Coffee

In the movie "Julie & Julia", the New Yorker puts on her pearls to cook, just as Julia Child did way back when. Just to get that same feeling of "really doing it" I decided to make myself some coffee to enjoy while writing and now I am ready to go. Granted it is decaffinated -- my nerves don't really tolerate any other-- but it is the sheer pleasure of a cup of joe while doing something creative. Plus I put on my pearls for good luck.

Anyway, today's topic is coffee, which is a culture unto itself here, and one of the most pleasant I might add. When someone invites you to afternoon coffee, it is generally not for a mug or two at the kitchen table while gossiping. Oh no, usually there is at least one cake (in a pinch, possibly even store-bought) and the polite guest brings flowers or a knick-knack for the hostess. Sunday afternoon is prime coffee time (truth be told, tea can be served too) and a full blown birthday party will often have such a selection of cakes, that you risk busting a button just by trying each one. Now that practically every household has some kind of fancy espresso machine, that has come into vogue for the obligatory espresso directly after a good meal, but even that has thankfully not replaced the traditional coffee hour, which is normally in the afternoon, sometime after the main meal.

And an hour it is, at least, generally several, as it takes time to eat all these good sweets. Homemade cookies are not commonly served, as baking cookies is reserved for the Advent Season (that will surely be a topic here one day too), but I have done my best to add brownies to the menu. Obviously I wasn't the only one spreading the good cheer, for when I first came, brownies were unheard of and it was impossible to get baking chocolate as used in the States. These days brownies are easily found in the grocery stores and bakeries, and recipes abound in baking books, but they don't really meet my standards, maybe because there is still no American baking chocolate to be found. Don't misunderstand me, I am definitely not complaining about the chocolate here (that heavenly confection! The Germans and Swiss really do know how to make that stuff!) but I need the real American product to make the real American brownies, so I ask visiting friends to stash it in their suitcases or I beg it off those with connections to the commissary. Of course I prefer not to eat the brownies myself, carefully preserving my calorie count for the other delicacies on the table. Unfortunately I almost never get up from a table of treats without having eaten at least one more piece than I meant to, regardless of how often I swear I am going to eat less...............