Coffee Bliss amidst Rolling Blackouts

One of the issues that I firmly believe is keeping the Dominican Republic as a country from taking that next step in economic development is their chronic electricity shortage.

Now what does this have to do with coffee? Everything.

In all of my time here in the Dominican Republic I have never seen a fresh-milk latte. Never. And those who know me know that I sniff out coffee shops like a crackwhore finds smack. (I KNOW, so not PC Claire) but I can find me a good café anywhere. For the first few months I lived here I was elated every time I saw a "café con leche" on the menu – only to inevitably send it back as the milk tasted spoiled. It wasn't until a friend who had a little more time in the country than me tasted my rejected latte and said "Claire, that's not spoiled – its just box milk" that I had to face the reality that one of my core food groups and simple pleasures in life, would not be accessible in the DR.

As with anything in life – there are gradients. Here, powdered milk is extremely common and a staple food for most Dominican children as they much away on their morning "cornflays." One step up from that is the infamous "box milk;" milk that has been UHT (Ultra-heat-treated) and converted to a stable substance that needs no refrigeration and who's shelf life is probably longer than most people's Christmas fruitcakes. This is a brilliant alternative for families that want milk amidst rolling blackouts, but it's quite inadequate for lattes.

After over 8 months in the Dominican I had all but given up hope on delighting in a cup of "reminds me of home" until one day at the supermarket I noticed the worlds smallest section of refrigerated goods. There, like soldiers in quart size cartons, stood three items: heavy whipping cream, whole milk and 2% milk. Like a mirage of an oasis in the desert – I didn't believe my eyes. My roommate and I picked up the cartons, inspected them – noticing that the majority looked a little worse for the wear, and reading the label added another abbreviation to our vocabulary for "tainting the pure." LL stands for long life and is another method used in the pasteurization and preservation of milk. Thankfully, this milk isn't taken up to the infernal temperatures as box milk is – and still retains the majority of its original properties. So I decided to give it a try.

Which brings us to this morning. It's Saturday and if there's one thing I that delight in on Saturdays its laboring of the perfect cup of coffee and sitting down with a good book to enjoy it. And that's exactly what I did.

Software: Dominican Santo Domingo coffee, raw sugar, and LL 2% milk

Hardware: Grecca (small Italian style percolator), camping cup, jar

I brewed the coffee in my grecca (which comes out quasi espresso like, except with fuller flavor), heated the milk in my camping cup – then transferred it to the jar where I tried my best to "froth" it. Then I just combined it in my American mug with a little raw Dominican azucar and voila! Saturday morning bliss.

Now, listening to myself talk – I do sound a little particular and demanding, I mean come on Claire, you're living in a developing country! But for anyone who's lived abroad, there are always those little experiences that connect your seemingly two separate lives (home and abroad) and remind you that you're still the same person regardless of what continent you reside on.

For me – it helps me remember not to negate the Claire that many stateside friends know and love. It reminds me to not beat myself up when I feel like I haven't "assimilated" enough into my host culture – because they reality is that, I am and will always be gringa. It's also a moment for me to reflect and be profoundly thankful to my Lord – for the blessings he has bestowed upon me, that I have the resources to buy quasi-fresh milk – and live in a neighborhood where the power grid is decent.

All this wrapped up in a comforting cup of milk, coffee and sugar – makes Claire a happy bear.