Recipe - Gingerbread Syrup

As promised yesterday, here is my recipe for Gingerbread Syrup.
I say recipe, but honestly, it really isn't that difficult.  I originally found it on the money saving expert forums years ago.

• 2 cups water
• 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
• 2 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

• Combine the water, sugar, cinnamon, ginger, and vanilla in a small to medium saucepan. 
• Bring mixture to a boil then reduce heat and simmer uncovered for 20 minutes. 
• When done, pour into a melt-proof container and let cool. It will thicken a bit more once cooled.

Best to keep in the fridge and pour a little into your regular coffee! Utterly delicious and I can't wait to make some more in the winter!

Flavoured Coffee - Right or Wrong?

I promised you a blog post about flavoured coffee, so here it is.

There are a couple of different ways to get flavoured coffee, firstly there is the addition of flavoured syrups. (I have a great recipe for Gingerbread Syrup which I'll share when I dig it out!) You can buy them from most coffee shops, or pay a little extra to have a shot in your coffee.

These syrups are available at www.thecoffeepod.co.uk and cost around £6-£8 a litre

Now, at christmas time I'm very partial to a gingerbread latte (hence the desire to find a recipe!) but generally I go for a straight up latte, the extra sugar that these syrups add is not conducive to dieting, and honestly the sugar free ones are not so nice!

However I recently tried the Douwe Egberts Vanilla instant coffee:

Delicate vanilla flavoured coffee - 2 calories a cup!

The flavour collective range also has a caramel flavour and a hazelnut one. I actually got sent a sample of the caramel (go to the Douwe Egbert's facebook page to request one) but I bought a jar of the vanilla and I have to admit I'm impressed.

The trademark jar is miniaturised down to 50g and when you open it you get a waft of vanilla fragrance, in fact I have to admit the smell is the most impressive thing about this coffee, it just smells fantastic and is perfect first thing in the morning.

Now bear in mind there is no added sugar in this coffee, so you aren't going to get the same sweetness you would if you added a shot of vanilla syrup, but there is a hint of mellowness that coffee sometimes lacks.

Something I really like though, as it cools this coffee actually still tastes good! In fact they suggest you can serve it over ice and make your own iced vanilla coffee, though in that case I'd add some sugar for a touch of sweetness.

Overall I'm pretty happy with this coffee. Of course it's only a little jar, they say 25 servings, but I've not been keeping track. And I'm afraid this is not an every coffee drink for me, I'd love too, but it is a little bit pricey for such a small jar, according to my supermarket the current prices (at 30/5/2013) are:

• Sainsburies has an offer and it is £1.99 a jar 
• Tesco has it at full price - £2.99 a jar
• Asda have it on offer at £2 a jar

I would definitely say it is worth keeping an eye out for an offer though - my next purchase will be the caramel!

Starbucks infographic created by ilovecoffee.jp

ilovecoffee.jp created this awesome infographic about starbucks

As you all know, I am a fan of starbucks, and I'm very jealous that Ryko over at ilovecoffee.jp got to go into the Seattle headquarters.

I'm not sure how much of this applies in the UK (especially about the gold card - I want! or the Clover coffee!) but I thought it was cool and you'd enjoy it.

Whittard wishlist.... (warning picture heavy!)

Today's blog is a little daydream through the Whittard of Chelsea website. I love this store and was very sad when the Norwich store closed down. It is by no means the only coffee store in the world, but one I like. This is not a sponsored post!

First up, a grinder to replace my broken one, this time with no pesky 'electric's:

Classic Coffee Grinder - £25

I've always liked these stove top espresso makers, and think this red one is adorable:

3-cup Red Stovetop Espresso Maker - £20

Keeping with the red theme, the classic way to make coffee at home is of course the cafetiere. I have an adorable 3 cup purple one that is going to grace my desk at my new job, but sticking with Whittards, this red one is cute:

3-cup Red Bistro Cafetiere - £12

I think that is enough equipment, let's look at what else they have to offer...

I'm a sucker for flavoured coffee (a whole blog post coming up on those soon) and this cute little gift set of flavoured syrups is lovely:

Flavoured Coffee Syrup Set - £10

And whilst we're looking at gifts, this set of 9 coffees of the world looks like a lovely way of trying some different coffees:

Coffees of the World gift set - £20 

Looking at the china (there is a lot of china!) I love these hand painted mugs in the Florence range, sticking with the red theme again (but available in blue, green and orange too, as well as stripes):

Florence Red Spot Mug - £6

Currently they are running a promotion, where if you spend £35 you can get a free set of raspberry stripe mugs (though the promotions change pretty regularly!)

Current Promotion

And don't forget if you are ordering online you can go through Quidco and get 8% cash back. If you aren't a member of Quidco yet I have a referral link here.

What would you put on your Whittard wish list?

35 Awesome mugs...

My current favourite website is Buzzfeed, I've managed to kill many an hour clicking through stories on it! But this one was quite perfect for a Sunday evening blog post: 35 Awesome mugs...

Bank Holiday Coffee

It is bank holiday monday and following a lovely weekend with my family I am chilling out with a cuppa, the back door open and the radio tuned to my favourite old lady station, Gold (I'm 30!).

Bank holiday coffee is big coffee, I've had a latte this morning in my big Pret mug and now on the instant (too lazy to make another latte!)

What does your bank holiday cuppa look like?

Cheers!

The Window Coffee, a special treat in Norwich

Today I had a rare chance to grab a quick coffee at The Window, a gorgeous, tiny coffee shop in Norwich.  Often described as "The world's smallest coffee shop" (I don't quite know if it is true, but it is tiny!) it really is a wonderful place to go.

Run by Hayley one of the nicest baristas in the world (that is true!) it is such a treat to go there and taste her beautiful coffee, there is even room to sit in, but my meeting today took place in the sun :)

This isn't a review, it is just a small post of joy! If you ever find yourself in Norwich and you love coffee then you should treat yourself to a visit with Hayley!