Nespresso: A Cup Above for Breakfast

One of my favorite things to do on the weekend is have a nice breakfast at home with family... & that includes coffee. There's something special about taking the time to cook & enjoy food together that creates memories.  In this particular case, maybe it's the hot pancakes stacked high, or the warm blueberry sauce dripping off the sides, or maybe it's the crispy bacon on the side.

One thing's for sure, a hot cup of foamy cappuccino with breakfast is always a must! Personally, we love Nespresso.  Not only do they have the best coffees with every level of intensity to suit your tastes, but the VertuoLine Evoluo machine from Nespresso takes it up a notch. The Evoluo makes superb American-style coffee as well as Espresso, and with the centrifuge technology, the rich crema on top makes every cappuccino smooth and frothy even before you add the milk.  In my case, I use soy milk, which is just as tasty. Breakfast without coffee would feel incomplete & I love how the aroma fills our apartment and really peps me up for the day.

If you don't remember,  this past year Nespresso welcomed George Clooney as its new brand ambassador in the U.S. & they launched their new campaign "Experience A Cup Above."  I enjoy Nespresso & their premium, single-serve coffee and if you've never tried Nespresso, it's time to experience 'A Cup Above' and Nespresso's elegant lifestyle - head over to a boutique and try all the different tastes they have until you find the one that's just right for you. Then take it home and create new breakfast memories.

Currently, my recommended capsules for breakfast would be:

Diavolitto - a surprisingly powerful espresso
New Intenso - A dense coffee with brown sugar and strongly toasted notes.
Melozio - Smooth & balanced. Rich in sweet cereal notes, giving a sensuous, smooth texture.

-post by jen ramos

-In partnership with Nespresso

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Nespresso 'A Cup Above' Gift Ideas

Everyone knows I love coffee, but I've never received coffee-related gifts for Christmas. Well, then why not just gift my friends some coffee related accessories to enjoy?  My all time favorite is Nespresso.  They offer high quality coffee from the world's finest coffee-producing regions.  It is my to-go place for finding gifts that suit everyone on my Holiday list! 

I love that they offer many of the same accessories they have in their boutiques on their site.  So, if you enjoyed sipping your cappuccino from the VertuoLine Cappuccino Cup at their boutique, you can experience the feeling at home by purchasing the cups from their website!  

This Holiday Season feel free to follow my lead & let your friends 'Experience A Cup Above'.  

What do I mean by that?  Well, Experiencing 'A Cup Above' is more than a gift, it's an invitation into Nespresso's elegant lifestyle.  Here are 7 Nespresso Gift ideas for coffee lovers. 

1. Dark Chocolate Squares with Cocoa Bits  (perfect addition to any cappuccino + chocolate lovers.)

2. VertuoLine Recipe Set  (ideal for serving lattes & latte lovers) 

3. Piano Black VertuoLine Evoluo Machine  (for great tasting freshly brewed coffee & espresso at the touch of a button. Convenient. )

4. Indulgent Pack  (ideal for the first time buyer of a Nespresso machine or for a housewarming gift). 

5. VertuoLine Travel Mug (for the constant traveler who prefers their coffee on-the-go). 

6. Premium Espresso Gold Cups (Impress that stylish friend of yours who loves coffee. Hurry though, limited quantities available!)

7. VertuoLine Cappuccino Cups  (this cup set is for the coffee lover who likes to see their coffee & crema)

On another note, here's a great Coffee Milkshake recipe you can pass on to a friend if you decide to gift the lovely Vertuoline Recipe set . 


Ingredients:

• 1 capsule of Decaffeinato or Vanizio

• 2 oz of cold milk
 (or you can add Soy milk if you're looking for a dairy-free milkshake)
• 2 scoops of vanilla ice cream
• Preparation
• Brew Coffee capsule and allow to cool slightly in a cocktail shaker, add ice cream, cold milk and cooled shot. Stir with a whisk or large table spoon. Continue until ice cream is melted and mixture is uniformly thickened and smooth. Pour into VertuoLine recipe glass
• Enjoy & Happy Holidays! 

Did you know that Nespresso capsules are also recyclable? They are!  You can bring them to the Boutiques and retailer drop-offs for recycling + they have a UPS mailback program, which provides pre-paid recycling bags for consumers to mail back used capsules. Drop those off at one of the 88,000 UPS drop off locations across the country. Nespresso recently expanded its program with UPS from 20 to 48 states



-post by jen ramos
-In partnership with Nespresso

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Experience A Cup Above

Coffee is my thing.

