Pinteresting: Iced Coffee at Home!

Mmmm, iced coffee.

Look, I need my coffee fix, even in 100+ F degree heat. I have a legit caffeine addiction, which is kind of pathetic considering all I drink is 1 cup of coffee a day - but if I don't have that 1 cup every 36 hours or so, my head starts pounding. Most months of the year, hot coffee in the morning is lovely and soothing. In the Central Valley of Northern California, though, summer is typically a June-October affair, with week-long spans of over 100 degrees. We just finished another run - last Friday the temperature dropped to 90 F, and it was as if Spring had returned! It was HEAVEN.

So I needed to switch to iced coffee, and FAST. I had a coupon for Keurig pods, and I do loves me Keurig, so I bought some "iced coffee" pods. It's "iced coffee" because it brews hot coffee over a glass full of ice. So yes, the coffee gets cold, but it's also severely watered down. So it tastes nice, but it loses a lot of the coffee flavor that us coffee drinkers like.

LUCKILY, me of 6 months or so ago thought ahead and pinned a simple method of making your own iced coffee! I saw the Pioneer Woman's method, but her method makes enough for a party (which could come in handy one day) - I don't need THAT much coffee, as I'm the only one drinking it! Luckily, I stumbled upon Seeded at the Table's method, which was essentially the same as Pioneer Woman's, but on a much smaller scale.

So, the simple formula seems to be a ratio of 1:8 coffee to water.  Pictured below is 1 cup of coffee to 8 cups water. I decided to get all fancy and use filtered water from my Brita - next time I might just pay the $1 and get a gallon jug from the store, since I had to re-fill the Brita and wait for it to finish filtering in order to get my full 8 cups. Not fun when I'm impatient. The Seeded method recommended 6-8 hours, or overnight. I went with overnight 'cuz I was going for MAXIMUM LAZINESS. Plus I was using a light-roast brew, so I figured the longer sitting would result in a stronger brew. (It seemed pretty strong to me!)

Pour your coffee grinds in first, then the water, then give it a good stir. Cover it up and let it sit!

Despite the jug label, the coffee is not fruit-flavored.

Once you wake up (or wait your allotted time), pour your mixture through a strainer lined with paper towels, coffee filters, or cheesecloth. I replaced the filter every time I let a good amount of coffee seep through. If you're using a cheap $1store strainer like I am, keep in mind that coffee is an oily liquid and you'll have to rinse off the strainer and dry the bottom every once in a while to let the coffee seep through again. Or get a better strainer. ;p This was the only part of the process that took time - the filtering (both in my Brita filter and out of the coffee grinds); I'd say it took maybe 15 minutes to filter the grinds out.

Ahhhh Black gold, Texas tea, concentrated caffeinated heaven!

 Once you've filtered all the liquid and tossed out those coffee grinds (if you garden, coffee grinds are great for soil!), pour yourself some over a glass full of ice cubes!

The test cup, mixed with stevia and organic half-and-half. BLIIIIISSSSSSSSSSSSSSS. It's so refreshing while also giving me my morning caffeine dose!

The Kitchn also has links to other methods to try, if you'd like; I'll stick with this one for now, 'cuz it's the least time consuming for me. (Although the idea of vanilla ice cubes might be one I need to try!)



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