Food For Thought

The Coffee Shop,  is one of the most happy and positive food blogs I’ve come across in some time. Paloma (love4coffee) is all sunshine and sweetness with a side of seriously delicious recipes. Take a look at her blog, and her page here at Half Hour Meals, but first check out what she has to say on the subject of food blogging:

What was the inspiration for your blog, The Coffee Shop? You write about much more than coffee, it’s almost like being in a coffee shop with your friends and discussing the day’s events.

I love coffee and my husband does too, we drink it every night and our dates usually involve a coffee shop, so this blog actually started as “Coffee Lovers” because that’s what we are and I was sure there were more people like us who would like to read about coffee, see pictures and be able to just know more about this wonderful ingredient. I do not describe it as a drink because coffee is much more than that, it is a comfort, a help when you are studying and even a garden fertilizer! Later on, and because of my love for good cuisine, books and a nice conversation I thought about changing the name of the blog to “The Coffee Shop”, that way the blog would include many more topics and reach more people, everything of course inspired by the aroma of coffee.

How do you balance food blogging and life? Do you see your blog as an extension of yourself or more like a business?

I am a stay at home mom and food blogging is part of my daily life, I have been taking pictures of food and coffee years before the blog started, so I had some material to start with. I do not make any money from it right now but I have been planning on doing something to generate some income from it when the time is right, basically to be able to offer more to the coffee lovers who follow my blog. Blogging for me is just something that I enjoy I do not see it as work. It has been fascinating to also get to know other bloggers and take a peek at their lives (and what they eat).

What are five ingredients that you can’t live without?

I do not even need to give it too much thought to answer: chicken, cilantro, rice, onion and tomato. There are of course many others that are BASIC for me to have but I just can’t live without those 5, I would say that lime is just as important, though.

If the president of any country were to stop by for dinner, what would you make for him/her?

I would definitely make “chiles en nogada”, it is a very traditional dish from Mexico and it was “created” by some nuns in a convent in the city of Puebla to entertain an emperor on his birthday. It is basically a poblano chili pepper stuffed with a a mixture usually containing chopped beef and pork, aromatics, different types of fruits, nuts and spices, topped with a walnut-based cream sauce and pomegranate seeds. I know it sounds “very exotic” and you would never be able to imagine how that tastes you just need to try it, trust me, there is no “overpowering flavor”, it is just the perfect balance of heat, sweet and salty ingredients which create the most perfect harmony in taste. This goes perfect with cold hibiscus tea (agua de Jamaica) which is very popular in Mexico, too and an authentic Mexican flan for dessert, the star of this meal would definitely be the chili.

You’ve had The Coffee Shop up and running for 8 months, do you see it still going in a year? What are your plans and hopes for your blog?

Definitely! I see it going for many more years, we are now on Facebook too and some of the plans I have is to include more giveaways, make reviews of different coffee brands and coffee shops (locally and in other cities) and soon create my own brand of coffee mugs. I want people to be able to see my blog as their favorite “Coffee Shop”, where they look forward to be and see what is the topic of the day, where they can always find familiar faces and things that they can relate to in their everyday life. I basically want them to see it as a “treat” they deserve as they enjoy a cup of coffee, hot chocolate or their favorite drink.

Where does Half Hour Meals fit in to your food life? When did you join and how are you liking it so far?

I love Half Hour Meals, I recently joined (just in December) and I am so happy I did, I have found wonderful people and great recipes and tips that have made my cooking experience more fun! I really enjoy the interviews and the community section is phenomenal!

Walk us through a day in your kitchen. What would we be eating from breakfast through dinner?

As simple as it can be with a 16mo. girl running around, playing with my pans, pots and measuring tools! The way I cook has had to adapt since she was born. I try to keep it quick and nothing too elaborate! There is always cereal for breakfast, for lunch we always have what people here in the USA call “Mexican food”, but for me it’s just what I’ve been eating since I was born. It can be either chicken with rice and vegetables, meatballs or beef with potatoes and salad. I always try to include fresh vegetables with lunch (which is the main meal in Mexico) but I must always have “salsa verde” (green hot sauce) to go with it. For dinner we have eggs, a sandwich or tacos made with the leftovers of whatever we had for lunch with some little touches here and there like onions, tomatoes and cilantro, those 3 make such a great difference, nothing too fancy, everything affordable and easy to make. Later in the evening my husband is in charge of coffee, he brews the coffee as I get some cookies I previously baked from scratch (usually) ready, that is a common day in my kitchen.

Thank you so much, Paloma, for sharing yourself with us!