Cold Coffee House Style Drinks

I love Starbucks.  But I live 20-30 minutes from one.  And even I lived closer, I don't think my wallet or my rear end would survive spending $5 a day on Iced Lattes and Frapachinos all summer.  But I think I just found something that will double my coffee consumption at home.  And while that in itself might not be a good thing, this new recipe is.  I found this concept in my latest issue of In Style magazine and am hooked.  The article explained that pouring hot coffee over ice rendered it bitter and offered a simple solution called cold brewing.  It's simple and costs a little more than the price of one drink from Starbucks.

1.  Start with 3/4 lb of good coffee.  (I used pre-ground, regular Dunkin' Doughnuts.)  You can use a flavor or grind your own.  Just don't grind it too fine or the coffee will not be easily strained.

2.  Place coffee in a container with 8 cups of cold water.  Use only good water here or your coffee flavor will be affected.  I used filtered water from my fridge.

3.  Let the coffee mixture sit overnight in the refrigerator.  

4.  Strain the mixture with a fine mesh strainer or cheesecloth.  I used a mesh strainer and strained it 3 times.  The final time I added a paper towel to the inside of the strainer to make sure I got all the solids.

You'll be left with a very strong coffee that will keep in the fridge for up to two weeks.  You can use the coffee to pour over ice with milk for an iced latte.  Or freeze it into cubes, then blend with milk for a blended coffee drink.  (I'm guessing that you could make it even yummier by adding a small scoop of ice cream!)

I like to pour 1/3 -1/2 cup of the coffee over ice in a large cup.  Then I add 1/2-1 oz of flavored syrup and fill with fat free milk.  Stir and enjoy!

Making my own coffee at home Works for Me!