Category Archives: Frothing

Frozen vacuum-sealed beans and The Pappaccino

We had friends over for dinner this past Tuesday night. MJ asked if I could make coffee, to be exact, DECAF coffee, since it would be served AFTER dinner. I told her that all I had was some Intelligentsia Black Cat Espresso Decaf. She stopped drinking decaf after she came back from Costa Rica, so the beans were vacuum-sealed and frozen. There were about 120g in the bag – enough to serve 4 coffees. The problem was the date: August 2017 – almost 2 years old! I told her that I couldn’t guarantee the flavor.

My wife enjoys Pappaccinos – my version of a cappuccino that she and I co-created. 2/3 frothed milk (half ‘n’ half to be exact) and 1/3 strong coffee from an AeroPress. After the milk is frothed, I insert the coffee in the frother with the frothed milk. add a squirt pf agave. and blend it all together. It comes out as a rich, tasty microfoam. She loves and our guests have come to love it.

I prefer strong coffee from the AeroPress, covered with a film of frothed milk so as to slow oxidation. I take a dollop or two from her frothed milk before I make her Pappaccino.

Well, much to my surprise, the pre-infusion in the AeroPresses bubbled up, releasing CO2. Our guests raved about their coffee, as did MJ. And the true test was my “almost” black coffee which was quite wonderful.

So can you keep 2 year old beans in a vacuum-sealed bag and frozen, yes. And they’ll do quite nicely in a pinch….

Frothing, the easy way

Frothing

In my last blog, I explained how to use an AeroPress to make hand-crafted, single-serve coffees. It’s my go-to coffee-making device these days. But how do you froth milk to make good milk-based coffee drinks?

My wife likes good coffee. She has always liked a lot of milk in her coffee. That’s what she likes; that’s what she gets.

There are 3 ways to froth milk:

  1. Hand frother – battery-powered
  2. Frothing machine – electric
  3. Steam wand on an espresso machine

Which is best? Hands-down, #3 – a steam wand, basically because it uses steam to heat the milk. But it also requires an expensive espresso machine and some practice.

How about #1 – hand frother? I started with a battery-powered hand frother and that’s what I still use on the boat. You heat the milk in a small pot or a pitcher until just before it boils. Then you froth it. If you want to purchase a hand frother, don’t go for the cheap Ikea version; spring for a good Kuissential, listed in my Starter Recommendations. About $18.

For ease of use, quick clean-up, and cost, at home I now use #2 – an electric frothing machine. My personal favorite is a 500ml electric frothing machine from Secura. If you require less milk, you might want to go with the 250ml version. I own both, the smaller one for when I only make a quasi-macchiato for me and the larger one for when I make BOTH a brevé for my wife AND quasi-macchiato for me.

Electric milk frothers come with two attachments. Use the attachment that looks like a spring to froth milk. Use the other attachment, found in the lid, to warm milk to use in lattés. I prefer the frother attachment, because I use a small amount of froth to top off my coffee, sealing it from oxidizing, AND I get a lot of froth for my wife.

I use the term “milk” loosely. Decide what kind of milk you want to use. My wife swears by half-and-half, due to its fat quantity and taste. And it really froths nicely. I have used them all: almond milk, whole milk, skim milk, 1%, 2%, various creams, and whipping cream. I always come back to half-and-half. The essential thing to know is that when you heat milk, it caramelizes, making the milk sweeter. My wife used to use sugar and other sweeteners in her coffee. With frothed half-and-half, she no longer needs to, because the heated milk sweetens the coffee. You may find that to be the case, too.

First, I heat the water for the coffees. Then, before I brew, I start the electric frother to froth the half-and-half while I’m making the coffees. For my quasi-macchiato, I first make a quasi-espresso, described in my last post. Then I spoon in 2 spoonfuls of froth. For my wife’s brevé, I first make an Americano, also described in my last post. Then I stir in the froth and a small amount of heated half-and-half (which did not turn into froth). My wife prefers 1/3 coffee to 2/3 frothed half-and-half, though sometimes I give her ½ coffee and ½ froth. She loves both.

There are some additional tricks to using a hand frother and a steam wand found on espresso machines. I’ll cover them later.

So…how do you like your coffee? Leave your comments below.

Next
We’ll talk about coffee beans and how freshness counts.