What’s so great about coffee? Besides the fact that many of us can’t start or survive the day without it, there has to be more to this all but magical drink than just the caffeine.
There’s the unmistakable aroma of fresh brewed coffee in the morning. The close your eyes, “mmm …” after that first sip. And, the shameless excuse it provides to take a much needed break anytime of day.
While all of that works for me, there’s also “the look” of coffee, especially as it’s being prepared. Tearing open a package of freshly roasted beans and watching those glistening nuggets of goodness cascade into the grinder bin is not to be dismissed lightly. I should explain.
In our home, we’ve been ordering coffee beans from the same company, Beanstock Coffee, for years. These guys roast their coffee, “… locally, in small batches and always to order.” Because we love robust, dark roast coffee, our favorite is the Black Fish Creek Blend that they describe best as, “… “Very dark and smooth without being burnt and finishing with subtle berry notes.”
After grinding, and before brewing, there’s another beauty shot moment of a fresh mound of tiny ground granules that’s quickly upstaged by its intoxicating fragrance.
Gorgeous coffee beans – that shouldn’t be overlooked – on their way to becoming an outstanding cup of joe.
Think of the things you use all the time in your kitchen but had to think about before buying, because they were little luxuries. We bet there are a few that fall into "things you don't know how you did without."
These items can give you ideas for great gifts for those close to you or something to splurge on with a gift certificate. Please tell us what falls into that group for you in the comments section or on twitter.
For us, here are 5 things that we love and don't regret spending the money on for a single moment. In fact, some of these have saved us money in the long run.
If you are chopping coffee beans with a blade coffee mill, think about saving that for spices and trading up to a burr grinder. We decided on the Capresso 565 Infinity Conical Burr Grinder. You can pay more for a more serious grinder or you can use more human power and buy a hand cranked item. Those are also great to use on the road. One example is the Hario Mini Mill Slim Coffee Grinder.
3. Good Quality Heavy Pots and Pans
Over the years, we've replaced the thin-walled pans we thought were a great buy when we set up housekeeping, with heavy, substantial pans from Le Creuset and All-Clad. No more burnt, scorched food or pans, and more home cooking which does save cash.
4. Great Wine & Barware Glasses
This is one area where we've gone a bit overboard and have too many great wine glasses for people who live in a small space. We have Riedel wine glasses, Schott Zwiesel Tritan Crystal glasses and Reed & Barton barware. We both use crystal double old fashioned glasses as our daily water glass and it really gives drinking your water a lift. Anyone want to buy some glassware? One 2013 resolution is to thin our collection.
5. Wedgwood Nantucket Basket Bone China for our everyday dinnerware. You've seen it all over these pages in our food photos. We were tired of replacing our everyday dinnerware every few years because of chips, crazing, and broken dishes. But, since Penny had once sold china for a living, she knew that bone china is vitrified like steel and is highly resistant to these problems.
We invested in a service for 8 about 16 years ago and have only had two or three pieces replaced since then. Since it's all white with no gold, silver, or pattern to damage, it is totally dishwasher safe. And, it looks great on our table. A little luxury with a long life span.
Remember, we'd love to hear what's on your list of the top 5 kitchen luxuries that you don't regret buying. Send us a tweet or post a comment.
Do you have an Amazon Gift Certificate to use? Or do you need to buy one for a gift? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!
Details:
Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.
Think of the things you use all the time in your kitchen but had to think about before buying, because they were little luxuries. We bet there are a few that fall into "things you don't know how you did without."
These items can give you ideas for great gifts for those close to you or something to splurge on with a gift certificate. Please tell us what falls into that group for you in the comments section or on twitter.
For us, here are 5 things that we love and don't regret spending the money on for a single moment. In fact, some of these have saved us money in the long run.