I used to be a coffee-shop fanatic, until I discovered Nespresso.  I realized how much money I was spending on coffee +  time wasted in-line waiting for my tall decaf soy latte with a splash of mocha on top! Oooh, long name!  Nothing wrong with name brand coffee shops but there's something magical about making your own cappuccino in the comfort of your own home.  After receiving my first machine, citiz & milk  as a gift from a friend,  I was HOOKED on Nespresso.  The ease & the taste of the coffee was way better than the coffee shops I had visited.  For the last few years I've been a loyal customer of this amazing brand.  So, Nespresso asked me to share my daily coffee routine & to try out the newest machine in the VertuoLine range, Evoluo.  The new machine launched last month and is featured in their new “Experience a cup above” campaign with George Clooney.

To those who don't know me, I work from home. Working from home is definitely an interesting & challenging experience. I tend to work on turbo-mode and then take a break during the daytime to spend time with my son for a few minutes.  I usually hang out with him while I make myself a (much-needed) cappuccino & pair it with Sprinkles cupcakes or a gluten-free bagel + pumpkin butter spread.  I eagerly look forward to these moments & feel relaxed & at ease being a work-at-home-mom.

During the middle of my work day on my break, I'll  enjoy my coffee with a bagel.  It's one of my favorite things......but my son loves colors, so cupcakes get him EXCITED!  He then goes back to his sitter & I get back to work, checking email, posting photos on social media like instagram & painting.  Being an artist, my home studio can get a little messy.  Even still, I'm not afraid to bring my coffee into the mix... I'll even use it as a prop for photo shoots.  Of course, I'll drink it afterwards.   I love painting & sipping on my cappuccino, I feel like the two things go hand-in-hand.  Working at home has it's challenges & the one day my sitter isn'tt working, it's hard to leave the house & walk into a coffee-shop with a stroller etc. (even if I wanted to).  So having a high-end machine like the Evoluo, which brews espresso and large-cup coffee, is VERY helpful.

Below:  Infant Nuna ZAAZ convertible high chair in Pewter

In the last few days, I've really enjoyed my work breaks, because the new Evoluo machine has been wonderful. You see,  I love milk (soy milk) in my coffee, so I got the bundle with the Aeroccino (milk frother).  This machine is quieter & more beautiful than my previous one.  It also maintains the gorgeous crema, which is what you see in my glass cup in the photo.  Nespresso machines use Nespresso capsules and brew high quality coffee , they are easy-to-clean & offer some great varieties in their Grand Crus like the new Limited Edition Swiss Chocolate for the holidays, yum!!!   One thing I learned while trying the new Evoluo is that Nespresso only selects the top 1-2% of coffee from the finest coffee-producing regions for their Grand Crus! Nice.

I love my coffee at home & drinking an iced version on the weekends with my husband after dinner is like my dessert sometimes.  He'll even add a scoop of coconut milk ice cream on top!  I swear.  So now you know how I  "Experience A Cup Above."

Above: Infant Nuna ZAAZ convertible high chair

-post + photos by made by girl
-this post was created in partnership with nespresso - thanks!

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Jen's Festive gift Ideas: Coffee Addict

Coffee Lovers.... YES, I'm talking to you.  

I put together a few coffee-related items that you may want to gift out to family or friends who love coffee. Or maybe for yourself? About four years ago a friend of mine gave me a Nespresso machine - and I still use it & love it!  BEST gift ever. In case you didn't know, HiLine coffee pods can be used on Nespresso machines. They have some delicious flavors, I highly recommend them as gifts to friends. They're a tad bit more budget friendly than the Nespresso pods for those looking to spend less!

 1. vertuoline 2. coffee, books & rain tee 3. milk forther via sur la table  4. HiLine coffee Pods 5. shaved chocolate topper via william sonoma 6. nespresso frother via macys 7. mug via kelly wearstler 8. mug via sur la table

-post by jen ramos

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Jen's festive finds

We are approaching the Holidays & it's time to start thinking about gift ideas as well as sprucing up your home for the Season! I like to drink coffee. Wait...... I LOVE to drink coffee & hot chocolate in the Winter....so yummy.  Speaking of Holiday & Winter, this past weekend I went shopping at Sur La Table & would love to show you my Festive Finds.

What do I mean?!?

Well.....Nespresso arranged for me to go to their cafe boutique to enjoy treats for two & then treated me to a shopping spree at Sur La Table. While there,  I picked up many things for myself & some gifts for my mom & a couple friends!  One of the coolest finds was the Nespresso Vertuoline Espresso machine - perfect for large cup coffee drinkers! I think you'll love all the goodies that Sur La Table has in store, they even have a cooking-class area,  for those interested in learning to cook - who knew!?!  Read below & discover why these are my Festive Finds, hope you feel inspired & pick something up for yourself or a friend!

Looking for a gift idea for that special cook in your life,  then you must check out Sur La Table here.

-images by jen ramos

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NESPRESSO Summer Iced Coffee

Nespresso is one of my favorite brands.

