Kikita here!
Last week, Mami and I stumbled into a weird and wonderful world.
(Ok, we didn't really stumble, we were invited and we took Lucy & Katie with us, but that's not important right now.)
A land of milk and honey. (Ok, mostly milk and I don't think there was any honey at all, but that is not important right now either.)
The fabulous got milk? people did it again! They invited Mami to another event in the oh-so-posh restaurant called La Pain Quotidien on Melrose and since I am Mami's driver, it was obvious I had to go.
The fact that the name of the event was "Toast the Holidays with
Lattes" (made by THE Heather Perry) so there was going to be mass amounts of cafe had absolutely
nothing to do with me getting to go. 😉
Obviously, it was very important to sample EVERYTHING that Heather made.
From the Pumpkin Spice Latte to the TRES LECHES Latte (which tasted EXACTLY like a good cafe con leche) to the Holiday Frozen Hot Chocolate.
I admit, I may have taken a second helping of the Tres Leches Latte. . . and maybe the Eggnog Latte too.
When you're doing a latte tasting, you can expect a lotta Latinas to show up for the event. Oye, we know our cafe con leche even if you try to call it a "latte." =D
While Mami and I were busy mingling and tasting, Lucy and Katie dove into the fun craft.
Yes, of course they would take breaks to munch on a muffin and do some tasting of their own.
Lucy's favorite latte was the Toffee Mocha. (Hija de su papa, I swear. Totally her father's daughter. Mami doesn't like nuts, so toffee is definitely not her cup of . . . cafe? =D)
Katie, on the other hand, was really digging the Peppermint Mocha Martini, but I think it was just because of the fun peppermint bits on the rim of the cup.
After downing so many lattes, I may have gotten a little crazy (I can't imagine why) and I grabbed a few of the temporary tattoos that were sitting on the table and I put it on. I think it looked kind of cool.
As if the day was not fun enough, since we WERE on Melrose, it seemed only fitting to see someone famous. Yes, it IS "Jessie" from "Saved by the Bell," (aka Elizabeth Berkley) and yes I WAS out of my skin excited.
But one of the very best parts of being at the event (well, outside of all the cafe con leche) was seeing and connecting with so many other amazing Latina bloggers.
From left: Silvia Martinez of Mama Latina Tips, Sandra Gonzalez of Soy Fashionista, Dariela Cruz of Nuestra Vida Con Adrian (she’s pictured with Adrian J), Mami, Ana Flores of Spanglishbaby with baby Camila, Liz Cerezo of Thoughts of a Mommy of Three, and Marcela Beatty of 8 year olds and Babies pictured with baby Audrey.
Where is YOUR milk mustache??
The got milk? people are always so generous . . . They gave me this super cool (no pun intended) insulated tote bag. PLUS a full-size adjustable apron and a milk-frothing-thingy with the recipes on a cd. Since I got an extra one and I think it would make a rad Christmas gift, I'm excited to announce my very first comment giveaway!!
Here's what you have to do: Just leave me a comment here. On this post.
We will be holding the official drawing on Monday, December 14 at 11 am.
So, do you make your own latte daily? Or are you more of the 4-bucks everyday type?
(Or are you like me and lattes are a comfort drink along the lines of hot chocolate?)
I had so much fun and loved meeting you! Can’t wait to visit you again here!
Looks like you guys had a great time – and were probably hyper bouncing off the walls after all that caffeine ;)I moved to Miami from Germany 5 years ago. Had never even heard of cafe con leche. But on my VERY first morning that I awoke at 4:30am due to jetlag I felt the crazy desire for coffee.
Starbucks, which would have been my default destination at the time, was still closed.
Being that I was in Miami, it didn’t take long to locate a tiny hole-in-the-wall cafe con leche place….needless to say that $1.50 and one cafe con leche later, I was HOOKED!!!
Realizing that I may currently live in the land of unlimited cafe con leches but that it may not last forever I quickly understood that I need to learn to make my very own German-infused Cuban-inspired cafe con leche.
It took years. and a lot of patience, mostly on the side of my Cuban co-workers….but today I am proud to make a pretty decent cafe con leche myself, good enough to even please the doubting Miami-Cuban.
