coffee must-haves
I’m reviving this old blog post to share some new links and recipes because my inbox is constantly filled with DMs about coffee, and I want to make sure I have everything in one place!
basically, it would be a disservice for me NOT to share this with you! so if you’re ready to up your at-home coffee game — here’s what you need!
First, my favorite coffee recipes
iced brown sugar oatmilk latte:
1 glass of iced milk of your choice
2 shots of your favorite espresso
a lil vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste
1 tbsp brown sugar
how to make: pour your milk over a large glass of ice. put the brown sugar and vanilla extract in a small mug and pour your espresso shots over the mixture. stir well and then pour over the iced milk. stir and enjoy. (watch me make it here!)
cinnamon roll yolky coffee (I first saw @noellekovary make this delicious recipe on her instagram and I had to try it! it’s delicious)
1 egg yolk
1 tbsp raw can sugar
1 dash cinnamon
milk of choice
tsp butter
pinch of salt
2 shots espresso
how to make: mix your egg yolk, tbsp sugar and dash of cinnamon in a small bowl. put the tsp of butter and dash of salt in your milk and steam/froth. pour the yolk mixture and milk into your mug and mix. pour your espresso shots on top, stir and enjoy. (watch me make it here!0
okay…now for my must-have coffee items. first of all, if you’re going to be making espresso drinks at home, save up some money and invest in a Breville Barista Pro. i know it’s stupid expensive. i would never recommend something this pricey if it wasn’t worth every dang penny. i’ve had this machine for almost two years ago and to this day, I tell people it’s the best purchase I’ve ever made. I. Love. It.
the machine has:
a built-in burr grinder
steam wand for your milk
hot water feature (americanos, anyone?)
lcd screen
ability to pull a single or double shot of espresso
lotsa fun colors
it’s also very fast — there’s no waiting for the machine to heat up or get ready. you grind your beans, tamp them, load them up, and pull your espresso shot. add some brown sugar and oat milk and you’ll never want a store-bought latte again.
there is definitely some trial and error when it comes to learning how to pull the perfect espresso shot. i watched several videos when i first got my machine and found this one to be the most helpful!
okay, last thing about making good espresso…it requires good beans. if you’re putting dunkin donuts beans in your breville barista pro, you’re not living. i love crema.co — it’s a subscription-based service where you choose the coffees that look good to you and how often you need a new bag and they’ll take care of the rest. they go into great detail about the flavor and certifications of each coffee (i always buy organic, and i recommend that you do too. coffee can be riddled with dangerous pesticides and mold. and it’s typically grown in countries whose pesticide regulations are different than ours — aka, sometimes nonexistent, aka — ain’t no telling what your beans are being sprayed with)
anyway, crema.co led me to dogwood neon espresso and i will never buy anything else again. i buy the 5 lb bag! it lasts me about 2-3 months, and it’s the best espresso i’ve ever had! okay — now for the rest of my must-haves!
alright, from left to right, here are my favorite coffee products. and i have a ton more store linked on my amazon storefront!
the breville barista pro….cuz, duh.
easy tamper — the breville does come with a tamper, however, tamping coffee can be a little tricky and it can make or break your espresso shot. this after-market tamper is my favorite. you use one side to level the grounds and then you flip it over and tamp them. tamping is the act of taking the loosely ground coffee and tightly compressing it for the hot water to pass through. if the grounds are too tightly compressed, water will not be able to pass through. if they’re too loose, water will pass through too quickly leaving you with a watery and gross shot of espresso. so the cool part about this tamp is that you set the depth and then you can’t mess it up! you’ll tamp consistently every time.
espresso cups — these espresso cups from etsy are tiny + speckled. aka must have!
coffee canister — i love this thing! pour your beans in, seal them with the air-tight accordion sealer and screw the lid on. your beans stay SO fresh! and it looks pretty on your countertop.
this set of speckled mugs from williams-sonoma is so cute! i love the tiny handles
but also this little ceramic mug from amazon is my all-time fave. it just feels good in the hand, ya know?
okay, these working glasses are a MUST for iced-lattes! the large one is just the perfect ratio of milk to espresso. also, this set is freaking cheap (16 for $24).
cylinder ice cubes trays create the best ice for iced lattes. they’re large and dense…aka they don’t melt in 5 seconds and your iced coffee stays super cold without getting watery!
vanilla bean paste — it’s expensive but nothing else compares in an iced vanilla latte. i love seeing the vanilla bean speckles floating around in my drink. it only takes the tiniest bit to get that delicious vanilla flavor!
lastly, the cafe coffee maker. i know espresso machines aren’t for everyone, so if you’re more of a drip coffee kinda gal, this beautiful coffee maker is a top-of-the-line option that I own and love. you can also program it from an app on your phone which is super nice when your laying in bed and realize you forgot to set the coffee maker ;)