Like millions of other people around the globe, I love to have my morning coffee. There is something about the smell of coffee brewing that just helps to jump-start the morning for me. If my body would let me I would probably drink coffee all day long but I really limit myself to just one cup (okay sometimes two, but don’t tell!) so I mainly use my Keurig brewer for coffee since I am the only one in the house who drinks coffee regularly. I do have a French press however and I decided that I wanted to try making some cold-brew coffee. Seeing how everyone says it is all the rage and you get a great coffee flavor from the concentrate you develop I thought I would give this recipe from America’s Test Kitchen a try. it’s a process that takes a day so you have to put some time into it to get the final product.

Cold-Brew Coffee

3 1/2 cups finely ground medium roast coffee

3 1/2 cups room temperature water

Kosher salt (optional)

Stir together the ground coffee and the room temperature water in a large French press. Allow a raft of ground coffee to form, about 10 minutes, and then stir the coffee together again to incorporate it into the water. Cover the French press with plastic wrap and let the coffee sit at room temperature for 24 hours.

Using the French press plunger, press firmly on the coffee grinds to separate them from the coffee concentrate. Pour the coffee concentrate into a coffee filter-lined fine-mesh strainer that is set over a large measuring cup. Let the coffee sit still until the concentrate filters through, up to 30 minutes. You should have about 2 cups of coffee concentrate when it is complete. The concentrate can be covered and kept in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

Combine 1/2 cup of the coffee concentrate, 1/2 cup of cold water and a pinch of kosher salt (if desired) and pour the mixture into a glass with ice. Serve.

You certainly get a rich, strong coffee flavor this way, so if that is what you are looking for in an iced coffee this is a good way to go. Since it is basically a 1 to 1 ratio of coffee to water, you could make this in any amount you want to fit whatever type of French press you may have to give it a try.

I decided to take some of this cold-brew coffee and try making a Dublin iced coffee using this recipe I got from Bon Appetit. This is an adult beverage and very easy to make.

Dublin Iced Coffee

2 ounces strong cold-brew coffee

2 ounces stout, such as Guinness

1 1/2 ounces Irish whiskey

3/4 ounce simple syrup

1/2 ounce heavy cream

Freshly grated cinnamon stick, for serving

Mix the cold-brew coffee, stout, Irish whiskey and the simple syrup in a highball glass. Add ice to fill the glass. Gently pour in the heavy cream so it gradually sinks into the coffee. Sprinkle the top with cinnamon and serve.

This coffee was incredibly refreshing and delicious. The combination of the coffee, stout and whiskey gives great flavor and the cream just tops it off. I actually ended up drinking two of these because they tasted so good and I will definitely make this one again.

That’s all I have for today. Check back next time for another recipe. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!