Our next new food item is one that many Americans simply cannot function without. Coffee appears eight times throughout the Harry Potter series-- the first while Mr. Dursley is dealing with the Masons (who may or may not be very influential on his drill sales):
"When dinner's over, you take Mrs. Mason back to the lounge for coffee, Petunia, and I'll bring the subject around to drills" (Chamber of Secrets 7).
Coffee is such a matter of personal preference that I'll just present a few of the ways it can be prepared instead of prescribing an actual recipe.
Drip Coffee is the most popular for home-brewing coffee. As you probably know, hot water drips through a filter filled with coffee grounds, resulting in a smooth and easy cup of coffee. Many people prefer this method simply because of its simplicity: set up the coffee maker, flip the switch, and go!
French Press Coffee is an option that comes in and out of style (probably based on what Starbucks says is hot right now... stupid Starbucks). Prepared in a special pot, the coffee grounds are infused into the water and then (mostly) pressed out of the beverage with the plunger. The result is a rich and dense coffee many folks enjoy.
Another very popular coffee preparation is espresso, made popular in America by coffee shops, who likely began using it because a complete brew should take less than 30 seconds (though I'm sure they would say it's because Italian Espresso is the best kind of coffee). In this process, almost boiling water is injected through the tamped down coffee grounds by steam- or piston-power, resulting in a strong cup of coffee topped with a golden foam.
There are lots of other ways to prepare coffee, and I'm sure there are people who disapprove of the three methods I've chosen to share. But since I'm about the furthest thing there is from a coffee snob, and I know about these three methods, I would venture to say that they are the three best known ways to prepare coffee.
So whether it's black, au lait, latte, or mocha, go grab yourself a cuppa and start your day!
