#140 Twitter Conference Comes to the Hudson Valley

The 140 Twitter Conference arrives in the Hudson Valley on August 23rd and we are proud to be co-sponsoring the event along with our friends at DragonSearch, Chronogram, Blue Mountain Bistro and the Emerson Resort.

The conference, which will be held at the Seven21 Media Center, 721 Broadway, Kingston, will explore how social media is changing the way we live our lives especially in our rural environs outside of the big cities. Speakers will address a wide variety of questions and issues about how social media changes the way we do business, how we connect with others and how it effects our ideas and understanding of community.

Since 2009 Jeff Pulver has hosted numerous #140 Character Conferences around the world providing a unique opportunity for content users and creators to engage with each other and explore the effects of the real-time internet on individuals, business and society.The Kingston conference will cover a wide variety of topics including “How an online community bridges the gap between small towns and the global stage”, “Finding Talent in the Hudson Valley”, “How Special Media is changing the face of Health Care” to asking “When Should We Introduce Children to Social Media?”Speakers include Ric Dragon from DragonSearch, Ivan Lajara from the Daily Freeman, Lisa Barone and many, many more.

Register now for what is certain to be an informative, fun and engaging day!

Explore the Magical World of Caux

You know the old expression, pick your poison? Well, in addition to our two cups of java a day, we pick The Poisons of Caux: The Tasters Guild by local author Susannah Appelbaum, the paperback edition of which hits books stores today!

The second installment of The Poisons of Caux trilogy continues 11-year-old Poison Ivy’s quest to fulfill her role as the prophesied “Noble Child” and rescue good King Verdigris from  a deathly illness. In the first book, The Hollow Bettle (Knopf, 2009), Ivy defeated the evil King Nightshade, good King Verdigris’s usurper, an evil man with a taste for poisoning the oppressed masses. Those with money in the land of Caux are forced to hire Tasters, lest their next bite of food be their last.

Book Two finds Ivy, along with her friend Rowan, an outcast Guild-trained Taster, racing to save King Verdigris while avoiding those in power who seek to destroy her. When Ivy’s exposed to a deadly weed that  transports its victims to a dark realm, she’s not sure if she’s strong enough to battle her way back.

The wonderfully inventive world of Caux is full of of strange and mysterious characters living in a magical world where good and evil, beauty and decay  battle for the soul of Caux.

The series has been met with wonderful reviews and a large and diverse fan base. The November issue of Booklist said of “The Taster’s Guild”, “Here is an imaginary place to stand alongside Harry Potter’s world, replete with tasty villains and true-hearted heroines, and a worthy next step from Kate DiCamillo’s Tale of Desperaux or Brian Jacques’ Red Wall series.”

Although the books are written for  young adults, this is one of those series that appeals to both kids and adults. The depth of the story and the literary artistry will hook you no matter your age.

We are excited to announce that Susannah will be coming to HCT early in the fall for a book signing. Stay tuned for more details!

Raspberries Galore

Do you remember back a month ago or so when we were all wondering when the rain would stop and the warm weather would kick in? Well, with a heat wave knocking on our door it may be hard to remember being fed up with rain. However, we remember it and we’re pretty grateful for it right about now because without that long, cool, wet spring the raspberry bushes at Donna and Tim’s place wouldn’t be heavy with the gorgeous red fruit. And, by extension we wouldn’t be able to bring you our delicious homemade raspberry tarts. So, stop in and enjoy the tartlettes while they, and the raspberries, last.

If you’re lucky enough to be lousy with raspberries yourself and have frozen all  you can bear to and have canned enough jam to feed a small army we have a suggestion for you and it’s one that just very well may make you very popular come Christmas time.

Take 16oz of raspberries, washed and hulled, 12oz sugar and 3/4 of litre of a spirits. Whiskey is the traditional way to make a cordial but the clear spirits such as gin, white rum and vodka are nice because they take on a gorgeous berry color.

Sterilize canning jars in hot water then pour the liquor and berries in. Seal and shake well.

Store in a cool, dark place. Shake the jar(s) every day for a month. After that for the next two months you can shake just occasionally. Try to keep them standing for a minimum of three months before using.

When you are ready, strain the liquid through cheese cloth, muslin or a very fine strainer – you don’t want any seeds or bits of fruit to sneak through. Bottle the liquor in a clean and sterile bottle of your choice. Wrap it with a bright ribbon and wish someone you love a very Merry Christmas.

By the way, don’t throw those drunk berries out-  enjoy them over ice cream or any other way you can imagine but go easy on them, they can pack a mighty punch!  Cheers!

The Revolution Was Highly Caffeinated

You very well may have celebrated our Nations birthday with apple pie, hot dogs and BBQ but if you really wanted to fly the patriotic colors in historically accurate fashion you would’ve been quaffing cups of coffee.

