Café de Olla Inspired Cold Brew Recipe
This Café de Olla inspired cold brew is the ideal drink to help you transition from the warm days of summer to cool, brisk Autumn.
Photos by Tyler Shane
Fall is on the horizon and the sweltering heat of summer is finally behind us (well…hopefully). Along with the cooler weather, however, our beloved cold brew coffee becomes less and less enticing as part of our morning routines. But I’m not giving up my cold brew without a fight!
This Café de Olla inspired cold brew is the ideal drink to help you transition from the warm days of summer to cool, brisk Autumn. Café de Olla is a Mexican spiced coffee made by brewing coffee in a clay pot along with spices and raw sugar, piloncillo. The subtle flavors of cinnamon, star anise, and orange peels give this caffeinated drink all the fall feels that will have you ready for sweater weather - while still rocking your favorite morning coffee.
The beautiful thing about cold brew is it is so simple to make yourself. It’s as easy as gathering the ingredients in a pot and stirring. Due to the brewing process, cold brew coffee is rich but lacks the bitterness that many traditionally brewed coffees acquire. The brewing process in combination with the sugar and decadent spices make this recipe sweet, smooth, and well rounded.
Cloud’s Coffee Company’s Bali Blue roast helps bring this unique recipe to life with its complex and sophisticated flavors. The best-selling coffee has hints of dark chocolate, brown sugar, and cedar – perfectly enhancing the essence of a traditional Café de Olla! Roasted in Kansas City, you can pick up a bag of Bali Blue in any Made In KC store. Enjoy!
Cold brew Concentrate Recipe
Yields: about 5 cups of concentrate
Ingredients
1 C. Bali Blue ground coffee beans, medium, coarse grind
2 cinnamon sticks
1 star anise – whole
3 orange peels, 3 inches long
¼ C. raw brown sugar or piloncillo
4 ½ C. water (room temp. or cold)
Combine coffee grounds, cinnamon sticks, star anise, orange peels, sugar, and water in a large bowl or pitcher. Stir to combine.
Cover bowl/pitcher and leave overnight to brew.
Once finished brewing, prepare a strainer lined with a cheesecloth, coffee filter, or paper towels over a large bowl.
Strain the cold brew mixture. Toss strained leftovers in trash.
Et, voila! You have your cold brew concentrate.
Pour a 1:1 ratio of concentrate and water in a glass or to taste. Feel free to add ice or jazz up your drink with your usual additives to make it your own.
*If you’re wanting a mocha feel to your cold brew, add 3 tbsp. of cocoa powder during step 1!
