Happy Earth Day Everyone!!!!

Not a lot has really happened since yesterday...We got some work done, hung out with Jason, and cooked dinner.  Typical evening in our house hold =)   I'm just trying to get into the groove of trying to update daily (semi-daily).  SO I guess the highlight of the night last night was when Kiley (who Loves coffee, but is OBSESSED with iced coffee) tried her hand at a cold-brew coffee recipe.  Here is the recipe she altered:

Cold-Brewed Ice Coffee
Adapted from The New York Times

Yield: Two drinks

1/3 cup ground coffee (medium-coarse grind is best)
Milk (optional)

1. In a jar, stir together coffee and 1 1/2 cups water. Cover and let rest at room temperature overnight or 12 hours.

2. Strain twice through a coffee filter, a fine-mesh sieve or a sieve lined with cheesecloth. In a tall glass filled with ice, mix equal parts coffee concentrate and water, or to taste. If desired, add milk.

What she actually did was ground a ton of beans, which turned into about 2-3 cups of grinds (yes i realize 2-3 is a large range, but she forgot how many cups she used lol and was SUPPOSED to use 2)  She put all the ground coffee into a clean milk jug (1 gal.) then filled with water, shake, and stuck it in the fridge for approx 12 hours...probably longer.  Shaking every so often.  She strained it by using a regular coffee pot and filter and just poured it directly over the filter, stuck it in the pot and let it filter into the coffee pot.  It took awhile, and about 3 filters but we now have delicious cold coffee on demand =)  She bought Torani sugar free Caramel and Chocolate flavoring syrups, and took a large cup half filled with ice, poured cold coffee over ice leaving about an inch of space from top of the cup, added about 3  "lid-fulls"  (she uses the lid from the syrup as her measuring object)  of caramel syrup and filled rest of the way with milk and stir.  mmmmmm delicious!! Especially now since its warm enough in the morning that hot coffee is to hot,but cold coffee hits the spot =)  

an advanced warning:

cold coffee is very easy to drink quickly, it is apparently more concentrated than regular coffee

you will get the shakes if you consume several glasses! or 1 large on very quickly.

Also just as an FYI, if you are not a daily coffee drinker, this coffee mix is supposed to stay good in the fridge for up to 2 weeks, but it will last about 3 days here =)  I'm not sure, but I would imagine the flavor would not be the best after 2 weeks, but what do i know?  SO....grab your grinder and start brewing!!  While your waiting for the 12 hours to pass, read this article:::its about the creator of Earth Day.  Its a nice article, and I think it deserves recognition.  Since it is kind of long I copied my favorite part =)

"The economy is a wholly owned subsidiary of the environment, not the other way around." Our wealth and economic well-being as a nation is dependent on ample supplies of clean water, clean air, and productive farms and forests, managed in a way that doesn't mortgage the future for short-term, ill-begotten gains today.

I ask you to remember this lesson from my father: in ways small or large, individual action matters, we as individuals have the power to change the world in often unimaginable ways. And please, make every day Earth Day.

--Tia Nelson is the daughter of Gaylord Nelson, the former Wisconsin governor and senator who founded Earth Day in 1970. Nelson died in July 2005 at age 89.

 

I hope everyone was able to go outside at least for a moment today and take some time to delight in the beauty that surrounds you, and discover the wonders of nature =)

Our natural world is alive with beauty and wonder.    It's important for
our peace of mind and our enthusiasm for life to love the world we live in
and care for the earth and all living things.                  - Unknown                                                             

Enjoy today,

JR and Kiley