I'll Take an Iced Mocha Injection, Please

I just joined a great Yahoo group for art journaling. This is one of my first pages. The group was started by Rice Freeman-Zachary. I love her blog. Warning, it's not for the weak. LOL. Lots of fun F-bombs on her blog.

I had a weakness for iced mochas that I had to give up while I was pregnant. Then after that, they seemed a bit too extravagant to buy from the coffee shop. So I started making my own cold brewed coffee. It's so easy! It takes me about 5 minutes prep time, but that's only because I fresh grind my coffee beans.

Update on BurdaStyle MiniChallenge: Well, I made the muslin on Saturday and I was underwhelmed by the pattern. I knew it was going to be baggy but it looked like I was a muumuu with saggy boobs. (Sorry I was not going to take any pictures of that). Plus the dropped shoulder wasn't looking so hot. I thought about raising the shoulder a bit but decided to take a nap. I think that I'd rather make a dress that fits well and makes me feel good that to use the Anda pattern just so I can participate in the challenge.

On to the recipe. I'm not really a measure-er (is that a word?) except when I'm baking, so just eyeball it.

Cold-brewed Iced Mocha Vietnamese Style (mocha optional)

Ingredients:
Filtered or bottle water
Your favorite coffee grounds (medium coarse is preferred if you are grinding yourself. I use my good old favorite from home, Community Coffee. Mom sends it to me)
A large jar (I re-use a spaghetti sauce or applesauce jar)

The ratio to this 4 parts water to 1 part coffee. I just fill the jar with coffee until it looks like 1/4 of the jar. Fill up with filtered or bottled water. I used filtered. This is going to make a very concentrated coffee so you want better tasting water. Set in the fridge overnight. Now I've read that it can take as little as 2 hours but I forget about stuff so overnight works out great.

The next morning, you'll strain the coffee. The method that works best for me is a coffee filter in a funnel set over another jar. This can take a bit of time. So I just fill up my funnel and then come back to add more. Voila, now you have cold-brewed coffee! It will keep in your fridge for a few days because it's so yummy you'll drink it all in a few days!

This coffee is really strong. So you'll have to thin it out with water. How much water you add depends on how strong you like your coffee. You can add your sweeteners and creamers as you would normally. You can also put it in the microwave to have hot coffee too. But with this heat, iced is the way to go!

Mocha, Vietnamese Style

If you like Vietnamese coffee, you'll love my version of the mocha. Take a tall glass (I use a pint glass). Add about 2 tsp of your favorite chocolate syrup. Then, add 2-3tsp of sweetened condensed milk (this is the Vietnamese party). This will replace your creamer. Add your coffee (about 1 1/2 shot glass worth, but don't measure, just pour!). Add a little water. Stir until combined. Add more water and ice.

Stick a straw in it so you feel like you're at Starbucks. Enjoy the buzz.