giveaway! win a starbucks via gift bag
This is not your grandma’s instant coffee! I got a sneak preview of Starbucks’ newest product, VIA — instant coffee that is nothing like any you’ve ever had. Meaning, it tastes like actual, high quality coffee. (I liked it so much, I had three cups in one sitting.) You won’t be able to buy it online until March 3, and when it first reaches stores, it will only be in Seattle, Chicago and the UK. So here’s your chance to try it now, plus get a few other fabulous prizes.
Leave a comment on this post telling us about your favorite recipe that uses coffee (whether instant, brewed, or coffee liqueur) for your chance to win this Starbucks VIA swag bag:
- A lunch-sized, 100% cotton tote bag from Fairwinds Trading, Inc., handcrafted in Rwanda
- Eight samples of Starbucks VIA Ready Brew coffee — four Italian Roast and four Columbia
- And a special VIA ceramic I Am Not a Paper Cup from MoMA!
Leave your comment by Tuesday, Feb. 24, at 5 p.m. EST. Be sure to use your real email address (we’re the only ones who will see it). One entry per person. Once entries are closed, we’ll select one winner using a random number generator. And read more about my VIA experience after the jump! –Mary T.
The Starbucks folks let us compare Via with a more traditional instant coffee. Big differences here — VIA smelled, looked, and felt like coffee. The existing instant coffee didn’t. (No, I don’t know what brand the “OTHER” was.)
Here’s how VIA is packaged — easy to fit in your purse. Heck, even your wallet.
After we enjoyed some pre-made VIA, we got the chance to mix it up ourselves. I made a good cup of hot coffee in seconds. I confess that I didn’t use the whole pack; I like my coffee strong but using the entire pack put it a little over the top for me in terms of strength. I’d say the size of my coffee cup was midway between an old-fashioned china cup and the more standard mug that you might use in your office. So for a mug, a full packet would work just fine.
VIA mixes up instantly, hot or iced. We tried the Columbia and the Italian Roast. I liked the Columbia better, though I don’t have the tasting vocabulary to tell you why. It had a cleaner feel, if that makes sense. Starbucks calls it “nutty” as opposed to the “bold” flavor of the Italian Roast. Either way, it was good with bread pudding. (Sadly, not a Starbucks offering.) Many thanks to Starbucks for a tasty time!
P.S. Incidentally, the VIA event took place at Seattle’s Boat Street Cafe. It is a lovely spot, tucked away in a building less than a block from the sculpture park. So if you find yourself in town, stop in! Three words: amaretto bread pudding.
I love Dorie Greenspan’s recipe for Espresso Chocolate Shortbread cookies…they are divine!
You all have great ideas for instant coffee– I liked the brownie swirl!! I love iced coffee and can’t wait to make it instantly… Perfect for spring/summer!
Would love to try making iced coffee with these — but after reading the comments, I have a whole list of other ideas (starting with that chocolate stout cake from smitten kitchen, YUM!).
Chocolate pudding cake with espresso powder. Although that cupcake recipe up there might be coming in handy very soon. And life without coffee ice cream would be sad indeed….
Only a few hours left! Better late than never!
Chocolate Puddin’ Cake!
I really liked affogato the few times I have gotten to try it – vanilla bean gelato topped with espresso. I bet these would offer an easy way to recreate it, if you mix it a little stronger than usual!
Well, it isn’t chocolate cake if it doesn’t have some instant coffee in it. I love a number of the recipes listed above, so I won’t double/triple post any. :)
tiramisù, naturally! dying to try via.
this sounds like such a wonderful product! Thanks for posting about the event.
When we were little my grandma used to make us her café con leche’ using instant coffee. A very simple recipe but full of great memories to me.
Thanks for holding this giveaway.
i’ve made Molten Mocha Cakes (from Everyday Food) several times and it’s always perfect and delicious: http://www.flickr.com/photos/revolutionarygirl/2265704519/
Favorite coffee is homemade fraps blended with the Magic Bullet. I add protein powder to get the milk and sweetness, plus a little extra protein. Not sure how healthy it is, but it is tasty.
I love coffee cake! And I like to mix cocoa into my hot coffee sometimes for a little bit of sweetness.
I do like tiramisu. I wonder how this instant coffee will compare with others I’ve tried..
Ina Garten’s brownies with instant coffee…mmmm.
Ooo, I’d love to give these a shot!
Wolfgang Puck’s flourless chocolate cake! Very rich.
Pot de Creme from America’s Test Kitchen which uses a dash of espresso powder. DELISH!
Frozen Mocha Cheesecake
Crust
1 1/4 cups chocolate cookie crumbs
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup butter, melted
Filling
8 ounces cream cheese
1 can sweetened condensed milk
2/3 cup chocolate syrup
2 tablespoons instant coffee
1 tablespoon hot water
1 cup whipping cream, whipped
In a small bowl, combine crumbs, sugar and butter. Pat mixture into a 9-inch springform pan or a 13 x 9-inch pan, covering both bottom and side. Chill.
