Having a dinner party? How 'bout a savory spicy lightly sweet cappuccino for dessert? (as opposed to coffee with a dessert) Recently did just that and they were a big hit. I call this an Indonesian White Rose. One of my recent signature drink creations, this one inspired by 2005 USBC Champion Phuong Tran's Crimson Sage sig' drink.
Indonesian White Rose
Ingredients for each double shot ~6oz drink
5" sprig fresh rosemary
3 to 3.5oz milk
Rounded teaspoon Sweet Ground Ghirardelli White Chocolate Drink Mix (not the stuff I've seen in grocery stores with coffee added)
Touch Indonesian white pepper (exact amount difficult to state measurement, but this morning weighed amounted needed as ~0.008 to 0.010 gram more or less to taste. Easy to over power so really just a touch!)
Double shot Light Full City Sumatra, a good lively one. Been using Sumatra Blue Batak Peaberry.
Building the Indonesian White Rose.
Start by going out back and cutting a ~5" sprig of Rosemary for each cap', this will be used to infuse the milk with Rosemary. Or buy fresh rosemary at a store:-) Two ways to infuse the milk.
(1) Measure out ~3.5oz milk portions for each cap into a large enough pitcher to hold all the caps milk. Lightly crush the rosemary sprigs and submerge in the milk. Refrigerate pitcher of milk with rosemary for 15 minutes then strain out rosemary, return milk to fridge. Now you'll simply use the milk for steaming.
(2) (This is how I tend to do it.) Pour 3.5oz milk into a 12oz chilled steaming pitcher, add a single 5" sprig of rosemary fully submerging and steam with the sprig in the milk! The heat from steaming amply infuses the rosemary very quickly. Remove rosemary, swirl and pour. But don't do this yet!
Prepare 12oz pitcher with 3.5oz milk for steaming, either pre-infused or with sprig. Place in freezer.
Measure the white chocolate and white pepper into pre-heated cap' cup.
Grind da Sumatra fo' da double shot.
Depending on your machine and preference actual shot/steam sequence may vary. With my HX Bric' pull blank cooling flush, build PF, grab milk pitcher from freezer, bleed steam wand, flash/flush-n-go starting pull ~202f and immediately start steaming the milk. Stop shot (while still steaming), finish steaming, gently stir shot to mix white chocolate and white pepper (don't worry crema won't be destroyed unless using stale beans;-), swirl and pour the milk. (if hot infused rosemary in the milk remove the sprig before swirl and pour)
I prefer steaming for each individually but of course vary whether steaming for a couple caps at once depending on your normal procedures.
Serve and be prepared for your dinner guests to be amazed at a delightfully different dessert cappuccino! I've actually seen some lick the inside of their empty cup:-)
Stay tuned for a MexiMocha with cayenne pepper and cinnamon stick infused milk...
