Hello, Fall: 4 Cozy Coffee Recipes to Make at Home
Four coffee shop worthy drinks you can make right at home
Happy first day of fall!
Now, I realize North Carolina weather does not always get the memo that September 22 means fall. We may be ready for sweaters while the thermometer is still saying absolutely not.
But I don’t care.
The calendar says fall, so as far as I’m concerned, we are officially allowed to bring out the cozy mugs, cinnamon, maple syrup, blankets, and all the things that make this time of year feel a little slower and warmer.
So come sit with me at The Kitchen Table.
Today we’re making our own little coffee shop at home.
And here’s the good news: you don’t need an espresso machine, a cabinet full of flavored syrups, or anything particularly fancy. If you can brew a good cup of coffee, you can make every one of these.
Before We Start: Make the Coffee Good
This sounds obvious, but the flavored ingredients shouldn’t have to rescue bad coffee.
Start with fresh coffee and filtered water if you have it. Brew it the way you normally enjoy it, then build your drink from there.
One more thing: taste as you go.
I tend to think coffee recipes should be more like cooking and less like chemistry. If you like yours sweeter, add a little more. If you want the coffee flavor stronger, back off the milk and sweetener.
Your kitchen. Your coffee. Your rules.
Now let’s make something good.
1. Maple Cinnamon Coffee
This might be the easiest one on the list, and it tastes like fall without hitting you over the head with pumpkin spice.
For one mug:
- 8 ounces freshly brewed coffee
- 1 tablespoon pure maple syrup
- 2 tablespoons half and half or your favorite creamer
- A small pinch of cinnamon
- Whipped cream, optional
Pour your hot coffee into your favorite mug. Stir in the maple syrup and cinnamon until everything is combined, then add your cream.
If we’re pretending we’re at a coffee shop, go ahead and add the whipped cream and another tiny sprinkle of cinnamon.
Kitchen Table tip: Start with less maple syrup if you don’t normally drink very sweet coffee. You can always add more.
And yes, drinking this out of a regular old mug while standing at the kitchen counter is perfectly acceptable too.
2. Brown Sugar Vanilla Coffee
This one tastes much fancier than the amount of effort involved.
Which is exactly the kind of recipe I appreciate.
For one mug:
- 8 ounces freshly brewed coffee
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 to 3 tablespoons milk, half and half, or creamer
- A pinch of cinnamon, optional
Add the brown sugar and vanilla to your mug while the coffee is hot and stir until the sugar dissolves.
Add your milk or creamer and finish with cinnamon if you want it.
Want to make it feel more like a latte?
Warm your milk first and froth it before adding it to the coffee.
And if you don’t own a milk frother, don’t let that stop you. Warm the milk, put it in a tightly sealed jar with enough empty room for it to expand, and shake it until it’s frothy.
Fancy coffee does not require fancy equipment.
3. Caramel Apple Butter Coffee
Stay with me on this one.
Apple butter in coffee sounds a little strange until you think about what’s actually in apple butter: apples, warm spices, sweetness and all those flavors we associate with fall.
For one mug:
- 8 ounces strong freshly brewed coffee
- 1 tablespoon apple butter
- 1 tablespoon caramel sauce
- 2 to 3 tablespoons half and half or milk
- A small pinch of cinnamon
- Whipped cream and caramel drizzle, optional
Put the apple butter and caramel into your mug first.
Pour in a small amount of the hot coffee and stir really well until the apple butter is incorporated. Then add the rest of your coffee and your milk or cream.
Top it with whipped cream, cinnamon and a little caramel drizzle if you’re feeling fancy.
This is one I’d definitely recommend drinking while it’s hot.
4. Easy Pumpkin Spice Coffee
I couldn’t write a first day of fall coffee post and leave pumpkin out completely.
But we’re making coffee with pumpkin, not pumpkin pie with a splash of coffee hiding somewhere underneath it.
For one mug:
- 8 ounces freshly brewed coffee
- 1 tablespoon pumpkin puree
- 1 to 2 teaspoons brown sugar or maple syrup
- 1/4 teaspoon vanilla
- A small pinch of pumpkin pie spice
- 2 to 3 tablespoons milk or creamer
- Whipped cream, optional
Mix the pumpkin, sweetener, vanilla and pumpkin pie spice in the bottom of your mug.
Add a little hot coffee and stir until smooth, then pour in the remaining coffee and add your milk or creamer.
Taste it before adding anything else.
You can always add more pumpkin spice. You cannot take pumpkin spice back out.
Ask me how I know.
Make Your Kitchen the Coffee Shop
Here’s something I’ve learned: sometimes it isn’t really about making an elaborate drink.
It’s about slowing down long enough to enjoy it.
- Use the mug you always save because it’s your favorite.
- Froth the milk.
- Sprinkle the cinnamon on top.
- Sit down instead of carrying your coffee around while you do seventeen other things.
- Open your Bible.
- Pick up your journal.
- Sit on the porch if the weather finally decides to cooperate.
It doesn’t have to be expensive or elaborate to feel special.
Sometimes we just need to give ourselves permission to enjoy an ordinary moment.
Something New Is Brewing...
Fall isn’t the only thing arriving around here.
October 1 is bringing several new coffees and teas to Udderly Eclucktic Coffee Co.
And there are some interesting ones coming.
We’re getting Peppermint Mocha, with chocolate and cool peppermint; two new Fairtrade Organic coffee blends; and even a Decaf Coffee with Mushrooms.
The tea shelf is growing too, with Hojicha with Mushrooms, Chamomile Ginger, Butterfly Blue, Turmeric Ginger, and Chaga Spice Chai among the new additions.
I’m especially curious about some of these, and we’ll talk more about them once they’re actually available.
For now, consider that your little sneak peek.
While You’re Here, Wander Through the General Store
If you’ve only been coming to Udderly Eclucktic for coffee, you may not realize how much our little corner of the internet has grown.
We have a General Store now.
And honestly, that name feels right.
Udderly Eclucktic started with our farm, grew into coffee, and somewhere along the way became a place where faith, family, home, giving and a little bit of farm life all meet.
So after you finish here at The Kitchen Table, wander through the General Store.
You’ll find more than coffee, and I’m continuing to add things that feel like they belong here.
Pour another cup and look around. You might find something for yourself, a gift for somebody you love, or something you didn’t know you needed until you saw it.
Wander Through the General Store →
There Is a Season
Since today is the first day of fall, I can’t end our time at the table without thinking about Ecclesiastes 3:1:
“There is an occasion for everything, and a time for every activity under heaven.”
God created seasons.
Not just spring, summer, fall and winter.
Our lives have seasons too.
Some are busy. Some are quiet. Some bring growth. Some involve letting go. Some are beautiful while we’re living through them. And some don’t make much sense until we’re looking back.
Maybe that’s one of the reasons I love fall.
Creation itself reminds us that change isn’t always something to fear.
The trees don’t desperately hold onto every leaf because they’re afraid they’ll never have another one.
There is a season for letting go, a season for resting, and eventually, a season for new growth.
Whatever season you find yourself in today, God hasn’t changed with it.
So make yourself something warm. Sit down for a minute. Thank God for what He’s already brought you through and trust Him with whatever this next season holds.
And since you’re already here...
You might as well have another cup of coffee.
Until next Tuesday,
Laura
Farm Raised • Faith Driven
Roasted with Purpose