"Bowl" of coffee, it is kind of French, Oui?
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What’s with the bowl of coffee?
Funny you should ask, it’s quite literal. But first apparently, drinking coffee from a bowl is a French thing? Pre-Covid19, when we still work in offices, my day has to start with what I consider for myself as brain fuel. I’m not a morning person. It’s hard to function without that first sip of coffee. It’s my brain battery, my Powerade, my addiction, one of my reasons for getting up in the morning, my…okay you get the point. I do try my best to NOT be one of those people, you know, the…”Don’t talk to me until I’ve had my coffee…” We want to be kind and not rude, especially at the start of the day. We don’t want to add to the 9-5er’s office woes. I’m naturally bubbly and the coffee helps bring out the extra patience in me. It’s very useful for work and dealing with people. And of course, it tastes delicious!
The no-brainer, VERY simple recipe.
Anyway, we are lucky enough to have an expensive quality coffee machine in our office kitchen offering a wide variety of organic beans turned to liquid gold, such as Americano, one or two shots of espresso, latte, cappuccino, etc. Yes, free delicious organic coffee! Thanks, job! Talk about employee retention strategy haha! I’ve developed my very own simple coffee machine delight recipe that gets me through the day.
(1) Microwave 3-4 tablespoons of half & half/cream in your favorite cup, (no cover), for a few seconds. You can use alternatives to regular cream or milk such as oat, almond, coconut, etc. (2) I then add 2 shots of espresso from the machine with the press of a button. (3) The next button to push is the latte. I didn’t bother to change the milk that is attached to this machine. I’m not allowed to touch that anyway. That’s it! The outcome is an indulgent, creamy, strong taste of coffee, with that rich cloud milk foam on top. So creamy in fact that sugar is not needed.
Let me digress a bit…
There is nothing worse than watered down coffee. And if I have to pay for that, ugh! I’ve had mixed experiences with NYC coffee carts, which are street staples in New York. Some were good while some were straight-up either burnt or watered down. Back to the recipe… It is obviously easy, not mind-blowing because the machine does the work for me, but it sure is mouthwatering! Oh, how I wish there is a micro barista living in that machine to top my coffee with exquisite latte art! I’ve even contemplated bringing to work some coffee decorating stencils that I bought, as well as organic cinnamon powder and cocoa. Yap, I was going to be THAT elaborate morning coffee diva, and do that darn latte art myself. But alas, I didn’t.
As much as I love drinking coffee, I don’t see myself as an expert on it, AT ALL.
I can’t tell you much about history, the complexity of the process from bean to actual coffee drink, the different aromas, or be deftly descriptive with the taste and such. But watch me drink a good coffee and my reaction does not lie as I close my eyes and softly utter ummm ummm or say YASSS with a bit of volume. Not too much volume because it’s still morning. I want to aim to learn more though. I do know that coffee is a yummy art in a cup. The kind of art that brings people together and turns acquaintances into friends. Yes, it’s cheesy, but you know it’s true! I know we need freshly roasted beans, good water, which I’m lucky to have in New York, and a good coffee machine. I’m not a coffee sommelier, but I don’t have to be to enjoy it. I let my taste buds guide me. Writing this reminds me of some awesome coffee shops that we visited in Bali.
The “bowl”…
I put my coffee in a ceramic bowl similar to this soup bowl because it’s ginormous, no need to worry about overflow, and I like multi-functional objects. I already own the soup bowl and my other 5 coffee cups are too small. Yes, I own that many coffee mugs at work. And yes, I was the only one using a soup bowl as my coffee mug. I’ve gotten a few stares and laughs, which I don’t mind at all. I find that drinking coffee in a preferably large, wide-mouth, round coffee cup/mug is more satisfying for me. So the soup bowl was the closest thing I have to that in the office. Does it really make a difference? Is it just psychological? I don’t care. I like to savor my coffee while working, holding the warm bowl with both hands as I leisurely sip it, get some work done, and repeat. Because of coffee, I.Get.It.Done! It tends to get cold easily, so I put the bowl cover on it, and I use a mug warmer. This was a gift that was thoroughly used.
What the French?!
In France, they like to sip cafe au lait in a ceramic bol?! What?! OUI. In. a. bowl/bol. Ha! I didn’t know this. I am this age-years-old and just found this out. Big bowl for more coffee, easier to pour milk, and more room to dip that morning pastry or croissant! I’m totally down with that. So it really isn’t that strange then to be using a soup bowl. Here I am, a typical kind-of tired, cubicle dweller in NYC, just sipping on my coffee, grinding away in my 9-5, and apparently unbeknownst to me, I’m kind-of following some fancy French coffee culture. Oh, la la!
So, that’s what’s up with the “bowl” of coffee.
Do you know if I belong to a probably small percentage of folks who didn’t know about drinking coffee in the French bowl? Would you drink your coffee that way? Don’t you wish you can just spend a day exploring cafes in your area? I mean it’ll be lots of caffeine and you’ll be super wired but nothing beats a good coffee you can enjoy any time you want.
It’s the little things that make me happy. Drinking Coffee my way, my pace, And then I Do…