If you are chopping coffee beans with a blade coffee mill, think about saving that for spices and trading up to a burr grinder. We decided on the Capresso 565 Infinity Conical Burr Grinder. You can pay more for a more serious grinder or you can use more human power and buy a hand cranked item. Those are also great to use on the road. One example is the Hario Mini Mill Slim Coffee Grinder.
3. Good Quality Heavy Pots and Pans
Over the years, we've replaced the thin-walled pans we thought were a great buy when we set up housekeeping, with heavy, substantial pans from Le Creuset and All-Clad. No more burnt, scorched food or pans, and more home cooking which does save cash.
4. Great Wine & Barware Glasses
This is one area where we've gone a bit overboard and have too many great wine glasses for people who live in a small space. We have Riedel wine glasses, Schott Zwiesel Tritan Crystal glasses and Reed & Barton barware. We both use crystal double old fashioned glasses as our daily water glass and it really gives drinking your water a lift. Anyone want to buy some glassware? One 2013 resolution is to thin our collection.
5. Wedgwood Nantucket Basket Bone China for our everyday dinnerware. You've seen it all over these pages in our food photos. We were tired of replacing our everyday dinnerware every few years because of chips, crazing, and broken dishes. But, since Penny had once sold china for a living, she knew that bone china is vitrified like steel and is highly resistant to these problems.
We invested in a service for 8 about 16 years ago and have only had two or three pieces replaced since then. Since it's all white with no gold, silver, or pattern to damage, it is totally dishwasher safe. And, it looks great on our table. A little luxury with a long life span.
Remember, we'd love to hear what's on your list of the top 5 kitchen luxuries that you don't regret buying. Send us a tweet or post a comment.
Do you have an Amazon Gift Certificate to use? Or do you need to buy one for a gift? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!
Details:
Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.
Think of the things you use all the time in your kitchen but had to think about before buying, because they were little luxuries. We bet there are a few that fall into "things you don't know how you did without."
These items can give you ideas for great gifts for those close to you or something to splurge on with a gift certificate. Please tell us what falls into that group for you in the comments section or on twitter.
For us, here are 5 things that we love and don't regret spending the money on for a single moment. In fact, some of these have saved us money in the long run.
If you are chopping coffee beans with a blade coffee mill, think about saving that for spices and trading up to a burr grinder. We decided on the Capresso 565 Infinity Conical Burr Grinder. You can pay more for a more serious grinder or you can use more human power and buy a hand cranked item. Those are also great to use on the road. One example is the Hario Mini Mill Slim Coffee Grinder.
3. Good Quality Heavy Pots and Pans
Over the years, we've replaced the thin-walled pans we thought were a great buy when we set up housekeeping, with heavy, substantial pans from Le Creuset and All-Clad. No more burnt, scorched food or pans, and more home cooking which does save cash.
4. Great Wine & Barware Glasses
This is one area where we've gone a bit overboard and have too many great wine glasses for people who live in a small space. We have Riedel wine glasses, Schott Zwiesel Tritan Crystal glasses and Reed & Barton barware. We both use crystal double old fashioned glasses as our daily water glass and it really gives drinking your water a lift. Anyone want to buy some glassware? One 2013 resolution is to thin our collection.
5. Wedgwood Nantucket Basket Bone China for our everyday dinnerware. You've seen it all over these pages in our food photos. We were tired of replacing our everyday dinnerware every few years because of chips, crazing, and broken dishes. But, since Penny had once sold china for a living, she knew that bone china is vitrified like steel and is highly resistant to these problems.
We invested in a service for 8 about 16 years ago and have only had two or three pieces replaced since then. Since it's all white with no gold, silver, or pattern to damage, it is totally dishwasher safe. And, it looks great on our table. A little luxury with a long life span.
Remember, we'd love to hear what's on your list of the top 5 kitchen luxuries that you don't regret buying. Send us a tweet or post a comment.
Do you have an Amazon Gift Certificate to use? Or do you need to buy one for a gift? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!
Details:
Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.
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