Browsing: Food & drink

Everyone Rush Outside!

I honestly didn’t think we were going to see hide nor hair of the sun this summer (and as I’m writing this blog most of the UK is in the middle of a heat wave but the Lake District most definitely isn’t!) and so eating Al Fresco just wasn’t going to be an option.  But in true Brit fashion, we’ll put the weather aside to host a massive family BBQ later on this month.

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Our first attempt at Tessa’s coffee recipe.

On Friday we mentioned on Facebook about making the perfect cup of coffee. The blog post from Cafedirect gave detailed instructions of how to make the perfect cup using a cafetiere. The coffee drinkers were impressed and it caused some debate over how hot the water should actually be. But we were surprised when one of  our customers Tessa Connorton suggested the following method making coffee:

When I was a junior in a solictiors in London, I had to make coffee for the staff. I was shown by my superior how to make the perfect cup of coffee (taking into account this was 1964) no granules then! it was just plain old jar of ground coffee. This is how it went, add two teaspoons of coffee, 3 teaspoons of milk, beat for EVER with a spoon , when the mixture was smooth, add very very slowly hot milk beating all the time with a fork (still in the cup) the froth will be on top and now you have a cappucino, I had to do this 12 times 3 times a day lol )

Yeuch! we thought. But no says Tessa it tasted pretty good she assured us. There was only one way to find out – make a cup!

Our second attempt this time without the coffee grounds, and this time finished. Lovely cup of coffee.

So we followed the detailed instruction suggested by Tessa and we made a cup of coffee – the one you can see at the top of the page – using our favourite Cafedirect Rich Roast Fairtrade ground coffee. It tasted pretty good despite our initial misgivings. However, there was a lot of coffee grounds floating around making the coffee difficult to drink without a tooth pick! Ever resourceful we tried again and this time used a tea strainer to remove the coffee grounds. Now the flavour was very 1970s – took me back to the Misha Black-designed Kardomah Coffee shop in Manchester’s Albert Square when I, as a little lad aged 8, was just beginning to experiment with the “God of drinks”.

So, nice coffee Tessa – certainly option if you like your coffee milky!

So Easter is coming and one of the great traditions of Easter is the Hot Cross Bun. I have never made them before so I decided I would have ago this year. The Hot Cross bun is a celebration food that celebrates the end of Lent and piles in all the things you may have given up for the last seven weeks. Made from a heavily spiced dough, the bun is laden with rich fruit. A delicious treat – and one we shouldn’t eat too often!

Hot Cross buns cooling in Andy's Kitchen

So with apologies to Nigella and Felicity Cloake of the Guardian who’s recipes I have butchered here is the official Ethical Superstore guide to making your own Ethical Hot Cross Bun.

Ingredients

200ml milk
¼ tsp powdered nutmeg
½ tsp powdered Suma Organic and Fairtrade cinnamon
¼ tsp powdered mixed spice
Pinch of saffron
7g of powdered “easy bake” yeast (or Doves Farm quick yeast)
50g golden Traidcraft Fairtrade caster sugar
450g Doves Farm organic strong white flour
100g butter
½ tsp salt
½ tsp ground ginger
3 eggs
150g Suma Organic currants
50g mixed peel
3 tbsp Doves Farm organic plain flour 

Cooking time: In total this is going to take four hours and for the best flavour prepare the spicy milk the day before.

1. Heat 200ml milk gently in a pan along with the cinnamon,  nutmeg and mixed spice until just boiling. Set aside, preferably overnight.

2. Next day warm the milk to body temperature and then add yeast and 1 tsp sugar.

3. Mix the flour and  butter in a large bowl and rub together until well mixed.

4. Add the rest of the sugar, the salt and ginger.

5. Beat together two of the eggs and add with the yeast mixture to the flour\butter mixture. Stir in, adding enough milk to make a soft dough.

6. Place on a floured surface and knead for 10 minutes until smooth and elastic.

7. Cover and leave in a warm place for  a couple of hours until it has doubled in size.

8. Place back on a floured surface and knead for a minute or so. Flatten it out and scatter over the fruit and peel. Knead again to spread the fruit around evenly.

9. Divide into 16 equal pieces and roll these into round, bun shapes. Put on If you care grease proof paper lined baking trays and mark a cross on the top of each one. Cover and put in a warm place until doubled in size (again!).

10. Set the oven to 200 degrees Celsius and beat together an egg with a little milk. Mix the plain flour,  a pinch of salt and enough cold water to make a stiff paste. Paint the top of each bun with egg wash, and then draw a thick cross where you scored the cross on each bun.

11. Put into the oven and bake for about 25 minutes until golden.

12. Meanwhile, mix 1 tbsp caster sugar with 1 tbsp boiling water. When the buns come out of the oven, brush them with this before transferring to a rack to cool.

13. Eat with lots of butter, lots of friends and lots of chat of how to make the world a better place.

Have fun and have  a great Easter. Once consumed on Easter Sunday you will a strenuous Easter Egg hunt to burn off the calories. Make sure you have lots of Divine Easter eggs well hidden around your garden!

It’s April 2009, and I’m saying goodbye to a cushy job as a creative marketing manager for a games firm; the recession having swung its deathly scythe at this industry, particularly anywhere more than a mile and a half outside London. So, having been given my marching orders, I hastily put together my portfolio and CV (or if you’re a recruiter reading this – painstakingly hand-crafted my portfolio and CV) and set sail on the seas of recruitment.

Read the rest of Fair Trade – is it a load of old rubbish? »

Take a tropical island paradise, a flourishing cocoa producer and a group of people determined to improve the lives of others and you get Cafédirect’s empowering story of its involvement with the people of Saõ Tomé & Principe.

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What better way to show you care than to whip up some delicious, vegan friendly cupcakes? This tasty recipe just goes to show that you don’t need eggs or milk to enjoy your favourite tea-time snack!

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Mayan Magic Chocolate

We are friends with chocolate here at Ethical Superstore.  How could we not be?  We stock all sorts of chocolate.  Organic chocolate, Vegan Chocolate, Fairtrade Chocolate, Dairy-free chocolate, Soil Association certified organic chocolate and now, arguably the most fun of all – the raw chocolate ingredients – make your own chocolate!

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Now on 5 Cafédirect products!

Maybe it’s the essential cog in your morning routine. Or it’s that impromptu heart to heart forged from that timeless ice-breaker – “Anyone for tea?”. Or perhaps you just enjoy grinding your own beans at home on a sunday afternoon. Whatever the reason, everyone appreciates the perfect time for a good cuppa.

Read the rest of Five Stars for Cafédirect! »

Summertime is a great time of year to sit down with family, friends and neighbours, and enjoy a picnic. In order to celebrate this most hallowed of British past-times, the folks at The Big Lunch are at it again, encouraging us all to get together, enjoy some food and drink, in a nationwide day of picnic celebrations on Sunday 18th July.

Read the rest of The Big Lunch Party – You’re Invited! »

Next week is National Vegetarian Week. This annual awareness raising campaign promotes innovative and inspirational vegetarian cooking, and awareness of the benefits of a meat-free diet. Celebrated by the Vegetarian society since 1992, National Vegetarian Week events are held around the country by schools, offices, big corporations and community group. Check the map to see what events are being held near you.

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