the summer of iced coffee

(photographs from howsweeteats.com and thepioneerwoman.com)

I really do love coffee, you probably know that if you've read my blog for a while. At uni, I went through a stage of drinking a coffee when I got up, a big flask of coffee on my way into uni and in my studio in the morning, again at midmorning and at lunch, and then one mid-afternoon and sometimes when I got home. It was probably why I was so neurotic at university, but we'll leave that story for another post. 

But I mentioned in my a recent post that I just cannot stomach hot liquid when the temperature is above twenty degrees. And this was the summer that I apparently perfected my iced coffee recipe. I know it's drawing to a close now, but there are a few of you out there that are fans, so thought I'd show you the recipes I've been drooling over recently.

• Cold brew coffee 101: cold brew is next on my list to try, it's apparently less bitter or acidic tasting than hot-brewed coffee, and it can keep for quite a while in the fridge. I definitely want to try this, but I need a bigger cafetiere - my mini one doesn't hold much. There is also coldtz brew coffee, Pioneer Woman style; I say PW-style because it is, like most of her recipes, super-sized.
• Cold brew coffee & Mint Syrup: we have two giant bushes of amazing smelling mint left over at the allotment from the previous owners, I'm tempted to harvest a load and try this out. 
• How to make a layered latte: I really had no idea that this was so easy? Maybe it's a rookie mistake on my part, but it looks so cool and it really is completely easy.
• Easy to make coffee syrups: Again, they look really simple to make and I know I'll definitely be trying one of these once my Lidl caramel syrup has run out.
• Ultimate iced coffee: this doesn't really tell me anything that I didn't already know, but the photographs are mouthwateringly good. 
• Vanilla cinnamon coffee: I'm saving this mostly for the autumn. How some people go over Pumpkin Spice-everything? I'm like that with cinnamon. Cinnamon everything in the autumn. 
• 'Skinny' vegan coffee: Personally, I don't like almond milk, but I get that it is lower in fat than regular milk. I don't know how almond milk would effect a coffee, I figure not at all, but then again I wouldn't know, so thought I'd include this here.
• Condensed milk iced coffee: Now I know this is a thing, usually called Vietnamese coffee, because I know they used it with condensed milk, but if you've ever tasted condensed milk, it is the most sickly sweet thing imaginable. But that could negate the need for syrup, so I'm willing to try it.

Look, Huffington Post understands. It's just really good and so damn refreshing in the heat we've had this summer..