Of Jedi and Cafecitos - a Giveaway

So, a few weeks ago I'm cruising through my Facebook page and I left a comment on one of my daughter's (Amy Kikita) posts. I think she was complaining that she needed a late afternoon cafecito. (I think that's what it was, because she's always saying that in the late afternoon, but that's not important right now.)

My friend, Claudia (who happens to be an amazing photographer) then left a gorgeous photo on Amy's Kikita's Facebook wall. It was of an old school (read Cuban style) espresso maker and two tacitas (demi-tasse cups).

It was love at first sight.

I wrote to Claudia: "I need that cafecito print for my kitchen." (Notice the subtlety in my request. =D)

She wrote back: "I'll send one right out to you. What size would you like?" 

Whoa! I felt like I had just performed a Jedi Mind Trick! I so badly wanted and Had. To. Have. That. Print. And poof! She just agreed to send it. You may call me Obi Wan KeDarby. ;-)

And then I had an idea. I asked her if I could maybe offer that print to my readers as a giveaway.

Claudia: "What a great idea." (Marta Skywalker here!)

How gorgeous is this?

 

It's 11 x 14 and it's as delicious in person as it looks in the photo.

So, let's do this!

For a chance to win this gorgeous Cafecito print, please leave a comment on this post and tell me:

How do you do coffee? First thing in the morning? Five times a day? Espresso? Grind your own beans? Dunkin' Donuts? Starbucks? Let's talk coffee.

I'll choose a winner via Random.org. on Monday, August 9th at 11 am.  The winner may select a regular 11 x 14 print (like mine) that they can frame OR an 11 x 14 printed on single weight matboard.  (A $30-$40 retail value. How cool are my Jedi Mind Powers? Seriously.)
 
But wait! Let me introduce you to my gorgeous and talented friend, Claudia Risi. (The amazing photographer whose mind I control. =D) 

She has other gorgeous prints and greeting cards for sale here.
 
Anyone who places an order and mentions My Big, Fat, Cuban Family gets 20% off through August. Coupon code is E8FD4B6E (must be entered to get discount).

[EXTRA DISCOUNT CODE - JUST ADDED]: There is a separate code for the 20% discount for greeting and note cards. Use E942AF61

Am I just killing you here with my amazing Jedi Powers or what?

Let me tell you where else on the web you can find Claudia and her awesomeness (because I'm cool that way):
 
For a behind the scenes look at how Claudia works her magic, please visit her blog: Lehigh Valley Shutterbug.
 
Facebook Fan Page: Lehigh Valley Shutterbug
MySpace page Lehigh Valley Shutterbug
Twitter: @LVshutterbug

Good luck and May the Force Be With You!

~ Marta, Jedi Master.  ;-)

Comments

[The gold digger]

Omigosh I LOVE this print! I am a relatively new coffee drinker - started about a year ago and OMIGOSH HOW DID I EVER LIVE WITHOUT COFFEE? Why did I wait so long?

I started with instant, but my husband and I have moved onto grinding our own beans (from Costco - they're good!). We have become coffee snobs.

I have two cups of coffee with milk, cream and sugar first thing in the morning. I have to tiptoe around making it because my husband is usually still asleep. I am sad that I can't drink it in the afternoon - the caffeine keeps me awake.

My biggest regret is that I didn't know I liked coffee when I lived in Miami 13 years ago. So many cafes con leche that I didn't drink.

[Toni]

Oh, I'm definitely going to have to have that print!

I drink coffee all day long. I prepare a thermos with my cafe con leche and take it to work. If I'm out of it, I go to Starbucks for a doppio to get me through the rest of the afternoon. But none of that decaf stuff.

[MAP_Photography]

Great post Marta. Claudia is quite talented as you can see.

How do I do caffe? Well I was born with cafe con leche in the baby bottle as most children of Cuban parents are. It's the one concoction I cannot live without. Heck, even if I have to travel outside my environs where I cannot take my Italian espresso machine, I bring instant Pilon with me to make cafe con leche. Comes in handy when you're in the middle of the desert or the Mountains in Tennessee where you aren't gonna find the stuff.

But while those cafeteras are nostalgic for my youth, you can't use them in offices. So I have my trust Sirena Espresso machine, loaded right now, to make some powerful brew. I have my tamper and shot glasses to enjoy my perfectly brewed shots of Pilon. I have at least 4-6 shots per day to keep me going. When I wake up (con leche); straight shots in the am and then later in the pm. In fact, after this post, I will have some.

