A long, long time ago before I had taken my first sip of coffee at a particular Thanksgiving dinner, I would eye my grandpa on Sunday mornings as he prepared coffee in a French press. I was memorized by the smooth action of pressing the lid down to produce delicious coffee almost immediately, with no plugs or filters required. I longed to be included in this morning routine, my mom only allowing me orange juice as my breakfast beverage.
Flashforward to junior year of high school, my exhaustion and stress due to AP Chemistry, SAT prep, and applying to colleges led me to become a full-time coffee drinker. We had a basic coffee maker with filters and all, not nearly as majestic as the french press my grandparents used. I started out with two spoonfuls of sugar and a hefty serving of whole milk, slowly losing the sugar and shifting to a splash of Califa almond milk.
I had a brief hiatus in my coffee drinking identity between the beginning of my senior year in high school and my sophomore year of college, at which point I discovered the deliciousness of a Bee’s Knees from Coffee Closet, one of Connecticut College’s student-run coffee shops on campus. In a normal year, my morning routine would include going to Coffee Closet before class to pick up a hot coffee or latte with almond milk, sometimes staying there to do work. Due to COVID-19, Coffee Closet was not able to open up until the end of September and is only able to sell drinks to go with no sitting available at this time. Fearing those coffee-free weeks in and out of onboarding quarantine, I decided to take coffee making into my own hands.
During the two months that I was able to live in Bologna while studying abroad in Spring 2020, I began each morning by making espresso in our Moka pot. One of my roommates and I talked about how soothing this routine was: filling the container with ground espresso beans, filling a small white cup with piping hot espresso, and cleaning the pot afterward. Obviously, I would not be able to have a Moka pot in my dorm room, so I figured a French press rather than a traditional coffee maker would be the next best thing.
I will be honest that the first morning I made a cup of jo with my French press, it was not good, and I still feel like I add too much ground beans. But I am still learning. My go-to recipe is pouring a little less than a centimeter of coffee beans into the glass carafe and then adding boiling water, made in my tea kettle, almost up to the black rim on my French press. I then let this sit for four minutes as indicated by the press’s instructions. Finally, I press down on the lid to make the coffee. This recipe makes two servings (if you like a full cup of coffee) so I pour one cup in my mug and then a second in a glass jar which I store away in my mini-fridge to make iced coffee the next morning. I adapted this recipe from Lauren Elizabeth’s cold brew made with a French press. I recommend checking out her recipe which adds ground cinnamon to the coffee beans for a subtle boost of rich flavor. Check out my food Instagram @healthy_eclair to see how I prepared her recipe.
In the mornings when I make a pot of coffee whether just for myself or one of my floormates, I am reminded of studying abroad and preparing Italian espresso. Making coffee is an act of self-care and mindfulness that requires no yoga mat or expensive meditation apps. While I can be a coffee snob, I do believe tea drinkers can find the same ~namaste from pouring a mug of their favorite tea each morning or afternoon.
During a time with so much stress and anxiety whether about school, current events, or politics, the little things in our daily routines make a difference in how we approach our days. For me, it’s making a soothing cup of coffee with my French press. What’s yours