Her suggestion? Smoked paprika coffee, sweetened with maple syrup.

This is no regular paprika. The smokiness hit my nose as soon as I opened it, and trying a bit on my tongue, it was quite spicy.

I put just a bit in the grounds; maybe half a teaspoon or less¹.

I mixed it up a bit, then brewed the coffee. I took a few sips of the coffee black. It was quite good; the smokiness definitely came through and went well with coffee’s natural earthy flavour. The spice was also prominent, coming across like a milder version of my successful Curry Coffee.

But I wanted to take all of V’s advice, in addition to taking the spicy coffee idea in a new direction. So out came the maple syrup.

The real stuff, obvi.

I put about two tablespoons of syrup, along with some cream ². Then, to top it off and make it look fancy-like, some whipped cream and another pinch of paprika.

Well now, this is not bad at all. Having the paprika right on top made the smokiness really hit my nose as I sipped. The maple syrup is subtle, but it sweetens without detracting from the drink’s earthy theme. With the other flavours competing for attention, the spice comes through mostly as an aftertaste, providing an unusual little kick.

I’ll definitely try variations on this again. Apparently there is a sweet (vs. hot) version of the smoked paprika that may go better here. I’d also add a bit more maple syrup next time. However, I’m going to label this as a big success. I’d pay good money for it in a coffee shop. Hey Starbucks: hire me.

 
 
 
Note: If you’d like to try this yourself, the smoked paprika may be hard to find. You’re probably better off searching independent / specialty food stores than grocery stores (it’s called La Chinata if you want to ask for it by name). I got it at Jill’s Table here in London Ontario.

¹ I actually freaked out and took a bit off after taking the picture. You don’t need much.

² OK, I know, it’s not a true latte without hot/steamed milk. But “double double with paprika” just didn’t have the same ring to it.

“Curry” is such a general term that no two curry recipes are alike. This is a classy culinary blog, so I didn’t want to resort to the mysterious “curry powder.” Instead, I extracted the core message of all existing recipes: curry is just taking all the spices in your cupboard and throwing them together.

For the record, that’s garlic powder, turmeric, cumin, cayenne, and paprika. About 1/4 tsp of each, on top of regular medium roast coffee grounds, brewed with about 6 cups of water. I was afraid this would clog the filter basket, but it brewed just fine.

Now, before I even sip this, I want to comment on the smell. My nose is currently telling me that my apartment is an Indian restaurant. Since I love Indian restaurants, that is a very good thing.

A bit of a film on top, but nothing to be concerned about.

No cream or sugar to mess this up. I had high hopes for a straight black spicy coffee, and I was not disappointed. Dark chocolate and chili have become a common pair lately, and the same delightful bitter / spicy combo is present here. The flavour is completely infused into the coffee; no texture problems this time, not even at the bottom.

I think I stumbled on just the right amount of spice. It’s got kick without being undrinkable. For more adventurous coffee drinkers, I highly recommend giving this a try.

In fact, I’m gonna go ahead and dub this the first official PWTIC success story.

Namaste, curry coffee.