Coffee Roasting

If you know me (or have read my blog for any length of time), you know about my love for coffee. You might also know that my wonderful husband roasts coffee for us at home. Home roasting allows us to get a wonderful quality coffee for a great price. We aren't after cheap coffee or spending loads of money on coffee. We are after the best cup of coffee we can afford and this is the way we've found to make that happen. Thankfully, Gil enjoys the process and has done the best he can without the roaster he would like. After hearing of this, several people are intrigued by this process, so I decided to share! Here goes....

When this box lands on our doorstep, we feel loved...even though Gil just ordered it himself a few days prior.  

Prior to roasting, this is what the green coffee bean looks like. 

Admiring the goodness. 

Loving the goodness. 

Posing with the goodness. Until this moment, I hadn't realized how closely his red hoodie matched the kitchen walls. 

Each bag of beans are different and labeled according to the country and farm where it was grown. The label also includes a description of what the bean should taste like when roasted properly. 

Gil ordered 3 different beans this time. 

Oh, I can't wait for morning! 

Here's the set up: box fan facing outside, popcorn popper, mesh strainer, large bowl to catch chafe. Kids allergy medicine not necessary for this process. 

Fan on. Popper on. 

Beans go in, 3 Gil-handfuls per batch. 

Popper lid on, which blows most of the chafe into the bowl. 

We wait while it roasts. 

And have time to take a few silly pictures. 

Those blue eyes. 

After roasting. 

Unplug roaster, pour beans into mesh strainer for a quick cool. 

Shake to help cool as fast as possible. 

Look at the goodness. 

Smell the goodness. Oh wait, you can't. Sorry. 

He's been through a number of popcorn poppers, but this particular brand and model is the one that's held on the longest. If you ever, and I mean EVER, see one of these at a thrift store, BUY it! 

And the beautiful bean. 

No, I was not paid by sweetmarias.com for all of this free advertising. Would have been nice though, eh? This is just how we do it~