When my kids were little, my favorite thing to do for a mini “break” would be to leave the kids with my hubby so I could run to Target or Ross and browse isles of orderly, beautiful products while sipping on a specialty coffee drink. All of this was rather exciting in the days of early parenthood, and much needed for a sanity break.
As the years progressed, and I started playing around with diet, specifically cutting certain foods out of my diet, I began to realize that those specialty coffee drinks caused abdominal discomfort and a major sugar rush. After doing research and working in a small, church coffee shop, I learned that the vast majority of those “special” ingredients were dairy, soy, and sugar. And, the drinks contained minimal coffee (or caffeine, which was my main goal in those outings!)
So, I quit! Cold Turkey.
I stopped buying specialty coffee drinks at fancy coffee shops and began learning how to recreate my favorite drinks at home. Of course, it is almost impossible to create a specialty drink without sugary flavored syrups, so I found a few coffee-flavored “fancy” drinks to perfect. A plain latte: A shot of espresso and lots of steamed milk, topped with a small amount of foamed milk. A cappuccino: A shot of espresso with some steamed milk and lots of foamed milk. (Both of these are a bit difficult to make at home without specific tools like a milk frother.) An Americano: A shot of espresso topped with hot water. Not to mention all the cold drinks: iced coffee, blended coffee, cold brew, & whipped coffee. (Did I get them all? Whew!)
Now, for those hot drinks that require a shot of espresso, I found a fabulous hack: The Moka Pot! It’s not quite espresso but it’s a very-budget friendly close-second. (I discuss the Moka Pot in this post: Coffee Maker Options) It meets the basic at-home specialty coffee drink requirements: “shot” of very strong coffee.
The cold drinks, on the other hand, are an entirely different story! First up, you have iced coffee. This is simply regular brewed, hot coffee that has been chilled. Blended coffee could either use the brewed and chilled coffee, the “shot” of coffee from the Moka pot mentioned above or could even contain instant coffee, blended with ice, milk, maple syrup and a splash of vanilla (YUM!!) The whipped coffee requires a small amount of sugar, hot water and instant coffee. (If you want to follow my recipe for this check out this post: Maple Coffee!)
Okay, so all that leaves on the table for discussion is: COLD BREW! This my friends, is a blissfully smooth cup of cold coffee that never gets brewed. The grounds are simply steeped in cold water for at least 12 hours and strained. Because the grounds are not heated with hot water, as in traditional coffee brewing, the acid from the grounds never makes an appearance in the final drink. And, while you could potentially heat the cold brew, it makes the perfectly strong and smooth cold coffee base! (I say base, because let’s face it: If it’s gonna be a “special” drink it needs to have at least a splash or two of cream!)
Making cold brew is rather easy, maybe even easier than making hot-brewed coffee. (I will leave that up to you!) First, decide what vessel you will use to make the cold brew. I found a handy kit on Amazon a few years ago that uses a half gallon mason jar and comes with an adorable flip-top pouring lid and a fine mesh-strainer. Don’t worry if you don’t have one of these or aren’t able to purchase one. Simply fill the vessel with the appropriate amount of grounds and water, and strain with whatever fine mesh-strainer you have at home!
Using a 4 parts water to 1 part coffee grounds as a ratio for a regular-strength brew, measure out the coffee grounds into either the fine-mesh Cold brew strainer or straight into your vessel. Top with water, and stir to make sure the grounds are covered with the water.
For Regular Strength Cold Brew:
| Coffee Grounds | Water |
| 1/4 cup | 1 cup |
| 1/2 cup | 2 cups |
| 1 cup | 4 cups |
Allow the grounds to steep in a covered vessel in the refrigerator for at least 12 hours. In this case, longer doesn’t necessarily mean stronger. If you want a stronger brew, increase the grounds or decrease the water. Likewise, if you want a weaker brew, decrease the grounds or increase the water. When the coffee has steeped for at least 12 hours, remove the grounds using a fine-mesh strainer (if you are not using a specific cold-brew kit!) Once strained, store in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. Serve over ice, with a splash of cream or milk!
If you would like to watch HOW to make cold brew, check out the video below:
