The never-ending Winter and Minnesota wind help keep my coffee pot brewing! If you missed last week’s article you can read that here. I continue this week to deliver “cups full” of coffee bean barista secrets. Revealing more crema than you could imagine.
Continue readingWelcome to Time in the Word. If you missed last week’s devotional, you can catch it here, https://www.mandyandmichele.com/moses-and-aaron-to-the-rescue/. Moses and Aaron presented God’s terms and conditions to Pharaoh. Pharaoh, as predicted, said no. Now God has Moses and Aaron perfected positioned. Moses will be like a God to Pharaoh (See how God uses this? We have to meet people where they are!), and Aaron will be like Moses’s prophet. Show Time! Staff to snakes and other scary stuff are about to take place.
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Welcome back to Coffee Bean Barista Secrets: The Crema Revealed-Part Three- The Roast. Grabbing a cup full of delicious, Arabica bean coffee, I holler out the window for you to get back in the car! I guess those two shots of espresso did their work. You’re pretty bright-eyed and bushy-tailed! Time waits for no man or coffee drinker.
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Here we are, friends, drinking our one last cup of coffee together. Hopefully, these articles have been a fun ride for you, as we learned about the history of coffee, different types of beans, different types of coffee, grind size, and last but certainly not least, the different ways to brew coffee.
Today we will finish up with a few more ways to brew coffee. So, grab a celebratory cup of your favorite coffee and enjoy additional ways to brew coffee.
If you have not been paying attention to the news, the Arabica bean from central and South America is in trouble. Beginning with a rare coffea bean rust in 2013 and the continual migration toward the USA of the poor- the working class to harvest the coffea beans. A coffee crisis is at hand. Keep calm my coffee friends. Let’s not panic, and let’s certainly not be grumpy.
Two weeks ago, I left you with my short review of the Technivorm Moccamaster. Though it was pricey, which was the only thing I did not like about it, I still think the Moccamaster makes great coffee. And as all good Dutch housewives, I make good use of my Moccamaster. In other words, I totally justified my purchase. 🙂
I bought a French press coffee maker five years ago. A French press coffee maker is an immersion coffee. I usually have this type of coffee on the weekends as I celebrate living at a much slower pace and savoring the process by which this coffee is made.
French press coffee makers are inexpensive. Bonus! They are easy to clean and deliver great coffee. Even better! The downside for some? There are a few more steps than an electric drip brew. Of great importance is water temperature. Just see this as keeping yourselves mentally fit and functioning!
You begin your French press adventure by adding hot water (check the temperature, 195 – 205 degrees Fahrenheit) to coffee grounds placed at the bottom of your French press. Let your coffee steep for 4 minutes before plunging (pushing the plunger down slowly, it’s the fun part) and pouring the coffee out. Four minutes is the sweet spot! Ahh! Enjoy savoring this full-bodied coffee.
This type of coffee making is an oldie but a goodie. I can still see my grandma’s percolator on the stovetop, with the glass knob showcasing the coffee ‘perking’ inside. Check out this YouTube video to bring back some nostalgia and possibly a new routine in your coffee making, here.
As with the French press coffee maker, the percolation coffee makers take seven to ten minutes to make your coffee and are more labor-intensive setup. In addition to stovetop percolators, they still make electric percolators.
Moka pots are another form of stovetop coffee brewing. This process uses steam pressure from boiled water in the lower section of the Moka pot to pass through coffee grounds residing in the middle chamber. Brewed coffee then sits in the higher chamber. Electric versions of Moka pots are available as well. I am still on the hunt for a Moka pot. Check out Moka pot reviews here.
We have arrived at the end of our brewing adventure. One of the most popular brands of pod brewing is the Keurig. I gave a Keurig to my parents four Christmases ago. Let’s say I held favorite child status for one whole year. My dad went bonkers over this Keurig.
Keurig’s are very popular. They come in all different shapes and sizes. From single-serve coffee cups to large pot brewing, Keurig has you covered! Check out their great products here. If you have ever been to a Duluth Trading Store, they have a commercial Keurig coffee maker. So fun to try out a cup of coffee at Duluth Trading.
Pod brewing is relatively simple. You fill your water reservoir, turn on your Keurig and the water begins heating. Once your water is heated, make your cup size selection, place your coffee cup on the drip tray, select a coffee pod, place that in the K-cup holder, close and let the brewing begin. This closing action pierces the coffee pod so hot steamy water can be injected into the coffee grounds and poured out the bottom of the pierced coffee pod into your cup below.
The upside to pod brewing is everyone can choose their own kind of coffee. Keurigs also brew tea and have a hot water feature for making tea, and a great bowl of oatmeal. My dad’s beef with the Keurig was the constant descaling maintenance and keeping up with the water filter, which is generally a water quality issue. Other than those two items, he loved the Keurig.
