Stir in the strawberry slices and the mint or ginger powder (if using).  Mix well and transfer to a covered carafe.  Store in the refrigerator for about a couple hours before serving, shaking it occasionally to mix the strawberry juice into the lemonade.  Serve in glasses over ice.

Makes approximately 5 glasses.

Note:  You can also let this drink be a cocktail base.  Pour a shot of vodka over ice before pouring in the lemonsweet.  Stir well and enjoy in moderation on a hot summer evening.  ;)

In Which the Blogger Talks About Horchata…

Horchata!

Long-time (and, due to one of last week’s posts, recent) visitors to this blog know that I won’t say no to trying out new foods or new drinks, especially those that have either been recommended by fellow food-bloggers and friends or those that have intrigued me after reading about them online, in some magazine, or cookbook.  Horchata is one of these things.

Horchata is a Spanish beverage with Arabic roots: the earliest accounts of it in Spain date it back to the period of the Moorish Occupation (711 – 1492).  In the Valencian dialect, the name is spelled as orxata - literally, “barley water” – because it was made from the water used for soaking barley in the old days.  Later on, the process was used to extract sweet drinks from groundnuts (tigernuts), almonds, rice, and even sesame seeds.  If made with almonds, sugar, and rose water (or lemon zest) and boiled down to a thick syrup, the resulting liquid becomes what is known as orgeat and is used to flavor baked goods though it can also be diluted with water for a refreshing drink.  Horchata in the modern context, on the other hand,  is usually made with either tigernuts or rice; it is thinner, looks like milk, and is usually made with sugar and cinnamon.

In this part of the world, the only place where I’ve encountered the drink is at the Salcedo Saturday Market where a stall specializing in Mexican street food offers the stuff in two variants: plain with a shot of milk (horchata con leche) and chocolate.  I like them both: the plain one shown at the top of this post is subtly milky and is richly flavored with vanilla and a hint of cinnamon; the wee cubes of almond and coffee jelly at the bottom of the drink add to the visual and textural interest.  The chocolate, on the other hand, is somewhat gritty textured at first sip (probably because of the cacao used for flavoring the drink), but it grows on you: the grittiness gives way to a dusky, smoky chocolatiness amped by the sweet, spicy cinnamon.

Whichever you choose to order, you’re in for a refreshing treat.  For some odd reason, I find it more restorative than, say, plain water or some sugary soda especially on a scorching day.

In Which the Blogger Attempts to Replicate a Dirty Chai Latte Sans an Espresso Machine and Then Some…

More than coffee, more than tea…

“Have you ever had a dirty chai latte?” my new friend, The Antipodean, asked me recently while we were online and talking about a story I pitched to a publisher a couple weeks ago.

“A what?” I asked.  Oh, I’ve encountered the term before: mostly from back-issues of Delicious-UK and Delicious-Australia, but no one has explained it to my satisfaction.

“You mean, you don’t get those where you are?” The Antipodean exclaimed.  ”Um, how do I put it?  Well, you get a mug of chai and you drop a shot of espresso into it.”

Okay, I got the picture at that point.  It would probably be most similar to a yuanyang – a popular beverage at Hong Kong’s cha chaan tngs (tea shops / cafes) which mixes three parts brewed coffee with seven parts HK-style milk tea.  This one, however, is spicier due to the cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, white pepper, and cloves used to flavor the tea.

It’s one of those “secret menu” offerings at both Starbucks and the Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf: order a chai latte and tell your barista to drop an espresso shot into it.  The end result: a creamy, smooth, spicy, bittersweet drink that goes down amazingly well and is perfect for soothing frazzled nerves in the middle of a work-day even while keeping you alert enough to finish what needs to be done.

When I first had one, I went and reported directly to The Antipodean; he was pleased that I liked it.  Then I told him I planned to try making one at home.  This caused him to stare at me in disbelief.

“You have an espresso machine, yes?” he asked.

“Nope,” I declared in full confidence.

“You don’t?!  Then, how…?”

“Watch, kid; watch and learn…”

Believe me when I say he just stared at me and was close to going into hysterics…

In a fit of [temporary] madness, I added pinches of cinnamon, pepper, cloves, ginger, and cardamom to a quarter-cup of milk before tossing in instant coffee and instant milk tea.  Add hot water, et voila – what would pretty much pass for a cheap-arse dirty chai latte at home.  It was a touch sweeter and the coffee seemed to overpower the tea, but I found it most fortifying a few mornings ago when the weather turned stormy despite the impending summer heat.

“You’re fearless,” The Antipodean conceded, albeit somewhat reluctantly.

“Nope,” I replied.  ”I just like a good challenge is all.”

In Which the Blogger Takes the Mocha Concept Out for a Double-spin…

It’s a bunch of Japanese and Mexican flavors…in a Union Jack mug.

Caffe mocha, that staple of many upmarket coffee bars is, in essence, a mixture of espresso, milk, and chocolate syrup.  Modeled after the bicerin (coffee + drinking chocolate + milk), a specialty of Italy’s Piedmont region, it is certainly richer than a standard-issue latte and appeals to both caffeine junkies with a sweet tooth and those who are, for all intents and purposes, chocoholics craving for stimulation.

I don’t know about the rest of you, but there is a way of making mochas at home without the benefit of either a coffee maker or an espresso machine.  Heck, all you need is a packet of brown or white instant coffee, chocolate, milk, spices, a saucepan, and a ready arm with a whisk.  Coffee sacrilege?  Perhaps, but improvisation in the kitchen has led to some delicious, warming, and totally bespoke drinks.

Shown above is my Jap-Mex Mocha.  This particular beastie features Japanese milk chocolate (Meiji Milk, to be exact) whisked into a mix of milk and water and spruced up with cinnamon and black pepper, evoking old-school Mexican hot chocolate.  Toss in a packet of coffee, and you get a deliciously creamy coffee concoction with a bit of a snappy bite.

Jap-Mex Mocha

• 25 grams Japanese milk chocolate, broken
• 1 single-serve packet instant brown or white coffee
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• dash of black pepper

In a saucepan, bring the milk and water to a boil.  Add the broken chocolate and whisk vigorously until it has all melted.  Remove from heat and add the coffee and spices.  Whisk vigorously until frothy.  Pour into a mug to serve.  Makes 1 coffee.

Vanilla bean and white chocolate make this both decadent and soothing.

A second variation makes for a more subtle drink.  It features vanilla bean and white chocolate and pretty much mimics the qualities of an Antipodean flat white in the sense that it is milkier but it’s a whole lot less foamy than the drink at the top of this post.

Here’s an idea you might want to try: if you use vanilla beans for baking, don’t toss out your used pods. Bury the lot in a jar of granulated white sugar. This both flavors the sugar and preserves the pod-skins for another use.  The used pods, in particular, are perfect for this particular drink.

Vanilla Flat White

• 1 used vanilla bean
• 1/4 cup grated white chocolate
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1/4 cup water
• 1 single-serve packet white coffee

Combine milk and water in a saucepan.  Add the vanilla pod and the white chocolate.  Put the saucepan on medium-heat, whisking the mixture to help the chocolate melt and to press any remaining vanilla seeds out of the pod.  Bring to a boil and remove from the heat.  Remove the vanilla pod and add the coffee.  Whisk until the coffee has dissolved.  Pour into a mug to serve.  Makes 1 coffee.