Side Dish - 30th Oct

Side Dish from ABC, Brothers & Sisters.

Make your own Frappe

It’s been a long week and I’m often asked: “What keeps you going?” Sure I could say the usual trite and cliché things: the support of friends and family, always wanting to outdo my previous best, blah…blah…blah.

But I’d be lying (sort of).

All those cliché things are true, but what really keeps me going is caffeine. I’ve been a coffee junkie for most of my life. I can still remember the first time – as a kid of about 8 or 9 – that my Mom let me take a sip of that brewed beverage that she seemed to suck down by the gallon. I raised the mug to my lips, breathed in the sweet smell (or as the marketing people say: “bold aroma”) and took my first sip.


BLECH!

You see, my mother liked her coffee like she liked her…ummm….tea. Strong and black. So to an 8-year old’s taste buds, coffee bordered on undrinkable. Until I realized I could add sugar and milk. Then it became almost comical: “You want some coffee with your sugar?”

Which brings me to today. Being a head chef and owning a restaurant means LONG days and nights (particularly long in the last week planning for an event we had and because, like I mentioned last week, I haven’t really been able to sleep much…). And like many chefs I appreciate coffee not only as a fine pairing to a delicious desert, but as a source of energy.

So today I offer a Coffee Frappe you can get at Café 429. I drink my coffee black now, but here’s a sweet treat that my customers seem to love. It’s the perfect way to cool down on a hot day.

COFFEE FRAPPE
Serves 1

INGREDIENTS
- 3 coffee ice cubes (see below)
- ½-cup whole milk
- ¼-cup reduced-fat evaporated milk
- 1 packet artificial sweetener or 1 Tablespoon superfine sugar

Combine all the ingredients in a blender and blend at high speed until smooth. Pour into a tall chilled glass.

COFFEE ICE CUBES and RECIPE NOTES
- Next tine there is part of a pot of coffee left over, think of this refreshing pick-me-up. Pour the coffee into ice cube trays and, once frozen, transfer the cubes to a sealable bag and keep it in the freezer. (This
also can be used for iced coffee – it helps make the coffee stronger as the ice melts, instead of watering it down!)

- Take this recipe from naughty to light by substituting soymilk or skim milk for the whole milk and evaporated milk. The texture will be icy rather than smooth and creamy, but the taste is still delicious.