Coffee, tea and me.

I like coffee and it likes me.

My life is a better place because of this soothing brew.

Sure, some people fill up on joe purely for a buzz. But me, ah. My relationship with this aromatic mystery is much more complex.

Coffee is one of those foods that’s been hounded by a battle of the experts over the years. Good for you, not good for you. Should, shouldn’t.

If I threw out all the foods that at one time or another experts said were the cause of mankind’s health ills, there might be a lonely bottle of water in the pantry. No, wait. Bottled water---didn’t I just read that bottled water gives you cavities and that, anyway, the experts were wrong in claiming a body needed gallons of water a day?

Let me just peer into that luscious brown brew as I bring the steaming mug up to my lips. There. All better now.

For the first several years of my professional life, I had to get up really early.

And I do mean really early.

In an effort to find some way to increase my sleep time and decrease the ungodly hurry over the early morning coffee mug, I started drinking my coffee in the shower.

Makes sense to me.

Yep. The alarm would go off and, after hitting the snooze button once or twice, I’d finally roll out of bed and amble in to the shower. At the same time, like a well-oiled military operation, Kean would amble down to the kitchen and put the coffee on.

By the time I’d finished shampooing my hair (“Lather. Rinse. Repeat.”), Kean would be nudging back the shower curtain and murmuring, “Honey, here’s your coffee.”

Now this shower, it so happened, had a ledge along the back that was out of reach of the water and just perfect for coffee cups. So I’d sip and soap, sip and soak.

Hot water on my skin, hot coffee in my tummy. Ahh.

I also had a job once that required being outside in the harsh elements for extended periods of time. Someone always seemed to be able to come up with a thermos full of hot coffee. It didn’t matter how bad it was, it was always good.

Sometimes, though, innovation was required. There were times all we could do was heat some water by placing a pan on a vehicle engine. Then we’d put a pinch of instant coffee in our mouths and take a slug of hot water and swish.

Now, those were good times.

Once I was sent to the ends of the earth---the jungle to be exact---to do my duty. The colonel in charge drove me through miles and miles of rainforest and wilderness to a little outpost (near a then-Soviet listening station, by the way). After all the formalities and ceremonies and hand-shaking was over, he drove off and I was left there with my assistant, who, after a long silence as we watched the jeep’s dust settle on the road, turned to me and said, “What do we do now, ma’am?”

I replied, “Well, first, let’s make some coffee.”

While some historians believe bone-chilling weather was the impetus for coffee’s exalted place, I found java equally satisfying in tropical climes.

In short, as I said, today my life is still a better place because of this soothing brew. And, yes, I think tea (of all sorts, but especially Earl Grey) is pretty wonderful, too.

And coffee, of course, is a wonderful flavor in some of my favorite desserts, including a well-made tiramisu (which rightly means in Italian “Pick me up!”---which, translated to Vivi language means, “This dessert makes me swoon!”---and which is also known as "heaven in your mouth").

My favorite store-bought tiramisu has always been the one at Romano’s Macaroni Grill. In fact, on Valentine’s Day, that’s where you’ll find Kean: waiting in line at the Macaroni Grill to buy tiramisu to take home to his sweetie. (Thanks, babe!)

Roses are lovely, but they are even better with a plate of tiramisu to nibble on.

And tiramisu is worth learning to make at home [here], [here] and [here]. (I will say this, though: although there are thousands of tiramisu variations, whatever you do, don’t skip the ladyfingers, the Mascarpone cheese, or the espresso. Che disastro!)

For something easier, though less elegant (duh!), here’s the recipe for a creamy mocha pie Kean and I used to make in college:

1. Make an Oreo crust in a pie pan.

2. Spoon about three cups of coffee ice cream into a bowl. (Adjust to your pan---”savoiardi,” as recipes say in Italian.)

3. Stir the ice cream with a wooden spoon to soften. Add a large drizzle of chocolate syrup to taste. Throw in some chocolate chunks and nuts, if you desire.

4. Pour the ice cream into the crust and drizzle on a little more chocolate syrup (why not?).

5. Spoon on a layer of whipped topping and smooth into a yummy design.

6. Decorate with more chocolate chunks, sprinkles, etc.

7. Place pie in freezer at least until ice cream re-freezes.

8. Cut with a sharp knife and enjoy.

*** How To Make the Perfect Cup of Coffee ***

Photos from Coffeehouse and Boughton's Coffee House.