Many of us know the important role that tea played in the American Revolution but what many of us don’t realize is how important coffee was. Following the events of the Boston Tea Party, when gangs of colonists dumped a full cargo of over-taxed tea into the Boston Harbor, coffee became not only the preferred drink but the patriotic one as well.

As the Revolutionary War picked up steam, so did coffee houses. They quickly became the preferred meeting place of the newly formed Continental Congress. The most famous  was the Merchant’s Coffee House in Philadelphia, it was there that the Declaration of Independence was first read aloud to the public.

America is defined by its connection with coffee. There’s a good reason we arrange to meet friends for a cup of coffee not afternoon tea, we are expressing our independence and autonomy. So, carry on America, fly the colors and have a latte!

Want a chance to win a bag of your very own patriotic beans? Then please leave a comment here, retweet or repost this blog on facebook and we’ll enter your name in our monthly drawing.

photocredit: Our Flag

Meet the Purple Princess

The Purple Princess has arrived at Hudson Coffee Traders. Straight from her home in the La Paz region of Honduras she brings with  her a luscious, bright crispness and fruity notes of dried plum and pear.

No, we haven’t started selling  fruity smelling dolls for the Pre-K set. We’re talking about our new micro-lot coffee from Counter Culture, Finca El Puente.

The brain child of  husband and wife team of Marysabel Caballero and Moises Herrera, Finca El Puente earned the nickname Purple Princess when Peter Guiliano, co-owner of Counter Culture Coffee, first met her in the cupping room of a contest. The name stuck.

This prize winning coffee has placed at the top of every coffee contest it has ever entered and enjoys an unrivaled winning streak. Revered for its silky body with well balanced notes of blackberry, blackcurrent, dried plums, white grape and pear the juicy body of this coffee will have you at Hello.

The Purple Princess owes her sultry sweetness to many factors. Grown at a high elevation in a dry and dusty region amidst pine trees ( a rarity in a tropical climate) the beans are fed by pristine natural springs.  The beans are then exposed to an experimental post-fermentation soak  developed by Moises. They rest underwater for 24 hours following fermentation and washing in a special tank. In side by side tastings, every coffee produced in this manner had overwhelmingly better response than those that were not. The contribution of Marysabel’s warm and funny nature can’t be downplayed in the development of this wonderful coffee either.

Bright, fruity and seductive, the Purple Princess just may heat your summer up a bit more.

Want a chance to win a bag of HCT coffee? All you have to do is leave a comment here, retweet or re-post this blog to Facebook and your name will be entered in the monthly drawing. Winners are announced at the beginning of the month.

The Mighty Beans

Some people may think that there’s nothing that says springtime in America quite like baseball and apple pie. Not us. Around here it’s freshly brewed beans and softball. That’s why we are so exciting to be sponsoring ‘The Mighty Beans’ in the New Paltz Baseball and Softball Association.

When our oldest daughter, Katie decided that she wanted to play in the “minor” league this year, it seemed to be such a natural fit for us to sponsor a team. We are so proud to be affiliated with the recreation program which has been the official softball and baseball program for New Paltz and Gardiner since 1995. Chartered through both Cal Ripken All-Stars and Babe Ruth, the association’s volunteers have tirelessly worked to improve the playing fields in the community, sponsor clinics during the off season and provide over 600 children from ages 5-15 with the opportunity to learn, play and enjoy the games of baseball and softball.

Led by Coach Bob Hansen, The Mighty Beans (also known as the Traders) have begun the season with a bang; 4:0. The team, made up of 12 fourth & fifth grade girls, is a force to be reckoned with. But, keeping with the spirit of fair play and to encourage optimum playing time the league has a 4 runs or 3 outs rule. In other words, no team can score more than 4 runs in an inning- the association wants to make certain that everyone gets field time, a philosophy we think is great. Everyone is also encouraged to play as many positions as possible although our Katie is one of the few kids who wants to step behind the plate to play catcher so chances are that’s where you’ll find her for most of the season. This is no holds barred softball, so these kids are learning to hit, field, steal and slide! And yes, grass stains are just about as hard to get out of clothing as coffee stains are.

So… if you’re in New Paltz stop by for a game. We may not have any coffee for you but we can promise you a good ball game.  Next game, Wed 5/11 at 6pm, at Lenape Elementary School on Eugene Brown Drive in New Paltz.

P.S: Congrats to @Sleepjunky the winner of our April blog drawing!!! She’s won a bag of Hudson Coffee Traders coffee of her choice.

Jealous? Well, you just might be the winner this month if you leave a comment, link back to or re-tweet our blog. You’ll automatically be entered so comment, tweet, link, post away!

Cooking with Coffee

Good food and good coffee. Do you really need anything else?