I drink my espresso straight up however. I've learned that the sugar kills the taste which I enjoy and which goes perfect with any dessert (especially cannoli) or cigar (back when I used to smoke them).

And I can tell you that you can never go wrong with either Pilon or Bustello Gourmet roast. (I buy the beans and grind them myself). It's much better than the burnt roasts sold by Starbucks and the other coffee houses.

So a big congrats to the two of you. I don't need to be included in the contest as I already have one of those prints too.

Cheers

[Normie]

Don't drink coffee but would love to have the print.

[jackie]

Oh, COOL.

Right now I'm breastfeeding, so no coffee for me. My husband drinks it though, daily, and that's grinding our own beans from a local coffeehouse called Ruta Maya. Way to shop local :)

[Ivis Suarez]

The question is How DON'T I do coffee?
I have to have it first thing in the morning or I get the 4 o'clock headache. In the morning its instant espresso powder in scalded milk. In the afternoon, if I get sluggish, I use a french press which I discovered makes THE BEST "American" coffee. I grind my own beans for that. I only go to Starbucks from Sept-Jan. for the Pumpkin Spice latte (hot or cold). Of course, I use a cefetera to make Cuban coffee at home also. I own 3 different sizes. I can't live without coffee!

[albertodelacruz]

I take my cafecito first, second, and sometimes third thing in the morning. Then there's the fifth or sixth serving at the office before lunch. After lunch, of course, you must have more cafe, and then there's the one, two, three, or sometimes four services during the afternoon.

[Athapa05]

I am a long time coffee drinker. At about age 5 I was introduced to cafe con leche (isn't that about right for in a cuban house?)
Now, before I speak to my lovely family I stumble out of bed and find my way to the kitchen to make an old fashioned stove-top caficito.
Around 2 or 3 I can usually have myself a large cafe con leche for a little boost, but during these hot summer days I sometimes have an "iced cafe con leche"
During the winter days I love a late afternoon cafe with, big one here, --a SCORE bar! That is what really hits the spot for me!
In a bind, if I'm out and about, I'll go to starbucks and have a latte.
BUT my all time favorite is to go to starbucks and use a SUPER thick Cuban accent and try to order a cafe con leche or caficito. I'll ask the what some of the coffees off the menu are, talk to myself outloud about how "errridiculus" that sounds....
I know it's mean, but it is hilarious to see them get out their "starbucks bible" to find our what it is, if they have it, or and even look try to look it up by country...(as I hold up the line talking very loud waving my hands around)
Crossing my fingers for that print though!!

[Anne Marie]

Very cool print! I drink coffee in the morning. Sometimes I buy it out at Caribou or Chick-fil-a; if I have more time I make cuban coffee and every once in a while I make myself a pot of american coffee (almost never...)
Whatever kind I drink, I just love coffee!

[Cristina Perez]

Amazing print!!! Way to go on the Jedi Mind Trick. I have to try that sometime on the hubby.

Being a child of Cuban parents, coffee is a must for me. As a kid it was always Cafe con Leche. Still is whenever we are in Miami. (We moved away 5 years ago). I do not function without at least 2 cups of coffee first thing in the morning. I do American coffee with flavored creamers and one sugar. I am always on the lookout for new flavored creamers. I am also addicted to Starbucks and will get it whenever we are out and about. Unfortunately the small town we live in does not have one. I guess you could say fortunately for my wallet. Starbucks can be expensive. Right now the addiction du jour is McDonald's Frappes. Mocha to be exact. That and the Mocha Java Chillers from Sonic. This are a favorite in the afternoons.

[BFF]

I have coffee each morning. Most mornings my sweet husband Gene makes me a Latte with his Gaggia machine. On the days he is gone early (Wednesdays and Sundays) I have press pot coffee...I have to make it myself! :-D
And on occasion, when I whine enough, I get him to make Cuban Coffee for me in the afternoon. I want to win this one!!!!! Love ya!

[Kiki Bacaro]

Cafe con leche con tostada, preferably made with evaporated milk:) and preferably made by someone else:)

[Pastor Gene]

How do I do coffee? Let me count the ways! I totally enjoy exploring different methods of brewing. Mornings lately have been my Zojirushi pour-over brewer with pre-ground roasts from either Dunkin' Donuts (dark), Giada (Italian), or Cafe Du Monde (chickory). I'm probably going to switch back to my Chemex pour-over brewer; when I do I'll be grinding my own whole beans to get them just right. Or I might pull out my Bodum vacuum brewer... Or use my 18oz. press pot.
Most mornings, at work, my son has brewed a pot of Columbian. We get the stuff preground from a roaster in Colorado, Firedance Coffee.
Afternoons in the summer means an iced Americano. Or espresso cola. I get the shot from our Capresso pod espresso machine; or I brew it fresh with the stovetop pot. Wintertime this turns into an Americano hot.
Try to have an after-dinner coffee. Summers this is usually an Americano, but at home I get the shot from my cold-brew coffee in my Toddy. Occasionally it'll be Turkish coffee, freshly ground in my Zassenhaus hand grinder & cooked on the stove in an Ibrik.
Man, I'm thirsty!!!