There is more to discover about coffee, but I rest my case here. Summer is upon us, and that means we need some rhubarb and asparagus recipes! Till next time. I hoist a cup of French press coffee and thank you kindly for riding along!
Welcome back to Time in the Word. I am excited because today, we get into the thick of the showdown between God and Pharaoh. If you missed last week’s devotional, you can catch that here. Today we tackle the Plague of Blood.
I will be presenting the plagues in a different format than I usually do. Hopefully, this format will make it easier to process the information. It will also allow me to pack as much information and insights as possible. As I write this, I envision someone madly scribbling out their thoughts on a chalkboard with arrows and directions on how to follow my thoughts. Thank you for hanging in there all these weeks. It took a while to get to this point.
Grab a pen and paper. Open your Bible to Exodus 7:14-25, https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=+Exodus+7%3A14-25&version=NIV. Barnes has a great free pdf to go along with our study. You can download that pdf chart here. Going forward, our devotional study will begin with:
Scripture: Exodus 7:14-25
God has given Moses and Aaron instructions to meet Pharaoh at the Nile. As I’ve stated in the past devotionals, the Nile was an important part of Egyptian life. Egyptians believed that the gods blessed them through the water of the Nile. The Nile River provided life-giving water to the Egyptians for fishing, crops (during the six months it rose, it brought beautiful silt with nutrients for growing crops, left behind as it receded), and mud for making homes for their growing civilization.
Why was Pharaoh at the Nile so early in the morning? That is a good question. Biblical scholars have suggested that:
Whatever the reason for the Nile visit, Moses and Aaron met Pharaoh there to confront him once again. God has instructed Moses to tell Pharaoh he must let the Israelites go, and Aaron is to hold out the staff over the streams, ponds, canals and reservoirs, and God would strike the water, and the water would turn blood. This act also included water in wooden or stone jugs.
The result would be the death of fish, the water would stink, and the Egyptians would not be able to drink the water. Because the Nile had turned to blood, the Egyptians had to dig next to the Nile to find drinkable water. The land of Goshen possibly experienced this plague as well.
Moses and Aaron did as God said. The Nile and all water turned instantly turned to blood, dead fish rose to top of the Nile, and the smell was awful. Egyptians could not drink the water.
Pharaoh’s magicians performed their ‘secret arts’, and they were able to reproduce the turning of water into blood. Pharaoh’s heart was hardened. And he blew off Moses and Aaron. Seven days passed after the Nile turned to blood.
Khnum– Guardian of the Nile river’s source, https://www.britannica.com/place/Lake-Victoria
Hapi– Spirit of the Nile
Osiris– The Nile thought to be his bloodstream
As we think about the first plague, do you see God performing signs in wonders in your life, your work life, and the world around you? Have you asked yourself what these things may mean? Are you seeking God for wisdom and discernment?
Till next time. Thank you for joining me here in Time in the Word.
Image by AWokZap42i from Pixabay
It should be warm. But it is not. The cold, snow, and wind made me feel we were in a snow globe with no way out! To help us through, I thought we could use some fun spring recipes.
I believe next week should be my last coffee adventure article. Tune in next week to get the rest of the scoop on coffee and great ways to make it!
Continue readingWelcome back to Time in the Word. If you missed last week’s devotional, you can catch that here. Last week we peeked in on Egyptian life with their God and Goddesses. Turn to Exodus 5 and 6. We will start at Exodus 5:6 and continue into chapter 6. You can read the scripture digitally here. Moses and Aaron to the rescue. Well, maybe not…
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Can you believe the sheer volume of knowledge you have attained about coffee? Impressive. Just think of all the wisdom you can impart to those who foolishly chose not subscribe (perish the thought) to the Edgerton Enterprise. We keep brewing on! Brew! Brew!- coffee train sound. HA!
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Welcome back! We have covered some serious coffee ground. From coffee history to the different types of beans and roasts. You have percolated a graduate-level coffee education. I dare say you will graduate Crema Cum Laude.
Continue readingWelcome back to Time in the Word. If you missed last week’s devotional, you can catch that here. Today we begin with Moses and Aaron’s initial visit to Pharaoh. You could consider it an official meet and greet. Though no one exchanged business cards or traded pleasantries, God is setting the stage for his power to be displayed. Today we get to dive into Gods and Goddesses 101.
Turn with me in your Bible to Exodus 5 and 6. If you are reading this digitally, you can get the scripture here. BE SURE to check out the goodies linked below. There are articles to read and helpful PDFs to print out and mull over. Enjoy!
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