Two Sugars For Me

Well, tonight I was going to talk to you about something...important.. I think, but then that was quickly derailed by... COFFEE!!! As I'm sure my parents remember, I used to abhor coffee as a kid. I think most children do. Which makes sense. Who wants to drink something that (in my opinion) tastes like dirt? But once I started standing 12 hour watches, and destroying a 4 pack of Rockstar each watch, I felt that my body would be much more appreciative if I switched to coffee. Thus began my love for coffee. Just starting out, there was a lot of cream and sugar. And as my palate became more refined, my need for cream and sugar lessened. Granted, I still can't drink it black (unlike some that I know), I am able to taste and enjoy the flavors of coffee. And then I discovered the French Press. Mind = Blown. As I continue to expand my tastes, I am out for additional methods of making coffee.

 

To start with, I enjoy a modified version of Vietnamese coffee that I found on The Pioneer Woman's blog. You can find that here. For a quick and easy version, follow these steps:

 

1. Brew a pot of coffee of your choice

2. Obtain mason jar and add ice

3. Pour coffee over ice until about 3/4 full

4. Add sweetened condensed milk

5. Screw lid onto jar and shake until mixed into iced deliciousness

 

Thank to /u/darthfayeder on reddit, my tastes have been furthered as I cruised around reddit. He posted the following link on reddit : Gratuitous Drink Porn: Coffee Edition. I've posted some of the ones I want to try (and will) below.

 

1. Pumpkin Spice Latte. This sounds like a wonderful drink for Autumn starting here shortly. With cooler temps around the corner this is sure to help warm you up.

 

2. Toffee Caramel Dessert Coffee. Looking at this recipe, it seems like a nice beverage to have as an after dinner treat. I'm excited to try it because I'm a huge fan of caramel. And it will give you a nice chance to use those tiny little coffee cups you have lying about the house.

 

3. Orange Spiced Iced Coffee. Yeah, summer is winding down, but depending on where you live, iced coffee is drinkable almost year round. At first glance, the thought of adding orange to the coffee seemed a bit off to me. However, as you go through the author's notes, she raises a good point. Coffee tends to have some chocolate undertones. And nothing goes better with chocolate than orange.

 

4. Iced Coffee With Whipped Cream! At first glance, I thought this was more of a coffee float with ice cream. Which made me super excited. But even though there is no ice cream, I am still excited to try this. I did try to use whipped cream as my cream base once for coffee. The results were... Well, there's no need to dwell on the past. This looks super easy and delicious. Please note that the page is in Polish, so you will need to use your browser's translate function if available. I might go back later and tinker with this recipe to eliminate the instant coffee portion.

 

5. Salted Caramel Affogato. This. Has. Ice. Cream. And caramel. I think I've gone to heaven. Granted, I will need to actually make espresso (which means finding a low budget espresso maker), but I fell up to it. And there is a "grown up" version as well!

 

6. Frozen Thai Iced Coffee. I find that the time taken to create something often yields sweeter rewards. And this coffee is not too quick in the making. It involves overnight resting and freezing. So, about 12 hours of sitting around. But the end result looks worth it. Not too sure how I feel about the coconut on top, but I'll give it a shot. Of course, this will have to wait until next summer. Unless Buffalo gets to be in the 90's before fall...

 

7. My Ultimate Iced Coffee. This is very similar to the quick iced coffee method I mentioned above. Except this has once very important difference that I didn't think about. Coffee ice cubes. How could I have not though about freezing coffee? This will be happening next summer when I start to make my iced coffee again!

 

8. Cold Brewed Maple Almond Iced Coffee. Wow. That's quite a mouthful. And this coffee looks (and sounds) amazing. Another one for the warmer months, but still one to hold onto. But I'm excited about the use of the French Press in this one. Granted it's another overnight steep, but I can already taste the blend of flavors happening. I'm excited to give this one a go!

 

So, that about sums up this coffee post. I've got a pot that needs brewing (it is 0315 EST and I've still got about 3 more hours to go before I can even leave...) and someone has offered to let me use some almond milk for the creamer. Until next time!

 

Brent