When it comes to the holidays, I have a penchant for festive entertaining! Since I definitely didn’t have the space to host get-togethers when I was in New York, I’ve been looking forward to holiday parties at home here in Chicago.
When I lived in Chicago right after college, we hosted quite a few get-togethers in our three-bedroom apartment in Lincoln Park. We had a real Christmas tree in the living room, sparkly garland strung about, monogrammed stockings on our bedroom doors, white lights outlining the windows, you name it. We had super tall ceilings so for our New Years Eve party, I bought a balloon tank to cover the ceiling with white balloons with gold ribbon hanging down, dangling overhead. It was pretty awesome! (Here’s a little throwback for ya!)
I’ve had the itch to host my friends for a fun night in like those we used to have, but I’ve also gotten to the age where I worry about things like drinks getting spilled on the rugs and furniture I’ve invested in. Total buzzkill, I know.
I’ve come up with a few ideas as a middle ground, though! While I won’t be hosting any blowout parties in my apartment, I’ll definitely be having a few festive get-togethers over the next few weeks. We all know I’m a sucker for an alliteration and a cute invitation so I started there. Coffee & Cookies? Let’s do it.
While you probably think of hot cocoa during December (and you definitely can’t go wrong there!), who doesn’t need a little caffeine pick-me-up throughout the holiday season? I figured I’d have my girlfriends over to experience a cup above! You know I’m a sucker for my Nespresso machine and with the new limited edition Swiss Chocolate capsules, why not have a little chocolate coffee with some cookies before an afternoon of holiday shopping in the Gold Coast?
Back when I had my original Nespresso machine before I had my VertuoLine Evoluo machine, I loved heading to the Nespresso boutique to stock up on the holiday flavors. The festive flavors definitely get you in the spirit and add a little bit of holiday cheer to your cup! Last year, since the VertuoLine machine range had just been released, there weren’t any VertuoLine holiday flavors, just limited-edition capsules for the OriginalLine. The New York boutique employees assured me that there would be special flavors in the future, though. And they kept their promise! Nespresso just released the new VertuoLine Limited Edition Swiss Chocolate Grand Cru and naturally, I’m hooked. The coffee has an incredible dark chocolate flavor that’s oh-so-festive, but not overly sweet. There’s no added milk or sugar or anything like that, just a dark chocolate flavor that enhances the roasted coffee notes! It’s absolutely perfect for the holidays.
When you’re making single-serve coffee for a bunch of friends, the capsule catcher on the right side of your machine fills up pretty quickly! One of my favorite things about Nespresso is their recycling program. Nespresso offers pre-paid recycling bags to mail back used capsules to be recycled. Consumers can bring their bag filled with Nespresso used capsules to one of the 88,000 UPS drop off locations across the country. Recycling bags can be given to any UPS driver or taken to any location of The UPS Store, a UPS Drop Box, or any UPS Authorized Shipping Outlet. You can get these recycling bags free of charge by asking for them at a Nespresso Boutique, ordering them online, or calling the Nespresso Customer Relationship Center. And the best part, there’s no charge at all!
In addition to the UPS locations, Nespresso has two other options in the U.S. to conveniently recycle your capsules, including 500 collection points at Nespresso Boutiques across the country and drop-off locations at select retail partners such as Sur La Table, Williams-Sonoma and others. You can find the nearest recycling option quickly by downloading and using the Nespresso app or by visiting the Nespresso website!
While the Swiss Chocolate coffee is fabulous on it’s own, you know I love whipping up drink recipes! Nespresso created two recipes to enjoy the new Swiss Chocolate coffee… While these two drinks are definitely indulgent, they’re perfect for holiday entertaining!
Creamy Mocha Coffee
Ingredients…
1 Swiss Chocolate capsule
¼ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 scoop chocolate ice cream
3 drops of natural vanilla extract
whipped cream
Instructions…
- Pour chocolate chips into the bottom of a barista jug
- Brew the Swiss Chocolate capsule onto the chips
- Add drops of vanilla extract
- Whisk until it’s blended
- Add scoop of chocolate ice cream into your glass and pour the mixture over the top
- Stir until everything is mixed and melted
- Top with whipped cream and enjoy!
Spicy Gourmandise Coffee
Ingredients…
1 Swiss Chocolate capsule
3/4 cup heavy cream, cold
3 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
half of 1/8 teaspoon cayenne
1 cinnamon stick
Instructions…
- For the spiced cream: In a bowl, combine cream, sugar, cinnamon, and cayenne; whisk until firm and set aside to chill
- Add one cinnamon stick to a glass and brew one capsule of Swiss Chocolate coffee over the cinnamon stick
- Top coffee with 3 tablespoons of the spiced cream
Plus, these festive capsules make for an amazing gift for the coffee connoisseur on your list! Just make sure he/she has the VertuoLine machine first. 😉 Grab a few sleeves of capsules, print or hand-write the recipe cards above, and tie them together with a big bow!
Created in partnership with Nespresso
I thought those little pods were chocolates at first haha. I really love all of your festive decor!
I love coffee! I just love this post your table area looks incredible!
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LOVE these photos! They’re so inspiring! Definitely puts me in the Christmas mood!
-Kate
http://katekoutures.blogspot.com/
Such a great idea!I am the same way, embarrassingly enough when it comes to spilling. Oh the joys of growing up – ha!
Happy Friday // http://lifeplusbe.com
They all look so delic!!
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I love post a lot…
All the things look so festival and Christmas…
I will definitely try this coffee at home.
Merry Christmas -w-
Akane
http://www.humancat.co