“Fresh Coffee” reads the large black and white sign in flowing script posted by the door. Inside the room, a large carafe sits on a counter, paper cups and lids at its side. A little further down the counter, two large containers of Coffee Mate artificial creamer offer drinkers a whitened version of coffee.
The thing is, we are headed to our local coffeehouse after this small side trip to the bank. And even though we want coffee, we also know that this is not the kind we want. We are looking forward to flat whites made on the spot by our local baristas served in a porcelain cup. Real sugar, real milk, real coffee.
If there’s one thing I’ve learned in my short time on earth, it’s this. Don’t settle. In my mother tongue of French, literally, do not be content with what is, if there is better. Content as in happy. Happy as in “Does this make you happy?”
I might have learned this lesson from my mother who, habitually, would send food back at restaurants, would push for better service, would state her complaint to higher authorities if things weren’t as she expected them to be. Don’t get me wrong, she was not a demanding person, but she believed in only settling for the best, especially if she was paying for it.
There’s a fine line there. What I understand is that if you are an amazing cook that sets a beautiful table with flowers, and you go out to eat only exceptionally, you will expect great service, better food than your own and a totally satisfying experience, which is not often the case. But if you’ve had the best, it’s very hard to settle for the average. The easiest way to manage this situation is to not go out to eat anymore, or to save your money for one of those more extraordinary meals that will be worth every penny.
So often in life, though, we do exactly that. We accept what’s in front of us due to time, money or facility constraints. It’s easy to just grab the free coffee because it’s there, rather than wait and pay for a better cup somewhere else. It’s easier to not speak up, to not make it ourselves, to not notice.
The older I get, the more I believe in doing what makes me happy. That means taking the time to make a dessert from scratch, going for a walk further afield, stopping for that delicious cup of coffee, having an in-depth conversation with a friend, buying the freshest veggies possible at the local market and finding more inspiring work. I want to savor every moment of every day. Today that means making pizzas from scratch and Basque style cheesecakes.
As autumn approaches, I hope you savor the last hours of summer. Remember to ask yourself, “Does this make me happy?” And only settle for the best.
Here’s my recipe for the cheesecake, if you want it.
Basque-Style Cheesecake
3 8-ounce packages cream cheese
1 ½ c. sugar
½ t. salt
5 large eggs, room temperature
¾ c. heavy whipping cream (I sometimes substitute sour cream.)
Preheat the oven to 500°.
Take a springform pan. Cut two large sheets of parchment paper that will cover the bottom and sides of the pan. Crumple them up. Then uncrumple and place in the springform pan, overlapping them in a cross.
Place all the ingredients in the bowl of an 11 cup food processor. Process until batter is smooth, about 5 minutes. Alternatively, beat in a mixing bowl.
Pour into the prepared pan. Place the pan on the middle rack of the oven.
Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until the top is dark brown and edges just set. A digital thermometer inserted 1” for the edge will barely read 185°. I usually leave it in 30 minutes.
Remove from the oven and let it cool completely on a cooling rack before serving. I like serving this with fresh apple or pear slices and a salted caramel sauce.
totally with you on this! i have found myself learning this lesson through coffee too - if i’m only going to drink maybe two cups per day, why would i ever waste one of those opportunities on crappy coffee? and then the lesson flows into all other areas of life, to be patient for the things actually worth having!
Pizza and a basque cheesecake sound absolutely like the route to happiness.
Not settling is important, in a world of convenience it has become so easy to settle for sub par in almost everything. Thinking about my own daily coffee, I enjoy it so much more when I take the time to make a proper coffee but I often settle for instant and have little excuse!