A Cup of Joe

 

National Coffee Day is September 29. If you're like me, you like to enjoy a cup (or more) of coffee each morning. Coffee brings joy to people around the world. Most coffee beans are grown in Brazil, but 2 states in the U.S. do grow coffee. Hawaii's warm climate is optimal for growing coffee and a few years ago when we were visiting Hawaii we toured coffee farms. California recently got into the game and now has several coffee farms. 

There's good news for coffee drinkers - research now shows that moderate consumption of coffee (3-4 cups per day) is linked to a longer life span, plus a reduced risk of cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes and Parkinson's, according to Harvard Health Publishing. 

Coffee has become more varied in the last few years. The popularity of coffeehouses (Starbucks, Caribou, and when I'm in Manhattan - Radina's, or our local CakeBatterBatter) have made cappuccino, espresso, iced coffee, lattes and many others favorite drinks. With flavored coffee creamers and syrups you can make some of these specialities at home. 

I hadn't been a fan of iced coffee, but this summer I tried a couple of new-to-me ideas at home - Dalgona coffee and iced vanilla latte. So, now I often make an extra cup in the morning to enjoy later as a cold drink. 

Iced Vanilla Latte (claims to be Starbucks copycat)

Put ½ cup ice in large cup. Mix together 1 cup cold strongly brewed coffee, ¼ cup milk or cream, and 1 Tablespoon vanilla syrup. 

Dalgona Coffee is one of 2020's biggest food crazes according to Food Network Magazine. Whipped coffee has been around for centuries and traditionally requires lots of stirring/whipping/whisking. Make your own with your electric mixer the easy way. 

Here's what the instant coffee
and sugar look like after whipping

Combine 2 tablespoons each granulated sugar and instant coffee or espresso powder in a medium bowl. Add 2 tablespoons boiling water and beat with a mixer on medium-high speed until pale brown and fluffy, 3-5 minutes. Pour 1 cup cold milk into an ice-filled glass and spoon the whipped coffee mixture over the top just before serving. 

A coffee field in Hawaii

from an exhibit at the coffee farm

Rhubarb Crisp for Summer Dessert

Summer is time for fruit, flowers and favorite foods. I just learned that one of our favorite foods isn't a fruit like I thought, but a vegetable! I thought the tomato was the sole claim of that confusion. I used to tell the kids in the nutrition classes I taught that if we were talking horticulture it was a fruit, and if we were talking food it was a vegetable. Rhubarb is just the opposite, a vegetable that is mostly eaten as a fruit in pies, cobblers, and often paired with strawberries. Maybe it's tartness and need for lots of sugar is what pushes it into the fruit dessert category. 
Rhubarb stalks look like red celery with large leaves. Just remember the leaves are poisonous, so only harvest the stalks. A friend gave me about 20 stalks recently, just right for rhubarb cobbler. Here's my favorite recipe that could use fresh or frozen rhubarb. 

RHUBARB CRISP

Ingredients:

6 cups rhubarb (can add blueberries to make it to 6 cups)

3 tablespoons flour

2/3 cup sugar

½ teaspoon cinnamon

Topping: 

¾ cup rolled oats

¾ cup brown sugar, packed

6 tablespoons flour

½ teaspoon cinnamon

6 tablespoons butter

Instructions: 

1.    Preheat oven to 375 degrees. 

2.    Wash and rinse rhubarb and cut into 1/2” pieces.

3.    Toss rhubarb with flour, sugar, and cinnamon. Place in a 2qt. baking dish. 

4.    In a separate bowl, combine topping ingredients with a fork or pastry blender. Sprinkle over rhubarb mixture. 

5.    Bake for 35 minutes or until rhubarb is tender and topping is golden. 

6.    Cool 5-10 minutes before serving. Top with ice cream, cream, or vanilla yogurt. 

chopped rhubarb and blueberries with sugar, flour,
 and cinnamon. Ready for topping. 

With topping, ready for baking. 

Rustic Tomato and Cheese Pie

"The Queen of Hearts, she made some tarts, all on a summer's day". This tart recipe is a great summer recipe that you'll want to make also. 'Tart' is a strange name, the word has a variety of meanings, not all good! Tart may describe a bitter sour taste. Or maybe a girl who is a tease or flirt (or worse!). The old English meaning of the word is 'sharp, rough'. Perhaps that is why a rustic open pasty filled with fruit or vegetables and without a top got the name 'tart'. It certainly sounds less refined than it's cousin 'pie', defined as a baked dish of fruit or meat and vegetables with a top and base of pastry.
Whatever the definition, this pie/tart is a good meal to use the bountiful tomatoes of summer. I got the recipe from Chef Alli's website and she credits Find Cooking magazine of August/September 2013.

Rustic Tomato and Cheese Pie                                            

this makes a good summer supper with bacon and fruit

¼ cup flour combined with ¼ cup corn meal

Buttermilk Biscuit Dough

1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour

2 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. granulated sugar

½ tsp. baking soda

¾ tsp. kosher salt

6 Tbs. cold unsalted butter, cut into ½-inch pieces

¾ cup buttermilk (or 1 Tbs. cider vinegar + milk to make ¾ cup)

Filling

1 ½ -2 pounds nicely ripened tomatoes, peeled and sliced 1 ¼ -inch thick. (Approximately 5-6 medium tomatoes)

4 oz. creamy goat cheese, softened

½ cup mayonnaise

¼ cup chopped basil (or ½- ¾ tsp. dried basil leaves)

Freshly ground pepper, to taste

            Position oven rack in center of oven and preheat oven to 425 degrees.  In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, baking powder, sugar, baking soda and salt. Using a pastry blender or a knife and fork, cut the butter into the flour mixture until mixture resembles coarse meal in texture. Using a silicone spatula or large spoon, stir in the buttermilk, just until the flour mixture is moistened. Don’t over mix! The dough should just come together and will be sticky.

            Sprinkle a 12x17-inch sheet of parchment paper with half of the flour/cornmeal mixture. Place biscuit dough onto this flour/cornmeal mixture and pat into a 5-inch round. Using a floured rolling pin, roll the biscuit dough into a 13-inch circle, lightly dusting with flour to keep dough from sticking, if needed.

            Slide parchment sheet with dough onto a large rimmed baking sheet. Sprinkle the remaining half of the flour/cornmeal mixture over the dough, leaving a 1 ½ -inch border. Arrange the sliced tomatoes over the dough in two circles, slightly overlapping them.

            Combine the goat cheese, mayo, and basil in a small bowl; dollop mixture in generous spoonfuls over the tomatoes. Fold the dough border over the edges of the tomatoes, pleating the dough where needed. Season pie with freshly ground black pepper.

            Bake, uncovered, until the crust is nicely golden brown and tomatoes are tender, approximately 20 minutes. Let tart cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes before cutting into wedges to serve.

dough is rolled out

and covered with sliced tomatoes

add cheese and fold edges up