First thing, I love their coffees.  They have amazing fresh roasted coffees that come in amazing flavors and varying roasts.  My personal favorite is the Cinnamon Sticky Bun flavored coffee.  Go to their online shopping page and browse the flavors.  Most 12 oz bags are $8.00.

Second thing, I love their cause.  Jumpy Monkey employs people with disabilities.  Here’s what their About Us page says:

In June of 2003, Jumpy Monkey was acquired by Opportunities Unlimited in Sioux City, Iowa. Opportunities Unlimited (”OU”) is a rehabilitation facility that provides services to individuals that have sustained a traumatic brain injury, taking them back into the main-stream of life.

Successful rehab rates throughout the ten year history of OU, have risen to points as high as fifty percent. OU is an organization that truly lives its mission statement of “Maximizing Personal Potential Through Dignified and Purposeful Living.” One of the many key factors in the rehabilitation process is our vocational services where clients are able to again become a part of the work force and earn a paycheck.

Jumpy Monkey coffee roasting has become one of the key contracts serviced through the OU vocational area. In summation, with your purchase of Jumpy Monkey products, not only are you receiving a high quality, high value product, but you are also assisting in the employment of people with disabilities. Come pay us a visit, we would love to show you what we have to offer.

Not surprisingly, the coffee is roasted in my homeland of Northwest Iowa and employs some amazing Iowans.

The best part of waking up....

Cooking and grocery shopping for one is a challenge.  I find myself making the same boring chicken and throwing out veggies that have sat for too long (nothing smells worse).  Last December my life radically changed after a Christmas miracle of sorts.  I received the gift that never quits giving: a stockpot with steamer and strainer inserts (yes, I’m a foodie).  The dynamics of my single girl’s kitchen have completely changed. 

Perhaps all those bitterly cold winters in Iowa got to me, because nothing pleases me more than a simmering pot of soup.  Soup geniuses like Seinfeld’s Soup Nazi and Rachael Ray have inspired me to slave for my soup.  The beauty of soup is that you can throw things into a pot, and it usually turns out pretty tasty.  I tend to use a lot of the same ingredients but change it a little each time.  Usually, I cook up a little olive oil, ground turkey (ground chicken is great but harder to find), onion and garlic.  Then I add in some beer (don’t use the whole bottle so you can drink it) and chicken stock (both are very important to have in your fridge).  I follow that with several kinds of beans, tomatoes, cumin, oregano and chili powder (add a palm full of each and test – watch the chili powder…too much is not good).  Stir it all up and simmer.  Feel free to get creative with it; there is an endless variety of soups (Google away).  I’m also a big fan of white chicken chili and chicken noodle.

The best part is that you have food for a week.  After a very stressful day, you will be thrilled that dinner only needs to be heated up.  You could invite a few friends, a cute boy or an intelligent, witty blonde over to help you eat it and wow them with your cooking skills.  If you get completely sick of it, you can freeze it until you want soup again.

I could write even more about soup, but I will spare you.  I will also skip my plans for the steamer insert once farmer’s market season begins…  The point is that a stockpot will make a wonderful addition to your kitchen, and you will have many delicious pots of soup.  I highly recommend making the investment.