Simple Acts of Kindness: Benevolent Baristas

For me, coffee in Paddington usually means heading to one of three places: Anouk (where I can also chow down on some fresh and flavorsome food); Merlo (one of Brisbane's most recognized roasting houses); or Hamptons Home Living (a homewares shop/cafe with a gorgeous deck out back where you can sip lattes and take in the views over leafy Brisbane.)

But, yesterday, when I needed a refill of coffee beans and an afternoon energy boost, I took the advice of a friend and strolled on over to Urban Grind. 

With our grinder on the fritz, I ordered 400 grams of beans and asked the lovely 30-something barista to grind it up for me to use in my plunger. I asked about cold coffees, which I don't normally drink, but having just walked up the hill from my house to Latrobe Terrace in 30 degree heat, I was in the mood for something icy cold. After getting a sense of the kind of coffee I like (and don't like), he recommended the house-brewed iced coffee with a dash of milk. Yes thank you, I'll have one of those. 

Another barista rang me up. "That comes to seventeen dollars eighty," she told me. I asked if she took debit cards to which she replied, "Sorry, cash only." Uh oh, I thought to myself, looking over at the mustached and goateed barista already at the grinder with my beans. I counted out my coins. Fourteen dollars and ten cents was all I had. (Change in Australia includes $1 and $2 dollar coins; it adds up fast.) But before I could even tell her how much I had she said, "Don't worry about it, just bring it in next time." 

What? 

This wasn't just 20 cents she was talking about, this was $17.80! That's not chump change. And for all she knew there may never be a "next time." After all, with my accent, most people assume I'm just visiting. 

"Oh no," I said, a bit stunned. "I have fourteen dollars in change," I assured her, thinking we would just take the coffee off. "Great, well just drop us the rest next time you're by," she replied, smiling. I told her I'd duck down to the ATM. There was one a few blocks down. "Don't worry about it," she said. 

"Wow, thanks," I said, surprised but happy to know I'd still get my iced coffee.

I  took a seat on a low stool in front of a large open window that looked out to the street. A couple minutes later he delivered my tin of coffee and she delivered my chilled drink—both with a sincere smile.

As I left I promised to return soon with the money I owed. "Really, don't even worry about it," she called out.

I walked out of Urban Grind with delicious coffee in my belly and a huge smile smeared across my face. Pardon my cheesiness but People are awesome, and I'm loving my new neighborhood every day.

A16's Chocolate Budino with salt and olive oil (modified version)

I feel bad sharing this recipe with you. I feel bad because once you make it, you will devour it, and then, you will be hooked. Consequently, I will be personally responsible for adding inches to your waistline. For this I am truly sorry. But I made the decision to share this recipe because I believe it will make you happy. And wouldn't it be worse to deprive you of that?

The original recipe includes tart shells, but we lose them in this modified version, which means we make only the filling (the budino.) There are two reasons why we're doing this: 1. It's easier, and 2. We don't have a mixer yet, which is needed to make the tart shells. 

I can assure you, however, that on the day we buy a mixer we'll be racing home to give the full version a try. (It'll be interesting to see if we can make it taste as good as it did at the restaurant.)

A16's Chocolate Budino with Sea Salt and Olive Oil

(modified version)

For 8 servings you will need:

200 grams (7 ounces) bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped (we use chocolate that is 70 percent cacao)

42 grams (1½ ounces) milk chocolate, coarsely chopped

½ cup whole milk

6 egg yolks

1/3 cup sugar

2 cups heavy cream 

For garnish:

unrefined, flaky sea salt

extra virgin olive oil

Start at least 4½ hours before you plan on serving because they will need to be refrigerated for a minimum of 4 hours.

Preheat your oven to 150C (300F.) 

Combine the bittersweet and milk chocolates in a heatproof bowl (a Pyrex baking bowl, for example), and place it over a pot of water that is just barely simmering—careful the bowl isn't actually touching the water, just resting directly over it. Leave it to melt.

