Holiday K-Cup Flavors

With only a few days until Christmas, how’s the last minute planning and gift shopping going?  Are all the gifts wrapped and under the tree, or are you a bit frazzled and still trying to pull together menus, not to mention still struggling to figure out what to get that mother-in-law of yours? (Trust me: We're all there!)

 

To help out, we tapped into some of our K-Cup® Ambassadors to provide a few tips to help you check off some of those final tasks. 

• Take a break.  Kelby of Type-A Parent says, “It is so easy to get caught up in your endless to-do list for the holidays (and unfortunately, holidays are on the calendar and come with a definite deadline). Take a break to do something holiday-related just for the sheer fun of it. Almost every town or city has some sort of holiday displays, events, festivals or even just holiday lights driving through neighborhoods. Take one day to just enjoy the holidays. Believe me, all the other stuff can wait one day (unless, perhaps, you are reading this on Christmas Eve). 

• Do-ahead appetizers.  When planning appetizers, Amber of Bluebonnets & Brownies says to always include a few dips that can be made ahead of time, and quickly too, like this homemade salsa recipe. Throw some tortilla chips in a bowl, and you're ready to go. It's my mother's recipe, and I serve it at every party we host, no matter the time of year. It's always a hit, and it comes together in the food processor in about 3 minutes flat. Add to that, it can be made up to 3 days ahead of time, and the flavors only get better the longer it sits."
• Hostess Gifts.  Julie from The Little Kitchen loves to give little gift baskets with coffee and cookies in them - or even a cute coffee mug with a little baggie with a sampling of your favorite K-Cup® packs and some homemade biscotti or cookies.

• Take a “Me Moment”.  Kristen of Dine & Dish carves out a bit of “me” time each day. “I do that by sitting down to a cup of coffee. There is a reason coffee is hot… it’s meant to be sipped and savored, not rushed.  I use that 15 minutes in my day to get a grip on the day and it truly does work.”

As with many of our flavored coffees, we took a down-home cook’s approach to crafting our Holiday Seasonal Fair Trade Gingerbread coffee. Combining flavors and roasts is very similar to working with your favorite recipes. And who doesn’t enjoy baking fresh, hot gingerbread?

After baking various recipes and experimenting with different flavors, our final result tastes almost like a proud, “mother’s favorite” type of gingerbread pastry.

But we’re not done yet.  How about adding a little caramel-goodness to your gingerbread?

Caramel Gingerbread Cream Recipe:

• Brew a pot of Fair Trade Certified™ Gingerbread coffee.


• Combine 2/3 coffee and 1/3 steamed light cream in a mug.


• Add caramel syrup to taste.


• Top with whipped cream and a swirl of caramel syrup to finish it off!

K-Cup^® Caramel Gingerbread Cream Recipe:

• Brew a K-Cup pack of Fair Trade Certified™ Gingerbread into a large (16oz. recommended) mug.


• Brew a K-Cup pack of Caramel Vanilla Cream into the same mug.


• Add sugar and half & half to taste and stir.


• Embrace the season: add whipped cream and a caramel swirl and enjoy!

Have you given this coffee recipe a spin?  What do you think?

Over the past few months, many of you have responded to our blog posts about the return of your favorite seasonal coffees, asking why our seasonal blends have been retired from the the K-Cup® Portion-Pack line-up.

Trust us: It was not an easy decision to make.  We know how much some of you love these blends and brewing them in your Keurig® brewer, so the retirement was not one we took lightly.

Discontinuing items from our product lines not new -- as a company, it's standard practice for us to evaluate our products' performance to see how well they're doing, for better or for worse.  At a recent review of our Seasonal coffees, it was shown that the Flavored Seasonal coffees in K-Cups outselling the Seasonal Blends in K-Cups 4 to 1.  We also saw that Seasonal bagged coffees are strong overall, for both flavors and blends.

It's never easy to have to break news like this to our customers--we realize that decisions like this can be disappointing to those who develop a fondness for the products that are discontinued.

But there is are a few options for those of you who adored our Seasonal Blends in K-Cups.  First, Seasonal Blends are still available in bags - so you can pick up at My K-Cup adapter and still brew your favorite.  Second, while the Seasonal Blends are no longer available in K-Cups, our coffee team has worked to find some great recommendations of other coffee blends that you may enjoy:

In place of Holiday Blend, try Green Mountain Coffee Nantucket Blend or Newman’s Own Special Blend Extra Bold.




In place of Wicked Winter® Blend, try Green Mountain Coffee Lake & Lodge®.




In place of Spring Revival® Blend, try Green Mountain Coffee Nantucket Blend.




In place of Summer Safari® Blend, try Green Mountain Coffee Colombian Fair Trade Select.




In place of Autumn Harvest Blend®, try Fair Trade Vermont Country Blend.

With so much of the holidays already dedicated to the stresses of the season, we’re here to provide you with trouble-free gift giving to even the pickiest person on your list.  Yes, even the pickiest person on your list.  You know the kind: The friends you love dearly but have expensive tastes (that’s Luxury Larry), your restaurateur neighbor (Foodie Fran), you socially-conscious coworker (Advocating Anne), or your sibling who has absolutely everything (Been-there-Done-That Ben).  Have no fear this year – Green Mountain Coffee’s got you covered.

• For Luxury Larry, a bag of our rarest, most exquisite coffee: Special Reserve Papua New Guinea.

