One of my very first memories is of sitting in my Abuela Alicia’s tiny apartment in San Juan. I was five years old and the roar of the highway just outside her window was a sort of soundtrack to her morning routine. The cars honked angrily as she prepared her café colao the same way she had ten thousand times before. I would watch, mesmerized, as she held the well-worn mesh strainer over her coffee cup and let the coffee slowly drip out. Abuela would take these moments to talk to me about some of the challenges that I would face in life. The biggest of which would be surviving El Cuco.

El Cuco is Puerto Rico’s version of the boogeyman. He is a snarling, shapeless monster that runs rampant through the streets snatching misbehaving children and eating them alive. According to my Abuela he lived in the hallway outside her apartment.

“You must never go out there without my permission. He’ll get you. Look at your chubby cheeks. You’d be a tasty treat for El Cuco.” I stared at my reflection in the toaster terrified.

Abuela Alicia taught me a valuable lesson. Life is hard and El Cuco comes in many shapes and sizes. A cup of Puerto Rican coffee is the best way to sharpen your senses and make sure El Cuco doesn’t eat you alive.

For this preparation I chose Café Yaucono, in honor of my Abuela. It’s one of Puerto Rico’s most popular coffees and my Abuela’s favorite ‘til this day. My soundtrack is Eddie Palmieri’s Café.

Tools

  • mesh strainer / colador

Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon Yaucono Puerto Rican Coffee
  • 1 cup boiling water
  • 1 tablespoon sweetened condensed milk

Directions

  1. Place a tablespoon of Yaucono or your favorite brand of coffee into a mesh strainer or colador. Hold the strainer over an empty coffee cup.
  2. Pour 1 cup of hot water into the strainer little by little, allowing it to slowly drip into your coffee cup.
  3. When the strainer is empty hold it over the now empty cup that you used to hold the hot water and pour your full cup of coffee into it slowly. Straining the coffee through the grounds a second time develops more flavor.
  4. For a more intense cup of coffee repeat the straining process again. Remember you can always pass the time by telling your child horrifying stories.
  5. You can drink your coffee black like my Abuela, but I prefer to stir in a tablespoon of condensed milk for the mother of all wake up calls.

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