[Mirella]

I have to have my cafecito first thing in the morning with organic half and half, made by my hubby. This is how I start my day.

Although having un cafecito con mi mami at the kitchen table is good anytime!

I am so loving this print!

Mirella

[ClaudiaR]

Marta Wan Kenarby you are great for my ego. (But you always have been!) I am so happy you like the print and honored that you would want to display it in your home, my dear friend. Thank you for the over the top comments and I hope the winner enjoys the print as much as you do.

That cafetera I took the picture of used to belong to my parents. After Alberto (de la Cruz) bought me my first Cuban coffee (evah!) at the little Versailles window some years ago, I started drinking coffee for the first time in my life- but ONLY espresso. My parents gave me the cafetera, which they had for about 30 years.

Now you can think of me every time you pass by the photo on your wall, in case our text messages aren't enough. :)

Thank you to everyone who said they like this print. Shucks, and to think I took it just to show off my birthday present tacitas last year!

[ClaudiaR]

P.S. There is a separate code for the 20% discount for greeting and note cards. Use E942AF61 for those and E8FD4B6E for the prints.

[Mrserika]

I've drinking cafe con leche in the morning for as long as I could remember. Honestly, my day doesn't begin until I have it in the morning. Because I teach, I just use the instant grind by Bustelo or Pilon and mix it with milk and use splenda, instead of sugar (I try to maintain my cuban booty to a minimum size! ha!). When I moved to NC from Miami, I packed about 10 jars of them to stock up. Then when I need more, my parents or friends bring me some when they visit from Miami.

I'm famous for my cafecito after dinner parties or get togethers at our house. My non-cuban friends LOVE it. My secret? Well, I use "Leche evaporada" to make cortaditos of cafe con leche. (most of my friends can't handle the normal cuban cortadito..gives them the jitters! lol) It's delicious!

I hope I can win that fabulous picture to remind me of home!

[Aida Nava]

I need coffee round 2.. (like i could use a cup now) but i wait til around 8:30pm to share a cup with my husband after the kids go to bed. He goes right to sleep and i stay awake til 11pm wake up at 5:30.. which is why i feel the need for 2pm coffee!! I like it with cream no sugar and a piece of pan dulce. but i think i'd do turkish coffee all day if i could get hands on it. i know i know it has sugar in it but it's the spice that gets me =)

[Luly Argimon]

O.M.G.!! That is such a GORGEOUS print! Being the coffee lover that I am, I drink cafe con leche religiously in the a.m. and then I'll have an espresso after lunch. I am the official office Cuban coffee maker since everyone loves my cafe con espumita. And of course, all of that coffee needs to be accompanied by one of my awesome cupcakes at least once a day. (I'm just sayin'!) ;-)

I hope I can win that beautiful print so that I can hang it in my newly renovated kitchen!!

[Idania]

How I do cafe on a daily basis...."Cafe La Llave" is my favorite brand. I make it at home in my old cafetera for my morning "get out of zombie state" fix of cafe con leche. Then again at mid morning (10:30) we have it on our Cuban coffee break at the office and again at 3:00 pm., made in a "Mr. Coffee" espresso maker ("espumita" please) and served in thimble-sized disposable plastic cups....one last shot of adrenaline to finish the work day!

[Leesa]

Great print!
I bleed coffee, instead of blood! Need I say, MORE?

[GBbSoFla]

That print is MINE! It's perfect for me! So, back off coffeeholics! As for me, I am made of coffee. It runs through my veins. Con espumita y todo. I drink it all day long. I am already picturing it to the left of my espresso maker in my kitchen. So, please, Marta, just spare yourself the hassle of selecting a name and just send me the picture. ;-)Gracias!

[Vivian]

I started drinking cafe con leche when I was a child at my Abuela's. She would make it for me with leche condensada (VERY FATTENING!) but I loved it. My husband and I drink it every morning but with leche evaporada and sometimes in the evening and whenever we have company we have cortaditos. Love the print, hope I can win it. Gracias!

