Tassimo T20

Dusk happens almost with noticing as a backdrop to the twinkling lights in the shop windows. Leaves crunch underfoot, cloudy puffs of breath escape from exhilarated shoppers, and rosy cheeks provide a hint of excitement and the crisp Winter air. Battling through the front door amongst the excessive packages in cheap plastic bags splitting from overstuffing, the very thing needed is a warming drink.

Or a stiff one.

You could have both?

Tassimo Winter Warmer

You'll need:

1 shot of espresso (1 Carte Noire Espresso Tassimo t-disc)
1 serving of hot milk (2 for Cadbury's Hot Chocolate milk t-discs)
1 serving of hot chocolate (1 Cadbury's Hot chocolate t-disc)
1 shot of Kahlua (or other coffee or chocolate licquor)
squirty cream (I used Madagascan Vanilla Creme)
chocolate sprinkles
a stripy straw

Using my Tassimo T20, I added the ingredients in the order listed above before sinking down onto the sofa and enjoying my Winter Warmer.

As I am a Tassimo Blogger, I was sent the above Tassimo products to invent my own recipe.

In my twitter 'bio' is the phrase 'full-time coffee-worshipper', and some days this is more true than others. Like last Tuesday when I had a house full of mess from my mum's birthday party the day before, a table full of ironing in preparation for our holiday the next day, and two suitcases which were, quite frankly, taunting me with their emptiness. I knew from the moment I awoke that the day was going to be sponsored by caffeine.

Therefore when the doorbell rang at 8.55, at around about the time I was holding my head in one hand and reaching to turn the kettle on with another, the courier which handed me this parcel was almost enveloped in the biggest hug of gratitude ever.

Tassimo T20 coffee maker

Isn't it wonderful?

Now this is not the first Tassimo that we have owned, I'll be honest. We had one when they first came out but after about five years we had a child and needed the surface space for the steriliser and other baby paraphenalia. On its move up to the attic it suffered from a drop and refused to work again in protest. Receiving the e-mail from Tassimo inviting me to receive one of their newer models to review was like a gift from God, especially last Tuesday!

The model we received is the Tassimo T20 and it is a very funky looking machine indeed, vastly improved in design from the first one we had which was bulky and cumbersome. This takes up only two-thirds of the space of the previous model, is far quieter and heats up significantly faster. It also has a nifty on and off switch on the machine, a huge improvement!

In the package from Tassimo was a pack of Earl Grey tea and a pack of Kenco 100% Colombian coffee, along with some drizzles and chocolate pretty bits to embellish the drink. As it was definitely a coffee day, I set about experimenting to see what I could come up with.

Tassimo T20

Using the machine is so easy! Each T-Pod has a barcode on it which is individual to the type of drink it is, this informs the Tassimo machine how much hot water to put through the T-Pod and also whether to let the T-Pod infuse with a few drops of hot water first of all. Put the T-Pod in, press the cover down, give the button a jab and it does the rest itself.

I actually poured the milk in carefully half way through the cycle; experience has taught me that if you put it in at the beginning then the sugar (which should also be put in at the beginning) doesn't dissolve properly, and if you put it in at the end then the wonderful froth from the Tassimo is lost. I also put in a teaspoon of the chocolate drops at the beginning of the cycle which melted into the hot coffee as it came out of the machine. This added a lovely mocha flavour to the drink.

I then drizzled caramel and chocolate sauce over the top of the froth, before carefully (so as not to break the surface tension of the froth and drizzle) placing a few chocolate drops and some chocolate popping candy on the top.

Et voila!

I give you the caramel mochacino; TBaM style!

Tassimo T20