Playing with fire

When I was in Nova Scotia this week, Jodi introduced me to Just Us! Coffee Roasters Co-op, the first fair trade roasters in Canada. You know the owners are passionate when they mortgage their house to start a business with 10 tons of green beans and no customers. While they now have four locations and a loyal clientele, this success story had humble beginnings. When I mentioned Andrew and I are going to roast beans in our disgraced hot air popper, our barista admitted Just Us roasted their first batch this way, too.

While their coffee was good, their spicy hot chocolate was borderline addictive. Cayenne and cinnamon added a warmth that brought out the chocolate’s darker tones. A few sips in and I found myself toying with the thought of making my own chocolate from raw cocoa beans. How hard could it be?

Turns out hard isn’t the issue. Danger is. Unlike coffee, cocoa bean shells are flammable.

Later today, Andrew and I buy our first bag of green coffee beans. We know we’re tempting fate with this purchase. Roasting might become a hobby that ends up costing us more than a Costa Rican vacation. Or the experience might end up tagged as yet another kitchen disaster. Either way, it’s safer than my chocolatier fantasy. At least with coffee we won’t set the kitchen on fire – again.

Photo © Demosh reprinted under a Creative Commons License.