Gourmet Iced Coffees at Home

By?Sean Gallagher

It is clear by the daily lines at Starbucks that we like gourmet coffees. As consumers, we spend huge amounts of money on coffee drinks every day. Preparing your own coffee drinks at home is easy, inexpensive, and deliciously refreshing.

Most gourmet coffee drinks are flavored with syrups. These syrups are filled with stabilizers to extend shelf life. So make your own syrups, you can add fun flavors to your beverages and know what’s in them.

Making your own syrup is easy. First, you need make a base simple syrup. Once you have your simple syrup, you can add to it and make many different types of syrups.

Vanilla Syrup

3 cups water

1 cup sugar

? vanilla bean, cut lengthwise, and scraped out

Place the measured sugar and water into a small sauce ?pot.

Cut the vanilla bean in half lengthwise and scrape the inside of it to remove all the seeds, add the seeds and bean to the pot.

Cook over medium-high heat until it starts to simmer.

Let the water and sugar simmer until the sugar is dissolved.

Turn off the heat, remove the vanilla beans, and let the simple syrup cool to room temp.

Mexican Chocolate Syrup

1 cup Vanilla syrup

2 cinnamon sticks

? cup cocoa powder

? cup bittersweet chocolate chips

Add 1 cup of vanilla syrup into a small sauce ?pot.

Add the cinnamon sticks and let them simmer in the syrup for 3 minutes.

Remove the cinnamon sticks and add the cocoa.

Stir to combine and then add the chocolate.

Stir to combine and cook for 1 minute.

Turn off the heat and your syrup is done.

Raspberry Syrup

1 pint raspberries

? cup sugar

2 T vanilla syrup

Add the raspberries, sugar, and syrup to a small sauce pot.

Simmer for 4-6 minutes until raspberries breakdown and sauce is created.

Strain out raspberry seeds with a fine strainer.

Let it cool and the syrup is finished.

Allthese ?these syrups are great in coffee drinks, but can also be used on ice cream or in cocktails.

Whipped Cream

1 cup heavy cream

2 T sugar

? t vanilla extract

Whip the heavy cream on high in a mixer until light peaks start to form.

Add sugar and vanilla.

Whip until cream has thickened and holds its own shape.

French Press Coffee

? cup Manhattan blend coffee

3 cups hot water

1/8 t vanilla extract

French press coffee makes the best tasting coffee because the oils of the coffee beans are not trapped by filter.

To start boil 3 cups of water in a kettle.

Allow for the water to cool for a moment so it is not boiling.

Pour into press pot with measured coffee, stir with a spoon so grounds are completely immersed.

Add your vanilla.

Put cover on loosely to keep in heat.

After 4 minutes of steeping, place top on firmly and plunger the coffee.

This will push all grounds to the bottom and leave you with a delicious pot of coffee.

When you are ready to make your coffee drinks, gather all your components and get ready to prepare them. I made these drinks in 16oz cups so I could fit everything I wanted into them.

Raspberry Vanilla Iced Coffee

2 T Raspberry Syrup

1 T Vanilla Syrup

1 cup coffee

? cup ice

2 T whipped cream

Splash half and half

Mexican Mocha Iced Coffee

3 T Mexican chocolate syrup

1 cup coffee

? cup ice

2 T whipped cream

splash half and half

Vanilla Bean Iced Coffee

? cup Vanilla syrup

1 cup coffee

? cup ice

2 T whipped cream

splash half and half

Happy Summer!

-Sean Gallagher

Gallagher is also a freelance caterer, private chef, and graduate of The Culinary Institute of America. His grandmother was a cook and inspired him at a very young age to pursue a culinary career. Gallagher’s passion is nutrition as well as teaching others how to lead a healthy lifestyle full of not only nutritious, but also?delicious food.

Contact Sean directly with any questions or comments at?Chef.seangallagher@gmail.com and visit his?blog here

This writer may have been given product and/or other compensation from Dean & DeLuca for this post. All Photography provided by Liran Okanon Photography – All Rights Reserved.