Cafe con leche...

I am a total coffee freak - It was muy difícil for me to quit while pregnant yet, I switched to decaf in order to appease the taste buds. There are a couple of amazing roasters here in sunny CA that I would love to quickly give a shout out to.

First, Verve Coffee Roasters, located in my old stomping ground of Santa Cruz - my all time favorite.  Verve has won a ton of awards not only for their coffee but also for having extremely talented baristas. Some in which have placed high in national competitions. Did you even know that baristas compete? My go to roast is the Street Level Espresso - so, so good.

The second player is Intelligentsia Coffee - also award winning for their beans AND in 2010 one of their barista's took home the world title. Intelligenstia started in Chicago and has expanded to three facilities nationwide {Chicago, LA and NYC}. My favorite blend : Agua Preta. If you are a coffee nerd like myself and have not been fortunate enough to try either of these - do it now. Order up a lb. or two and break out that French press.

And to get to where I wanted to be {the true force behind this post}...the great debate: Filtered vs. Unfiltered...which way do you brew? First, you must throw out that ridiculous 'coffee maker' and invest in the real deal - hand drip that cup of joe!

The contenders...

Beauty - Chemex : shown sans filter

Classic - Bodum French Press : unfiltered

Elegance - Donut Coffee Dripper : Japanese - so you know it's cool.

I always go Classic but it is always nice to venture out into not so familiar territory...which do you prefer?

p.s. images via flickr

Maple love...

I have been obsessed lately with maple...from eating way too many servings of pancakes and french toast to devouring those really bad yet, really good maple cookies from TJ's. Once the guilt from my gluttony set in I decided to seek out a healthier version for my maple cookie lust. Besides, things have been a little too easy at my house these days...I mean store bought cookies?! So I hired my little pastry chef in the making and we set out to make these simple vegan delights I found here.

On a side note: The antique cookie press you see in the photos was used by my sister and I when we were kids. Smile. I have no idea where my mom got it or if she even knows that I have it.

And yes, I have been gaga over the Instagram App.

Birthday Cake...

I am typing this in between heaping bites of my sister-in-law's 30th birthday cake. Which is by far the best damn cake I have ever eaten...for the serious chocolate aficionado only. My slice of cake is left over from last night's festivites--her actual b-day is tomorrow {Happy Birthday Michelle!}. My sweet, sweet sister introduced me to this decadent, rich little lady {Gâteau au chocolat fondant de Nathalie} a few years ago and it was love at first bite. 

The bonus here, is that the cake is flour-less...for the most part...I use a gluten free flour mix for the tablespoon of flour that the recipe calls for. My mother-in-law has Celiacs so I am always looking for great gluten-free dessert recipes for family gatherings and this has become a family favorite.  

I would like to thank Molly for posting this recipe on her blog therefore allowing my sister to share. I would like to thank Michelle for having a birthday so close to my due date and I would also like to thank my mother-in-law for baking 'the best damn cake ever'.

image via Orangette