In a large bowl, beat cheese until fluffy. Add milk and syrup. Beat until smooth. In small bowl, dissolve coffee in water. Add to other mixture.
Mix well and fold in whipped cream.
Pour into chilled pan.
Cover and freeze for 6 hours. Garnish with additional cookie crumbs.
This is my FAVORITE recipe using instant coffee! I can only dream how delicious it will be using good instant coffee!
My favorite has to be Orangette’s “far from disaster chocolate cake” – never fails! Would love to pick up this gift set….. can’t wait to try VIA!
Penzeys catalog had a banana bread cake with a chocolate frosting. The frosting includes coffee and the whole combo is delicious!
Thanks for this contest – I’m terribly excited about this product!
My favourite recipe that includes coffee is Guinness braised lamb shanks – a couple of shots of espresso really round out the flavour.
I make an espresso-chocolate lava cake that’s delish, though I’d also be tempted to try this out with a tiramisu as well.
Sounds like I agree with everybody else–I think just about any chocolatey dessert can be improved with a teaspoon of coffee stirred in!
Honestly, my favorite recipe that uses coffee is coffee! Don’t get me wrong–I’ve made pretty mean coffee-chocolate brownies, and some delicious coffee ice cream, but mostly, I just love coffee, preferably unsweetened, poured over ice, and served with a straw. Mmm.
My favorite is definitely tiramisu but chocolate covered espresso beans in brownies would be wonderful!
Coffee in the cake part of chocolate and peanut butter cupcakes
I’ve made homemade kahlua while on an archaeological dig… still one of my favorite memories with coffee-based recipes!
So boring… but dark gingerbread… mmmmm
Coffee with Bailey’s Irish Creme!!!
Can’t wait to try VIA!! VIVA for VIA!!
I like the Moosewood chocolate-pecan pie, uses strong instant coffee – this would be perfect! Lovely site!
I love the idea of having decent coffee whilst camping!
I am loving reading everyone’s favourite coffee use!
I llike adding ground coffee beans to homemade vanilla ice cream along with bits of shaved dark chocolate. Yum. And a shot of espresso is a great pairing with creme brulee.
I LOVE baking brownies with instant coffee. The coffee really gives it a little extra kick without being overpowering. My favorite is a Mocha Fudge Brownie with Peanut Butter Frosting from Bon Appetit that I adapted. I’m excited to try those brownies with the new Starbucks instant!
I like to use instant coffee in my chocolate chip cookies, everyone who’s tried them loves them, and they never can figure out exactly what makes them different.
Without a doubt, it has to be Nigella Lawson’s Espresso Chocolate Cake with Caffe Latte Cream. The cake has instant espresso powder in it, and when it comes out of the oven it gets Tia Maria poured on top. It’s amazing (my aunt calls it “sex cake” when I make it for family get-togethers).
I like…… Tiramisu!
My favorite coffee recipe is a White Russian! Yummy!
I have a chocolate cookie recipe that uses instant coffee. I don’t make them often but they’re delicious.
tiramisu… yum!
gotta be tiramisu.
my old roommate used to make it fromd scratch and she’d go into the starbucks in our neighborhood and ask for 6 shots of espresso in a cup and the baristas would look at her like she escaped from the loony bin. i think that may have been why she got it there instead of making the espresso at home.
I like to add some strong coffee when I make chili. It gives it a nice depth of flavor and counterpoint to the acid of the tomatoes.
Chocolate cupcakes with espresso buttercream aren’t too shabby, either! :)
Count me in! I love this stuff.
Hmmm…..I think my favorite coffee recipe was one I had in Israel, where we added Sabra (coffee liquer-not sure if you can get it here) to chocolate mousse. So freaking good.
expresso brownies!
My friend Christopher has a great recipe for Tiramasu cupcakes that are to die for and obviously, espresso power or instant coffee is called for. Unfortunately it’s impossible to find decent instant coffee in the teenie town we live in.
Can’t wait till this stuff is available at our local Starbucks!
My favorite recipe, by far, is Tiramisu! Coffee, chocolate and coffee liquor… mmmmmm, just perfect!
Tiramisu and/or coffee ice cream and/or mocha brownies. Ok, really anything.
My favorite recipe that uses coffee is Coffee Choc Chip ice cream. :)
I am a fan of chocolate decadence cake, it’s got a dense mouse like texture and is unbelievably rich – I can hardly ever finish a single piece. Tastes great with a cup of vanilla tea on the side (blasphemous, I know). It uses espresso to enhance the sheer richness of the chocolate.