A Mug Full of Happiness

There are certain colors that instantly transport you back in time. For me, it’s a particular shade of bright red. The moment I see it, I’m standing in my parents’ kitchen staring at the shiny red espresso maker that replaced our old two-piece stovetop pot.

Every evening, after the dishes were washed and the kitchen sparkled, Mom would slice fresh lemon wedges while that little machine worked its magic. She and Dad would sit together, sipping tiny cups of espresso like it was the perfect ending to another ordinary day.

Somewhere along the way, I caught the coffee bug.

College introduced me to daily coffee, and before long there was an extra demitasse cup waiting for me whenever I came home. Suddenly the coffee world exploded. Fancy coffeehouses popped up on every corner, drive-thrus became a way of life, and somewhere in there my daily Starbucks stop became part of my morning commute.

“Venti Iced Americano, please.”

Coffee isn’t just a drink anymore. It’s a tiny event I look forward to every single day.

Naturally, I’m always on the hunt for my next favorite concoction.

Last week Pinterest sent me tumbling down one of its famous rabbit holes. An advertisement for Trader Joe’s Bourbon Vanilla Bean Paste caught my eye. Beep…beep…beep. Somebody back up the coffee truck. A few hundred clicks later I had a shopping list: bourbon vanilla bean paste, Starbucks Blonde Espresso, and fresh lemon peel.

Well…

Let’s just say my gym rest day turned into one of the most relaxing 45 minutes I’ve had in a long time. No Shoes Radio was playing in the background while blonde espresso, bourbon vanilla, and fresh lemon peel danced together in my favorite mug.

It was ridiculously simple. Completely delicious. And somehow it reminded me that the best recipes aren’t always found in cookbooks. Sometimes they’re tucked inside memories, mixed with a little curiosity, and served one beautiful cup at a time.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I think tomorrow morning has already placed its coffee order.

☕️☕️☕️☕️☕️☕️☕️☕️☕️☕️☕️☕️☕️☕️☕️☕️☕️☕️

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Author: KikiFikar

Kiki Fikar is a native New Yorker who is passionate about taking the day to day life we all experience and sharing it in her tales from Suburbia. She will often be found at the gym, writing snippets each day for future story lines, listening to her two children create their lives, and building the perfect beachfront home and writing retreat in her mind.

26 thoughts on “A Mug Full of Happiness”

  4. That looks and sounds soooo good. Right now, I am actually three months into a coffee hiatus, but when the Pumpkin Spice gets rolled out in a couple of weeks…that break will likely break.☕

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  9. Right? My Instagram feed just showed me that Starbucks released an orange cream Frappuccino. I didn’t know whether I should grab my pocketbook and fly towards Starbucks or forget I never saw it. I don’t think I can ever order one because once I order one I may never stop.

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  11. Back in 1995, on a trip to Baltimore, Kathy and I went through the Walter’s Gallery. They had a basement cafe. We took two stools at the counter, ordered coffee, and then looked at one another like we just discovered the Holy Grail. “What is this?” I asked. The barista replied, “Starbucks Sumatra.” I asked where I could buy some, only to learn that Starbucks was from Seattle and that Baltimore was the only east coast city where it was available. It seemed that no sooner I got home than Starbucks was popping up in Philly. If I could somehow convince myself that Heaven had dark roast coffee, maybe I wouldn’t be so afraid of dying. 😁

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  13. I love this post so much, Karen. My fond memories also include my mom and dad relaxing over coffee after dinner. And we also had the two-piece, stovetop coffee pot 🙂 I still have it displayed on my coffee bar but somehow the little filter basket is gone. It is one of my most precious possessions!

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  18. Oh there are stools in heaven with our names on them. We shall meet for coffee there. Not any time soon mind you! We have blogs to write and share over coffee down here! ❤️☕️❤️☕️

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  21. “…the best recipes aren’t always found in cookbooks. Sometimes they’re tucked inside memories” 💯 🎯 😎

    My mom had this really cool copper cookie making thing…you stick the dough in one end, close it, and put a shape on the other. Then you turn a handle and it forces the dough out in the desired shape. We used it to make Christmas cookies; my fav were green trees with little silver things (“balls”) you could bust a tooth on 😂🤦

    Twinnie, another ✔️ on our growing list of things we share! I’ll drive over in the jeep and bring over a six, a Jimmy B mix CD and my mom’s cookie set 😂😎❤️🙏

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