Happy Monday! I know it’s not quite as fun as Happy Friday, but let’s get this week started off right! And what better way than a great cup of coffee? Since we are all in a major heatwave right now, I am going to keep it cold. This week, we are going to try a different way to make iced coffee. Japanese iced coffee is fast and best of all, delicious!
I know the debate between cold brew versus iced coffee has been very passionate over the years. We made cold brew last week and honestly, I love cold brew more than iced coffee. But on those hot mornings when I didn’t make cold brew the night before, iced coffee it is. I always think of watered down coffee when I think of iced coffee. Not with Japanese iced coffee! As extra insurance against watered down coffee, I am using coffee ice cubes again. This time, they are a little extra!
I am half Japanese and have wonderful memories of visiting Japan as a young child. I loved the department stores full of brightly colored toys and all of the wonderful food. One of my very favorite memories was the little cans of sweet, creamy iced coffee. In the United States, it is frowned on to give children coffee. So it made me feel very grown up and special to get the canned iced coffee when we would go to Japan.
I love my Fellow Stagg electric kettle! It heats water to 201 degrees quickly and looks beautiful on my counter.
These days, I don’t really like sweet, but I do love creamy! The extra in the coffee ice cubes is heavy cream. I added a bit to the coffee before freezing. They are so pretty, even though they don’t last long in this recipe.
My go-to hot coffee is pour over. I love the rich, complex taste of a pour over. The pour over process is also soothing. The Japanese method of making iced coffee is basically a pour over with ice. Remember I said it was fast? No overnight brewing here, all you need is about ten minutes.
Place ice cubes in the carafe.
Place the freshly ground coffee in the filter. Pour the hot water in a slow circular motion into the filter.
Place some of the coffee and cream ice cubes in your glass and enjoy! Happy Monday – so nice having coffee with you!
cold brew coffee smoothie
Equipment
- cold brew maker
- blender
Ingredients
- 1 can full fat coconut milk
- 1/2 cup cold brew
- 1 frozen banana
- 4-5 cubes coconut milk ice cubes
- 1 1/2 tsp cacao powder I used cacao nibs
- 1 tsp pure maple syrup
Instructions
- Day prior – make the coconut milk ice cubes and cold brew
- Day of – add all ingredients to your blender
- Blend until smooth and creamy. Add additional coffee if too thick.
- Pour into a cold mug.
- Add heavy cream directly in your mug for extra richness along with some homemade whipped cream. I add some vanilla extract to my whipped cream, but you can also add sweetner.
