Coffee Holiday Drinks
Flavored coffees are increasingly popular. Raspberry toffee, chocolate, cinnamon, gingerbread, pumpkin, coconut. The range of flavors can be overwhelming.
Coffee already has a strong taste. Flavor-added coffee has gone through industrial-strength chemical processing to change that. It’s healthier, tastier, and more satisfying to make your own blends using fresh ingredients.
Caramel is an ideal base ingredient for making holiday coffees. The sweet, gooey caramel will hold and carry the flavoring into the coffee. Coconut milk is also great for taste and texture, and it won’t curdle.
Let’s not forget whipped cream. Ever. Any standard coffee topped with whipped cream and a sprinkle of ANYTHING (as long as it’s mint-chocolate powder) is lovely.
The best thing to do is get some ingredients that you enjoy and then experiment. Here are a few suggestions.
Warm Weather Mixes
Raspberry Mint Chocolate
If you find 3 or 4 raspberries that are past their best, you can put them in a blender with a little caramel and add them to a cup of coffee.
First add the raspberry to the coffee, then combine coconut milk and a little chocolate powder. Then blend the two together and pour into a glass of ice cubes.
You can grate a little mint chocolate on top or add a sprig of mint.
If you want to bulk it out with a little more milk or cream before drinking, then do so at the last minute.
Banana Rum Coconut Milkshake
Blend half a banana, a splash of rum, and a shot glass of coconut milk. Then add to your coffee to taste.
This is also an excellent hangover cure.
Cold Weather Mixes
Caramel Chocolate Ginger
Cut a nub of ginger about the size of your thumb and place it in a pan of milk. You will need half a mug of milk per person.
Heat until just before boiling and then remove and discard the ginger.
Add a teaspoon of dark coco powder and whisk.
Add to the coffee like milk.
Orange Whiskey Cream
Add two drops of orange flavoring to the bottom of your mug. If you don’t have any orange flavoring and you don’t mind ‘bits,’ half a teaspoon of marmalade will do.
Pour the hot coffee over the marmalade or flavoring and stir it well.
Add a dash of whiskey and top it off with whipped cream.
Speculoos and Caramel
Take two cinnamon biscuits, or speculoos, and crush them up in the bottom of your mug.
Add a pinch of cinnamon, pour hot coffee over them and stir well.
Add milk and caramel to taste.
Coffee Cream
For something more substantial, coffee cream is an elegant and delicious treat – you can spoon it over black coffee or use it as a dessert topping.
Serves 6
Ingredients
1 pound whole milk ricotta cheese
1/3 cup powdered sugar
1 tablespoon Cafe Altura instant coffee granules
1/2 cup chilled whipping cream
1 tablespoons and 1 tsp brandy
Blend ricotta, sugar and coffee granules in processor.
Add cream and brandy and keep blending until the mixture is thick and smooth.
Pour into bowl.
Cover with plastic and refrigerate until well chilled.
dark Irish Coffee image courtesy Susanne Nilsson / CC2.0
three beans on whipped cream coffee image courtesy Lara604 / CC2.0