Give something truly exceptional this holiday season with Green Mountain Coffee’s Special Reserve coffee.  Four times a year, we seek out some of the rarest coffees from around the world and batch roast them to display the coffee’s fullest flavor and aroma.  Each Special Reserve comes from a single origin – like our latest Papua New Guinea Wahgi Valley – and produces a very limited batch, only around 1,000 bags.  Our Special Reserve selections pair the farmers’ best work with the art and craft of our Master Roasters – all so true coffee connoisseurs can experience the unique qualities of these origins in their morning cup. This website exclusive is available for $17.95 for 10-12 ounce bag or you can join the Tour to get the latest Reserves shipped right to your door before anyone else.

• For Foodie Fran, a meal fitting of her naturalist palate: our Organic Breakfast Crate.

Be the toast of the breakfast table by giving a delicious breakfast that will fill those on your list with good feelings and food. Start with our own Organic House Blend coffee or Lake Champlain Hot Cocoa— both are Fair Trade and organic. Follow up with organic treats from Highland Sugarworks: multi-grain pancakes topped with exquisite maple syrup.  Share this gift with your holiday hosts and they’ll be asking you to come back as soon as possible! Available for $37.95.

• For Advocating Anne, coffees with a social mission: our Fair Trade Organic Coffee Sampler.

If variety is the spice of your loved ones life, Green Mountain Coffee has a coffee selection for you.  This sampler includes three 10-oz. bags of coffee to fit every mood – bold and dark with French Roast, sweet and swanky with Sumatran Reserve, and bright and vibrant with our Ethiopian Yirgacheffe. Each certified Fair Trade and Organic, our sampler is perfect for the socially-minded with a coffee habit that’s never routine. Available for $24.95.

• Finally, for Been-There-Done-That Ben, the toughest person on the list, a Keurig® Single-Cup Brewer:

Keurig® single-cup brewing is the latest trend in coffee – bringing fast, affordable, and café quality hot beverages to the home. Each of the over 200 varieties of K-Cup® portion packs make the perfect cup of coffee, tea, hot cocoa, hot cider, and iced coffee and teas at the touch of a button. There's no measuring, grinding, or mess.  With five Keurig brewers available, from the red hot Mini Plus Personal Brewer ($99.95) to the luxury Cuisinart® Keurig Single-Cup Brewer ($199.99), there’s a style and price point for everyone. Even the gadget guru with everything will want to thank you every time they push the button.  Available at GreenMountainCoffee.com (and there’s free shipping on all brewers when shipping within the continuous US).

No matter the stresses this season may bring, we’re here to make your holidays a happy one.

Who doesn’t enjoy the aromas and flavors of fresh-baked gingerbread? Alone, our Fair Trade Certified™ Gingerbread coffee offers the zesty ginger and spice aromas of Mom's old-fashioned gingerbread pastry and warm oven-fresh flavor.

With a little steamed milk and caramel added to the mix, this coffee offers a new form of holiday indulgence for your taste buds.

Caramel Gingerbread Cream Recipe

• Brew a pot of Fair Trade Gingerbread coffee.


• Combine 2/3 coffee and 1/3 steamed light cream in a mug.


• Add caramel syrup to taste. Top with whipped cream and a swirl of caramel syrup.

For Keurig Single-Cup brewers:

• Brew a K-Cup® portion pack of Fair Trade Certified™ Gingerbread into a 16oz. mug.


• Brew a K-Cup® of Caramel Vanilla Cream into the same mug.


• Add sugar and half & half to taste and stir.


• Top with whipped cream and a swirl of caramel syrup for an extra festive touch.

Now that’s a revelation worth trying.  (And try it soon - Gingerbread is a Holiday Seasonal and will only be available until December 24!)

Have another coffee recipe you want to share with our caffeinated crew?  Leave us a comment and we may share your recipe!

It's the most wonderful time of the year
With coffee a-brewing
And all are woo-hoo-ing
'Cause Holiday Seasonal Coffees are here!
It's the most wonderful time of the year

It's the hap-happiest season of all
Eggnog and Gingerbread K-Cups® and bags
Share when friends come to call
It's the hap-happiest season of all

There's Holiday Blend if you're not into flavored
Light and dark roasts made to be savored
Comes only in bags just so you know
But whichever you choose, you've got nothing to lose
They'll fill you with Holiday glow

It's the most wonderful time of the year
With these coffees you're sharing
In Fair Trade's fine caring
Coffee farmers will cheer

It's the most wonderful time
It's the most wonderful time
It's the most wonderful time of the year!

(Parody based on Andy Williams' smash hit "It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year," written by Pola and Wyle, 1963.)

We often get asked how to pair coffee with food and there are so many ways to answer that question. I like warm cider donuts to dunk in a cappuccino. That’s my own holy grail of coffee and food pairing although in my book any good coffee goes well with a chocolate cake dessert. Especially if the coffee has some cream in it.

There’s no right answer except to experiment. But we can share a few opinions from some of the coffee pros (not us – yes, we make a living from coffee – but I mean the people who make a living from being ‘smart’ about coffee and food.)

Ken Davids, the famous coffee writer and reviewer, once said in a presentation that the whole idea was a little overdone, but that in general, heavy coffee flavors (Indonesians, dark roasts, extra bold K Cups, press pot coffee) go with heavy foods and lighter coffee flavors (Central American coffees, light roast blends) go with lighter foods. He worried that “people feel locked in and loose spontaneity” getting worked up about the right match.

Another writer, Timothy James Castle, says there are two ways to pair food with coffee. Contrast – pair foods with coffees that are very different; or resonance – pair foods and coffees that are similar (a la Ken Davids’ approach). By the way, Mr. Castle also suggests that if you are using coffee to cook with or to flavor a dish for an evening meal, use decaf. Apparently, he learned that lesson the hard way.

If you’re serving good coffee and good food, you can’t go wrong. Happy Holidays!