There's a cafe here on the upper East Side which I frequent during the summer days. It has been hot & humid the last few weeks & there is no doubt Summer is here.  Like many of you, I crave iced coffee.

However, there is nothing like coming home to your own machine.  This past weekend we tried  using our new VertuoLine machine (thanks to Nespresso), which is a single-cup coffee maker.  This machine is strictly a coffee + espresso maker with a sleek new design.  It pours your drink with Nespresso's signature crema layer, making your coffee look more gourmet!  So, again I repeat, this machine only makes coffee & espresso - so if that's your thing, then this is the machine for you.

Here's the Summer drink we made with the VertuoLine - which also makes for a great entertaining iced coffee:

DIRECTIONS:

• Prepare a full sized cup of Nespresso Vertuoline coffee to your taste.
• Add sweetener to taste (agave works great for this).
• Chill with ice until very cold - a shaker works best for this, or alternatively chill it for 30 minutes in the refrigerator.
• Put into glass with new ice.
• Slowly pour 2 tablespoons very cold heavy cream over the top, mix & enjoy.

This brewer does not have a frother, so if you'd like to make this drink above, you'll have to buy the frother & brewer package here.  Also, please check out the cute Nespresso video we made on my instagram.

-images by jen ramos

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DIY: Cappuccino Heart Stencil

I've been on a major coffee kick - because I now have a Nespresso Machine in my office - thanks to Nespresso who gifted this gorgeous machine to me for Christmas! So grateful!

Speaking of coffee, I decided to get creative today & create an easy DIY heart stencil for your next cup of cappuccino.  This is a creative way to bring a SMILE to anyone's face this Holiday!  It's like 1-2-3 .......that easy, so here we go!

Step 1: Fold a piece of paper in half, then using a scissor, cut a heart shape on the folded end like I did above. You are going to use the cut out - not the heart.  So don't worry too much about the heart shape at this point, just throw that part away.  The cut-out you can be perfected by using your scissor & making it more shapely if you wish.  Make it pretty because... that will end up being your stencil.

Step 2: So, here it is below, my heart stencil!  It's exactly the shape I want it - so now we can bring on the coffee & the cocoa powder.  I'm using Nespresso coffee for this project along with Scharffenberger sweetened cocoa powder.  You can use un-sweetned too, doesn't matter.

Step 3: I then take my heart stencil & place it over the cup of foamy cappuccino & while holding it with one hand, I sprinkle the cocoa powder all over it, making it nice & dark!  Best to use a shaker tin so the powder comes out slowly & even.

Remove the stencil carefully & ta da!!! There you have it - a beautiful heart cappuccino!! Neat huh?

P.S. Don't forget to enter our Nespresso machine giveaway here.

-images by jen ramos

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Soy & Coconut Nespresso Decaf Mocha Float

Remember the post I wrote about the Nespresso event I attended. Well, I met a few people while there & like Padma Lakshmi, they suggested we all send them a Nespresso recipe for others to try out! 

Here is one my husband & I came up with. This one is perfect for those of you who are Lactose intolerant or prefer to not drink milk. Like me.
 

Soy & Coconut Nespresso Decaf Mocha Float
MadeByGirl's Signature Recipe

INGREDIENTS:
1/4C soy hot chocolate, chilled
1 Nespresso Decaffeinato Lungo
4t soy milk (Soy Dream brand, sweetened vanilla), aerated cold
1 ball-scoop dark chocolate coconut-milk sorbet
Add Dark chocolate shavings on top


RECIPE STEPS:
Put the hot chocolate into your (shallow) coffee cup. Aerate the milk on the cold setting. Brew 1 shot of Lungo using the spoon method into the chocolate and then gently place the ball of sorbet in. Spoon the froth only into the cup but don't cover the ball.  Sprinkle the shavings on top.

-image by jen ramos

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Bits of My Week...

Enjoying Brunch at Jane

with friends. 

My HUSBAND always makes the best dinners, here are a couple of the plates he made this past week.

Here I am at the Nespresso event in SOHO that Padma Lakshmi hosted. This was one of the coolest events I've been to. The goodie bags were huge & there was plenty of food & coffee!  

Padma spoke about her favorite coffee & let us in on her signature recipe "Nespresso Vanilla Coffee w/caramel Milk froth" - recipe below! 

Below: This was a huge fair on 3rd avenue - unfortunately, I went by before brunch with friends, so couldn't eat anything! 

A dinner I made for my husband below-normally he's the one that cooks every day, but when he's busy, I'll whip something up. 

My husband caught this picture of me & Darla asleep on the lounge - Glad she wasn't too GASSY that afternoon because her butt was totally facing me.

Waiting for her belly rub as she stated on her twitter page. Yes, my dog has a twitter page: @darlatheboxer

Does yours?

-images by jen ramos

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