a peek inside the fishbowl

05 Jun, 2018

Things I am loving: faux-Starbucks treats on the cheap

Posted by andrea tomkins in: Oh! Things!|Recipes and Food

The other day I was strolling by Starbucks and I treated myself to a frothy iced coffee beverage. I was happy with my purchase for about 10 seconds. It tasted fine, but the price tag left a bitter taste in my mouth. The plastic cup and straw I brought home to recycle didn’t make me any happier either. I decided I needed to make my own coffee-based treat.

I started with this how-to from the New York Times. I tell ya, I’m a convert. I love the slow brew/cold brew coffee making method. I should point out that NYT suggests making cold brew coffee in a mason jar. I made it this way exactly once before digging out our old french press from the cupboard. It works perfectly in a press and there’s no mess. (The only problem is that I don’t always remember to make it the night before.)

I’ve been drinking this kind of coffee almost every afternoon for the past week. Sugar is optional (I don’t add any), but I do add milk and ice cubes.

Anyway, yes, for a sweet treat, take your cold brewed coffee, add a scoop of ice cream (I tried this with Halo Top salted caramel, by the way), stir, and serve. It’s the perfect remedy for a warm summery afternoon, whether you’re relaxing in the garden or, er, stuck at your desk.

Next time I will use proper ice cream made with whole milk. Halo is a low-cal frozen dessert that mimics ice cream. It’s ok on its own, but it’s not quite the thing to stir into coffee if you’re looking for a truly creamy and decadent treat.

Related to this: I might start making my own coffee popsicles again. They are SO darn good!

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1 Response to "Things I am loving: faux-Starbucks treats on the cheap"

1 | Tamar

June 6th, 2018 at 11:25 am

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Yeah! I’ve made it with Smitten Kitchen’s recipe which is also yum. Or with a stovetop espresso maker + cold water +lots of ice + milk

as an aside, plastic straws aren’t recyclable. Ottawa has this site where you can check what goes where: http://app06.ottawa.ca/online_services/recycling/items/189_en.html

I find it staggering the number of things i think i can recycle that are actually garbage. It really is making me change my mindset!

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