Culinary experts from the Allspice Institute collaborated with Cafédirect to develop innovative recipes featuring their coffee blends.
Cafédirect, a UK beverage company, unveiled new packaging for its Smooth, Lively, and Intense Roast Coffees. The launch event showcased coffee-infused recipes created in partnership with the Allspice Institute, a renowned culinary school.
Chef Sakthivel Karuppiah, COO of Allspice, prepared coffee-smoked tandoori chicken using coffee in two unique ways. He marinated the chicken in coffee for tenderness and then smoked it using spent coffee grounds. While he initially intended to incorporate coffee into the yogurt as well, he discovered that the high acidity of coffee prevented proper yogurt formation.
Below are some of the recipes developed by Allspice:
Silent Screamer (beverage)
Source: Mileage Communications. Silent Screamer.
Preparation time: 10 minutes Cooking time: 15 minutes Serves three INGREDIENTS: 3 single shots of brewed Cafédirect Lively Roast Coffee. A single shot typically uses 7g of powder to 30ml of liquid 2 tbsp natural coconut oil 360 ml skimmed milk 1½ tbsp maple syrup ¼ tsp cinnamon powder ¼ tsp vanilla extract METHOD: 1. Combine brewed Cafédirect Lively Roast Coffee, coconut oil, maple syrup, and vanilla extract in a jug and mix well. 2. In a medium-sized saucepan, gently heat the milk to 60-70°C. 3. Pour the hot milk into a jug and then back into the saucepan several times to ensure it is well combined and aerated. 4. Divide the mixture into three serving cups. Sprinkle with cinnamon powder and serve warm.
Coffee Smoked Tandoori Chicken (savoury)
Source: Mileage Communications. Coffee smoked tandoori chicken, served with a mint sauce.
Preparation time: 4 hours Cooking time: 10–12 minutes Serves three INGREDIENTS: 130g chicken, cut into cubes, with enough skewers for cooking and serving A double shot of Cafédirect Lively Roast Coffee. Double shots are made with about 14g of coffee and about 60ml of liquid Pinch of yuzu salt
For marinating: 50 ml thick yogurt (strain yogurt through cloth to thicken) ½ tsp ground allspice ¼ tsp ground smoked paprika ½ tsp Himalayan salt 1/8 tsp ground white pepper
For smoking: 1 tbsp used/fresh coffee grounds Cardamom
METHOD: 1. Combine chicken and coffee in a bowl, mix well, cover, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour (ideally 2-3 hours or overnight). 2. In a separate dish, combine marinade ingredients into a smooth paste. 3. Remove chicken from the coffee marinade and pat dry. 4. Coat the chicken thoroughly with the marinade paste. 5. Cover and refrigerate for 3-4 hours. 6. Thread chicken onto skewers and pan-fry or grill in the oven. 7. In a large pan with a lid, heat coffee grounds and cardamom for 2 minutes. Add a splash of water, then place the cooked chicken in a heat-proof dish inside the pan. Cover and turn off the heat, allowing the chicken to smoke for 2 minutes. 8. Serve warm, sprinkled with yuzu salt.
Coffee Religieuse (dessert)
Preparation time: 45 minutes Cooking time: 45 minutes Makes 12 pieces
INGREDIENTS: Icing sugar for garnishing
For Cafédirect Smooth Roast pastry cream: 1 litre milk 1 vanilla pod 125g sugar 240g egg yolk 80g custard powder 30g Cafédirect Smooth Roast Coffee
METHOD: 1. Heat the milk with the split vanilla pod and sugar. Once boiling, remove from heat. 2. Add coffee, cover, and let it steep for 10 minutes. 3. In a separate bowl, whisk together sugar and egg yolk. Mix in the custard powder. 4. Pour in the hot coffee-infused milk and mix quickly. 5. Strain through a fine sieve and transfer to a saucepan. Bring to a boil while continuously whisking. Cook for 1 minute. 6. Pour the coffee pastry cream onto a tray lined with cling film. Cover the cream directly with another layer of cling film. 7. Refrigerate to cool.
INGREDIENTS:
For pâte à choux dough (choux pastry): 220g milk 220g water 4g salt 8g sugar 180g butter 220g flour 400g eggs
METHOD: 1. Bring milk, salt, sugar, and butter to a boil. 2. Gradually add the sifted flour to the boiling mixture while stirring with a whisk. 3. Continue cooking and stirring until the dough forms a paste-like consistency (panade). 4. Transfer the panade to a bowl. Gradually incorporate the beaten eggs using a whisk. 5. If needed, adjust the dough consistency by adding small amounts of boiling milk. 6. Pipe spheres of dough onto a baking sheet. Bake in a preheated oven at 200°C for 30 to 35 minutes.
ASSEMBLY: 1. Carefully make a small hole in the base of each cooled choux bun. 2. Fill each bun with the coffee pastry cream using a piping bag. 3. Dust with icing sugar.
Description for the Smooth Roast Coffee from Cafédirect.
Cafédirect also shared their recipe for a refreshing frappé:
Frappé (beverage)
Preparation time: 10 minutes Serves one
INGREDIENTS: 2 tsp Cafédirect Instant Freeze-dried Coffee 2-4 tsp of sugar (adjust to taste) Ice cubes 100ml cold water 100ml to 150ml of fresh milk
METHOD: 1. Combine instant coffee, water, and sugar in a shaker. 2. Shake vigorously until a light froth forms. 3. Pour the mixture over ice cubes in a glass. 4. Add fresh milk to fill the glass. 5. Stir well and enjoy.
Explore:
For more information about Cafédirect coffee and a recipe for coffee damier cake, check out this WorkSmart Asia blog post: [link]
In Singapore, Cafédirect coffee is available at various retailers, including Cold Storage, Fairprice Finest, Fairprice Xtra, Jasons, Market Place, and Redmart, for S$8.70 per 227g pack.
*For best results, use an electric mixer for whisking.
** For achieving the ideal choux pastry consistency, refer to helpful resources like the blog post by Leiths School of Food and Wine, which suggests the dough should fall from a wooden spoon at a specific rate. Additionally, The Flavor Bender blog provides insights into common choux pastry mistakes.