It's about this time when my mouth starts to water.

While the chocolate is melting, warm up the milk in a small pot over medium heat just until it's about to simmer. Do not allow the milk to boil. Whisk together the egg yolks and sugar in a bowl, and then gradually whisk in the milk.

Once the chocolate has melted, remove the bowl from the heat and stir until smooth. Strain the egg yolk mixture through a fine-mesh strainer into the melted chocolate. Stir until everything is combined and is smooth. 

Heat 1 cup of the cream over medium heat in a small pot until it begins to simmer. Remove from the heat and slowly stir the warm cream into the chocolate mixture. Then stir in the remaining 1 cup of cream.

It's a beautiful thing.

Pour the mixture into 8 (1-cup) ramekins, or, if you have them, mini cocottes (shown here in the first row.) Cover each dish tightly with aluminium foil, or a tight-fitting lid, and place in a baking pan at least two inches deep. 

Carefully pour hot water into the baking pan until it comes two-thirds up the sides of the dishes. Bake until the edges appear to be set but the middle is still loose, about 40 minutes.

Licking the bowl will certainly whet your appetite for dessert. But you'll have to be patient. When the dishes are ready to come out of the oven, you'll need to (carefully) remove them from the pan, let cool, and then pop them in the fridge for 4 hours.

When they're ready to serve, sprinkle on the salt and drizzle a liberal amount of olive oil on top to finish.

The sheer decadence of this dessert means I could easily share it and still be satisfied; it's very rich. However, I believe I'm alone in this. I have yet to come across a single person who will split one with me. It's just too damn good I s'pose.

Snapshots: Chicken & Chocolate

Not that we needed one, but having Peter's brother's family over for dinner on a recent Saturday gave us the perfect excuse to whip up one of our favourite chocolately desserts. After all, Peter's gorgeous twin nephews would be coming and a little something sweet just had to be on the menu for them, right? 

View from our kitchen

The melding of dark and milk chocolate begins.

The boys play a little piano. (Pay no attention to the boxes in the corner.)

I had to suppress my desire to shove Peter out of the way so I could start licking the bowl.

I did eventually, but only after most of it was poured into mini cocottes. This is my favourite part of making dessert.

All the chocolate and creamy goodness gets a warm bath in the oven.

Because it would be irresponsible to only serve up chocolate, we also put chicken and veggies on the menu. If you like mustard, you'll love this sauce (recipe to come.) It's easy to make, a bit naughty (due a few dollops of heavy cream), and is a delicious way to spice up your chicken.

Adding the final touches to A16's modified budino (Click here for the recipe.) A fragrant and fruity olive oil and a pinch of flakey salt make this Italian dessert oh-so-heavenly.

Stuffed but happy.

Especially the boys.

Pieces of Wendy

Well, here goes.

Blog post number one. See, I've been quite resistant to the idea of starting a blog. Probably because I'm more the type to steer the conversation away from myself. Blogs, on the other hand, tend to do the opposite. But after stumbling upon countless intriguing blogs (some by friends, some by strangers), I decided to reconsider. For one thing, I enjoy writing. It's my favourite way to explore ideas, reflect on my experiences, tell stories, and, of course, describe recent culinary adventures. Not to mention the ridiculous amount of photos I take—I might as well do something with them! Plus, without a single family member living within seven thousand miles of me, I figure a blog is the perfect way to keep them in the loop.

I recently moved from Houston back to Brisbane, Australia (by way of Colombia where my fiancé, Peter, proposed and I said yes), and am just starting to feel settled in our beautiful home in Red Hill. Despite being back four months (!) I'm still reeling from the dramatic shift. Going from a full time job as a reporter at Houston Public Radio to looking for work as a freelance writer in another country takes some adjustment. Though I must admit, I certainly enjoy having more time on my hands! 

That's all for now. Thanks for reading and check back soon. 

(Whew! First post done. That wasn't so bad.)