Well, of course you do, you need love, a roof over your head would be nice and some ka-ching ka-ching in the bank would be helpful. But, when all else fails, we’ll take a good cup of coffee and some delicious grub to get us through. But then we got to thinking and realized what would make it even better would be coffee IN our food. Of course.

So, in on our ongoing quest to ferret out the best coffee inspired dishes, herewith a few  jewels to add to your repetoire. Now, the deal is you have to let us know which ones you tried, which beans you used and it would be swell if you brought us by a taste so we can judge for ourselves. Not that we don’t believe you or anything but just in case.

Coffee Rubbed Flank Steak:

Ingredients for the coffee rub:

• 1/4 cup anchochili powder
• 1/4 cup finely ground espresso
• 2 tablespoons paprika
• 2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon drymustard
• 1 tablespoon kosher salt
• 1 tablespoon ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon ground  coriander
• 1 tablespoon dried oregano
• 2 teaspoons ground  ginger
• 2 teaspoons chili powder
• 2 bone-in or boneless  steaks
• Olive oil
• Salt and coarsely ground black pepper

Combine all the spices in a bowl.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

Preheat a cast iron pan over high heat. Brush each side of the steak with oil and then season each side liberally with salt and pepper. Rub 2 tablespoons of the rub onto 1 side of each steak. Cook the steak, rub side down until golden brown, about 3 to 4 minutes. Flip the steak over, cook for 2 minutes and then transfer to a baking sheet and cook in the oven to medium-rare about 8 to 10 minutes. Remove and let rest 5 minutes before slicing.

from Bobby Flay @ The Food Network)

This next recipe comes from FOOD 52 a fabulous cooking site that gathers many of its best recipes from contest winners.

This recipe won the “Your Best Recipes With Coffee” contest

Serves 4

Ingredients:

• 1 4 -5 lb whole organic chicken
• 2 1/2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 1/2 tablespoon unsalted butter
• 2 cups 1% milk

For the Coffee Brine:

• 1/2 liter hot, freshly brewed bold coffee
• 3 ounces kosher salt
• 2 teaspoons whole black peppercorn
• 3 star anise
• 1 teaspoon whole cloves
• 2 juicy navel oranges, halved
• 15 ounces ice

• Combine salt, peppercorns, star anise, and cloves in a small pot. Lightly crush spices with the back of a large spoon. Squeeze orange halves over mixture, and then add halves. Pour hot coffee over mixture, stir and cover pot with lid. Allow brine to steep for ten minutes.

• Meanwhile, pat chicken dry, removing giblets and neck. Place chicken in a 2 gallon sized zip lock or other plastic bag.

• Place the ice in a large bowl. Add coffee brine and stir until ice melts. Pour brine in bag with chicken (including oranges), seal and allow mixture to sit at room temperature for two to three hours. Then pat chicken dry and let it dry out for an hour in a bowl placed in the refrigerator.

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

• Remove chicken from refrigerator, pat dry and rub both sides with brown sugar.

• Heat butter in a Dutch oven over medium heat, brown chicken on both sides. Add milk, cover, and transfer to oven. Cook for an hour with the lid. Remove lid. Continue to cook for another 30-40 minutes, or until internal temperature of chicken is 165 degrees.

• Pull meat off the bones and serve with wilted greens and rice. Be sure to spoon some of the sauce over the meat, if desired.

This last recipe has been with us since waaayy back when a groovy cookbook was the centerpiece of our brief flirtation with vegetarianism back in college.

The banana bread is the moistest and best tasting we know – which makes sense since its made with, you know, coffee.

From The Moosewood Cookbook by Molly Katzen

350 F oven, 40 – 50 minutes to bake, 2 loaves

• 1 ½ cups melted butter
• 1 ¾ cups brown sugar (or 1 ½ cups honey)
• 4 eggs (room temperature)
• 3 tsp vanilla extract plus ½ tsp almond extract
• grated rind of 1 orange

Beat in a large bowl, beginning with sugar or honey and butter, add eggs one at a time. Add remaining ingredients, and beat until light in color.

• 2 cups whole wheat flour
• 2 cups white flour
• 1 tsp salt
• ½ tsp baking soda
• 3 tsp baking powder
• 1tsp nutmeg
• 2 tsp cinnamon

Sift the dry ingredients together 2x

• 2 cups well-mashed ripe bananas soaked in 1 cup strong black coffee

• Optional: ¾ cup walnuts nuts

Add flour mixture and banana mush alternatively to butter mixture, beginning and ending with flour (flour – banana – flour – banana – flour). After each addition mix gently to combine, but do not beat or otherwise overmix – this toughens and dries out the batter.  Add nuts last. Generously butter 2 loaf pans and sprinkle with sesame seeds (they’ll stick to the butter). Divide batter and bake.

Cool 10 minutes in the pan, then remove to finish cooling.

Serve plain or with butter or cream cheese.

Photo Credit: Mattb4rd