Roasting coffee...at home!

For Christmas, Matt got Miguel a popcorn popper. Not for making popcorn, but for roasting coffee!

This morning, Miguel showed me how it was done. And I took photos!

First of all, you get an air popper, like this West Bend Poppery II. (After a little more research, I see that not all poppers are good - some become fire hazards. This one can be used as-is. For more ifo, check out Engadget.com.)


Then you get some beans. We tried Sweet Maria's Espresso Monkey Blend. (You can get them online at sweetmarias.com. On the package, it suggests a Vienna roast, which is between a Medium roast and a French roast. When roasted, it should be more brown than black - like a dark chocolate.


Put the coffee in the popcorn popper!


Turn it on. Generally, it will take at least 3.5 minutes. Miguel roasted a little longer for the darker roast - closer to 5 minutes. Here it is spinning, at the beginning:


Make sure you put a bowl where the popcorn would usually come out. The beans themselves don't pop out, but this stuff does!


When it's done, pour the beans into a colander (wow - I just had to look up how to spell that) to cool.


You should stir them to help them cool.


When they're no longer hot, but just slightly warm to the touch, you can put them in a jar, but don't close right away.


The best time to use the beans is 4-12 hours after roasting. After 12 hours, you can seal the jar. It's suggested that you use them within a few days.

And there ya have it!

We have to wait a while longer to try it, but I'll let you know how it goes!