Next time you and your family come to Miami stop by for a sample of the first and only (as far as I know)’Cuberman cafe con leche’…!
I make my “latte” every morning. It might sound blasphemous, but I make it with instant espresso applied directly to the hot milk(which I steam in a pot; I hate the microwave). I only make the cafe’ from scratch if I am drinking it straight.
Totally should have been there as a room full of flavored and perfectly prepared cafe con leche is defenitely my version of heaven!And side note… Everytime I think of cafe con leche I think of my nephews and niece who called it cafe con “cheche”! Totally cute and completely makes me wish they were toddlers again! (one is already 19…shut up I know!)
I sound like a vieja… Who loves cafe con leche!
Definitely comfort beverage for me. I use only evaporated milk and a pump style milk frother to get it nice and thick. I do use instant Bustelo espresso (just lazy I guess) and tons of sugar….sigh…
I don’t get to do it often, but when ever I find myself hungry and it’s lunch time, I go to the nearest Latin American Restaurant and order a media noche sandwich with a cafe con leche. No pickles please. ;-)If I’m not that hungry for dinner, sometimes a cafe con leche and some crackers with butter or cream cheese is just fine. That’s what my grandparents did for dinner. They would have a hearty lunch, but a light snack for dinner.
Every year we go to Cincinatti to see my favorite band Over the Rhine and visit my favorite coffee house, Kaldi’s on Main. Back in the day, their house coffee was hazelnut and I would dip for long hours pouring over the old and new books, including Christina Garcia’s Dreaming in Cuban which introduced this Mexicana to the achingly beautiful and mysterious Cuban culture. We take bags of Kaldi’s hazelnut home to Detroit every year, and I just happen to be sipping a cup today.
I wish I’d known how much I liked coffee when I lived in Miami. It is a new addiction. How much time have I wasted? 46 years! FORTY SIX YEARS! DOWN THE DRAIN! Tragic.
Definately cafe con leche is the nectar of the gods…neck to neck with a very nice dark hot chocolate. I make myself one every morning as soon as I wake up. Only evaporated milk goes in mine and I use one of those milk frothy things they gave you to give it just the right amount of froth. I brew my cuban coffee and actually “beat” the sugar with a spoon with the first drops of cafe in a measuring cup so I can get a nice medium brown froth on the coffee. When the coffee and the evaporated milk come together….breathtaking! And then I just sip away, slowly savoring every drop. The good thing about it is that I know that an hour later, I repeat the same ritual at the office and enjoy a second cup, or maybe a few more.
Why spend $5 bucks on an eggnog latte during the holidays at Starbucks when I can make it myself. The beauty of having worked there, I can make the drinks, and make them with my own personal touch.Although my favorite drink lately is my hot chocolate topped with orange infused homemade whip cream. MMMmmmm.
Making flavored whip cream became a favorite pastime during slow days at sbux. And after I left I made sure to continue testing out flavor concoctions.
cafe con leche every morning for me (and my irish husband, who has learned how to make the *perfect* pot of cafe cubano)!
My friend Courtney of the band KaiserCartel uses one of those milk frother thingies to play a toy xylophone on a few of the songs on their album. If I win I’m gonna ask Santa for a xylophone.
Latte every morning!
Forget the latte, give me some condensed milk and malta any day!
Latte, Latte, Latte and more Latte is the way to go for me….I love it and can’t get enough of it…..You looked like you had a fantastic time with both your girls….
Got a new Keurig coffee maker so I haven’t had my cafe con leches lately. hmmm, this post has me thinking I can’t abandon my cuban fuel injection for much longer! 😀
I’m an herb tea girl myself but still remember the smell of “cafe con leche” in the morning before school. Love your blog Marta 🙂
Kikita this was taaaan cooool! I’d bet you guys had a blast!Mija, let me tell you something: most days of the week I do prepare some cafés con leche, but not for me. They are usually for Nicolás, and now, for papi too. Which makes me be kind of late for work way too often, therefore, I have to grab mine on the go: sugar-free vainilla or creme brulee cafe con leches (even though I have to order them as “lattes” -)