Let’s talk iced coffee. Recently, I sat down and tried to figure out all the money I spend every week on buying coffee in a couple of local coffee shops in our area. I haven’t plunked my money down at only one coffee shop but regularly stalk three fine establishments…shelling out money faster than you can say, “let’s set this five dollar bill on fire!”
“Why three coffee houses?” you might ask, and I would respond a bit sheepishly, “that’s a darn good question” and try to change the subject as quickly as possible. The truth is… I’m a bit of a coffee snob, and there is no one coffee shop that can meet all my persnickety needs.
I head to my favorite morning coffee shop for a good ol’ plain cup of Joe. No frills needed at the crack of dawn; I want a strong dark brew that goes down easy.
My next coffee fix is a little more dainty; and when I’m in the mood, I head to a different shop way across town. I order up a whole milk latte and get way too excited about the chocolate covered coffee bean they hand out for “free”.
Lastly, during the summer months my cravings run deep for cold brewed iced coffee, and only a few coffee houses take the time to do this well. Don’t you dare hand me an iced coffee that has been made with an espresso machine. I have a yearning for cold brewed coffee and nothing else will satisfy.
So, back to the point…the cost of coffee adds up quickly. With this in mind, I decided to experiment and come up with a recipe for my own cold brewed iced coffee. I wanted something simple, relatively quick and easy, without a huge mess to clean up after. I’m happy to share what I came up with and hope you enjoy it as much as I do.
- 5 -6 Tbsp high quality ground coffee beans, grind should be on the coarser side
- 4 cups of water
- 1/4 cup cream, or milk of choice
- Ice
- Sweetener (I use about a tbsp of organic maple syrup)
- French Coffee Press
- Quart Jar with screw type band and lid
- Coffee filter
- Add 5 -6 tbsp (depending on strength desired) coarsely ground coffee to French coffee press.
- Add water, stir and allow to sit for a minimum of 2 hours, longer is okay.*see note 1
- Once coffee has set for the proper allotted amount of time, use press to separate grounds.
- Place coffee filter in quart jar and affix in place with screw type band lid.
- Slowly pour pressed coffee into quart jar filter to remove all remaining coffee sediment not strained by French coffee press.*see note 2
- Once coffee has been filtered, use immediately, or add lid and chill concentrate for later use.
- Fill 16 oz glass full with ice.
- Add choice of cream or milk.
- Add sweetener.
- Fill the rest of the glass with cold brewed ice coffee.
- Stir and enjoy!
- #1 - I Start my brew early in the morning or the evening before, and place the concentrate in the refrigerator to chill so it will be ready to go whenever I want it. It will keep fresh tasting for up to a week or more.
- #2 - When filtering, be patient. Pour the coffee into the filter slowly and allow it to drain, and then pour a little more. If the filter gets to clogged, simply remove the filter and replace with another.
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