[Maggie Marin]

Just few days ago my daughter was complaining about caffeine in the soda I let my grand daughter drink as treat for one day. And it came to my mind how my generation grew up drinking "leche con cafe" in our baby bottles since we were maybe a month old? And here I am "mas fuerte que un roble" and still drinking cafe morning, afternoon, and night (like the saying goes) plus all the american coffee in between. And now with the heat on top of crushed ice with condensed milk. Hasta Luego I'm going to brew a cup ;D

[Nickie H.]

My cafecito is brought to me while I'm still in bed by my wonderful husband! He's learned that I'm not human or tolerable in the morning unless I've had my cafe'. I've trained him well :)

[Angela G.]

I love your giveaways Marta, and although I have yet to win anything, I love how you give me an incentive to write my thoughts down...not something this 50 (ish) mom has much cause to do (is there a journal in my future maybe?). Anyway, back to the giveaway...I CANNOT start the day without my morning cup. My husband wakes up at 5am and stumbles to our machine and turns it on, a loud cuisinart that grinds the whole beans and brews. We buy our beans from dunkin donuts (4 lbs for $20...good deal, right?). As a matter of fact, I just spilled an ENTIRE pound of beans onto my kitchen floor...it's my DH's job to fill the bin but he's sleeping in because it's Saturday and,,.I just can't function until I have my first sip of coffee!!!
Side note: I love living in South Florida and visiting my local Sedano's, where I can buy the Comida Preparada. While I wait with my number to order, I always get a
cortadito, and maybe a pastelito de carne or a croqueta de jamon. And the screen saver on my iphone is a perfect little cafecito that I got the last time I ate at La Carreta, whichs gives me a caffeine jolt just by looking at it!

[Mike Griffith]

How do I do coffee? It might be easier to say how I don’t do coffee. As a died in the wool coffee snob, I don’t do it Nescafe! If it’s got to be instant, it’s got to be Starbucks Via, but that’s only for when I’m in a hurry. Coffee and hurry really don’t go well together.

How my family does coffee has taken a few evolutionary steps, mostly in the backwards direction, which is to say we’ve abandoned the Starbucks Barista homebrew espresso machine and gotten back to basics.

The de-evolution of il mio famiglia' rituale del caffè started with a move to England. This necessitated donating the Barista to a friend, as British homes have a not so compatible 240 volt electrical system. We ended up with a Cafétiere (French Press) and a Starbucks burr grinder to reduce whole Café Verona or Komodo Dragon beans to something brew able. This worked quite well for several years.

In 2008 la mia famiglia journeyed to the land of wild boars and white truffles, the former stronghold of the Etruscans now known as Tuscany for a Buon Reposo at an agritourismo of the same name. Tucked away in a cupboard in the kitchen was a Bialetti like the one shown in Claudia’s Cafecito print above. We hurried down to the local super market and chose a package of the Italiano people’s favorite coffee, Lavazza Qualitá Rossa and a bag of Cantuccini.

That afternoon, we had the most delectable home made espresso imaginable as we sat in the garden taking in the sights, sounds, flavors and aromas of the Tuscan hillside vineyards. It was amore alla prima sip. A few days later, as we celebrated my birthday, I was delighted to receive my very own Bialetti. On return to England, we added a small battery operated milk frother to our coffee paraphernalia and we also discovered all the local shops carry Lavazza. Now almost every morning we enjoy a mug of freshly home brewed Italiano Cappuccino.

If you have tried the milk frothers with little success, here is the secret to long lasting foam. Steam. Just put your preferred type of milk in a ceramic jug and place it in a microwave for a few minutes until it just begins to steam. It may take a few trials to discover the correct time and milk quantity. When you stick the frother into hot milk and turn it on, it fills the milk with little bubbles and the hot milk in turn evaporates steam into these air pockets. Just slowly draw the wand upwards and literally pull the foamed milk up. This too will take a bit of practice to perfect. Let it sit for a minute and it will firm up then use a spoon to hold it in the jug as you pour the milk from the bottom into your cup atop the freshly brewed Lavazza, then scoop the foam on top, dust with cinnamon or cocoa powder and enjoy.

[Ody Fabregas]

Believe it or not, I'm not fond of Cuban Coffee as a cafecito. I like a cortadito, or a cafe con leche, but my mornings consist of Dunkin Donut coffee. ;-) But when we go to eat Cuban food, I finish off the meal with a cortadito. ;-)

Besote!!!

[Suyin]

The cuban cafetera is a staple in my house... Always right there on the stove...Cafecito, cortadito, cafe con leche, you name it, we drink it. I enjoy a cortadito (oscuro) in the morning and if possible mid-morning as well. Love the print!

[Carmela]

We make it the old fashioned way on the stove top. I also love going to Starbucks for my morning jolt. Having cafe con leche every morning growing up--it was so good.
Love that print! It will go great in my coffee designed kitchen...

[Loly Perez-Hinojosa]

OMG! My cafe con Leche in the morning is just part of my life, I even leave my Cuban Coffee Pot ready to go in the evening so I could just turn on the cook-top and it could be ready.

I drink it once a day, before my beloved Papi passed away I'd make Cuban Coffee eight times a day, no kidding... I drank it so much only to sit and share his experiences and stories about Cuba, as he grew older (ad so did I) the stories were amazing, he would tell me his stories of our house on the beach, I'd make more coffee, he'd say... "Loly, the coffee got cold", make some more, he loved it con espumita" my Mother would join us and at times, especially on the week-ends the family showed up, I'd make more Cuban Coffee, it seemed like they couldn't converse unless they had their Cuban Coffee y La Cafetera had to be ready at all times.... God, I miss that so much, just the morning smell in my kitchen reminds me of my Father

[Isaura]

How do I do coffee? I'm up early every morning drinking my fresh ground cafe while reading your Blog... does this gain me Flan er brownie points???

[sonia guerra]

My house is called "casa cafe" so you KNOW that print belongs here! True to my upbringing I have American Coffee in the morning, my Cuban cafecito at 2 p.m. and if a treat is needed a frozen espresso on the way home.

[Melek]

... I would soo love to win this print!!!

My "cafeterita" is also a Bialetti.

For me, every morning starts with espresso ... and for years now, a couple of days a week, my close friends receive a text between 11:00-11:30 a.m. with the message: "I can smell the espresso"! as a way of letting them know that they are in my thoughts!

I also enjoy "La Llave" . . . ;)

. . . a little trivia about Bialetti's design, "l'omio con i baffi" . . . The Bialetti mascot with his index finger held up as if ordering another espresso ("the mustachioed little man"). is a caricature of Alfonso Bialetti's son, Renato.

Great job Claudia!

I wish you well :) Melek

"A cup of coffee shared with a friend is happiness tasted and time well spent." ~ Anonymous

[Susan (Mike's wife)]

MMM.. could you bring some of that to me right now? I really could use one, honey! :-) You forgot to mention we now have two sizes of cafetera--a six-cup (which is fine for the two of us in the morning....) and a one or two cup, for that 'I just really need one now' pick-me-up. Love you, sweetie!

[Susan (Mike's wife)]

Oh, and that our four-year-old son now wants his 'cafecito' too. Usually it is mostly foamed milk (i.e. a Minicino or Babycino with chocolate powder in a stenciled shape on top), but sometimes when Dad is in charge and Mom isn't looking, he gets a few teaspoons of espresso in there too.....!

[Susan (Mike's wife)]

Ok, just to be clear on the TIME that I'm writing these posts. It might be just before 2AM in California, but in England where we live, it is not quite 10AM! So a request to my husband for coffee is pretty reasonable!

[S Lloyd]

I make decent cafecitos, but this post of yours motivates me to put more love, focus and attention in them. I believe people should put more emphasis on coffee since a nice cafecito can be memorable

[Colleen York]

I love the print!!! Now, let's talk coffee ... I have just One. Perfect. Cup. a day. (and I'm enough of a coffee snob that only *my* coffee IS that One. Perfect. Cup. Start with fresh stove-top espresso, whisked into frothy bliss. Pour into my favorite mug, about 1/3 full. Add strongly brewed American coffee, about 2/3 of the mug. Splash in a glug or two of half&half. Ahhh .... let the day begin! (occasionally dinner guests will request the 'house special' coffee, and so on those happy days I have Two. Perfect. Cups. ; )

[Ofe]

Beautiful print! I drink cafe con leche first thing every morning. I still use the stovetop cuban coffee maker just like the one in the print. :-) Cafe Pilon is my favorite.

[Martha]

I love to drink cafe con leche every morning and a cortadito in the afternoon. Marta, I love your blog.

[Mary]

I am commenting for my Mom! Beautiful pic! If I win she'll get it! It doesn't really go with my deer decor! LOL!

[KuKuMonGa]

I drink coffee morning, noon and night. Preferably Starbucks, but it doesn't matter. Love me some Cuban coffee.

[gene jr]

--
every day but saturday i take my coffee at work.

whatever is available.