Time Out

This change is infectuous, overwhelming and complicated. There are new beans in the hoppers, new bags on our shelves. We are beaming with excitement, the eagerness to demonstrate proficiency and confidence in our brewing coming out in every pour. We are tired but willing to push through because we can see the promise of where we are heading.

The sun is starting to draw itself out of the cloud cover. I can see the warmth building through the cafe windows as I nibble on my scone and sip the remnants of my latte. This is comfort, rest: me with my legs tucked up on the barstool reading, the cracking of the roaster, the tangible earthy sweetness of the latest batch of beans cooling.

It has been a crazy stressful couple of weeks, so much pressure and long hours. I have not given myself time to just sit and let my muscles unwind, so this morning is a welcome gift. Much like the loyalty of a staff. A comfortable dinner with a friend to laugh or talk through things. A day devoted to only pots de creme and clean socks and chasing a seven year old around a park on a sunny Sunday.


Blueberry Wollondi Pots de Creme

This pot de creme was inspired simply by a cup of Ethiopian Wollondi that tasted so fiercely like blueberries, I knew I had to incorporate it into a dessert. The coffee itself was so fragrant even from grinding, and upon tasting, the bright citrus came out as well.

The coffee flavor here was not that strong, and since you won't be able to get your hands on these specific beans now, another lighter-roasted fruity coffee (think African for the berry tones) would work. I followed Whisk-Kid's recipe and left out the chocolate, as I didn't want too many flavors competing and the blueberry to not be the central focus.
Geeky note: after further tasting and discussing, I am playing with other ways to incorporate the coffee flavor into the cream. Check back for updates as I tweak and play. :)

That said, this will not disappoint.

Coffee Pots de Creme

3 cups heavy cream
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 cup whole coffee beans

6 egg yolks
1/2 c sugar
3 tbls brewed coffee (or espresso- see geeky note)

Preheat your oven to 325 degrees F.

Combine cream, extract and coffee beans in heavy saucepan, and heat until simmering, letting the beans infuse into the cream. When heated, strain out beans using a mesh collander, and let the cream cool on the counter.

Whisk together egg yolks and sugar until light and fluffy in texture (about 3 min). Slowly temper the cream into the egg sugar mixture by adding a small bit at a time, whisking constantly so mixture will not curdle. Continue adding until cream is fully incorporated.

Stir in brewed coffee. (I brewed a slightly stronger cup through pour-over in my baby Hario, but the original recipe used espresso instead). Pour mixture into 8 6-oz ramikens (they will fill about half way- this is good!), and place the filled ramekins in a baking pan with an inch or two of warm water. Bake pots de creme in water bath for approximately 35 min. They will be jiggly in the center but mostly firm when they are done. They should cool about ten minutes in the pan before taking them out and letting them cool on the rack. Once cool enough, they should fully set in the fridge for at least two hours before serving.

Meanwhile... make the Blueberry reduction!

Blueberry-Lemon Sauce

2 cups blueberries, washed
1/3 c sugar
Zest of 1 lemon
1 tbl lemon juice
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Pour blueberries into saucepan, and using a potato masher, gently squish berries to release juices. Add sugar, lemon zest, juice and extract. On medium heat, bring blueberry sauce to a gentlt boil, stirring to keep berries from sticking to bottom of pan. When sauce begins to thicken, remove from heat and strain through fine mesh strainer (so you'd better have washed the one you used for the coffee beans, or you're going to have to do it now!). It may take a bit of coaxing with the back of a spoon to get all the juices out of the berries. The sauce will be a deep sparkly purple-blue. Put bowl of sauce in fridge to cool completely.

Once Pots de creme and sauce have cooled completely, spoon or pour a layer of blueberry sauce over the top of the custards. Evenly distribute sauce over all the ramekins. Sauce-topped custards will stay fresh covered in fridge for a couple days, though I dare say you will have a hard time making them last that long.