Iced coffee

It's so hot here in Austin that I prefer iced coffee to hot coffee in the morning.  I started out brewing coffee with hot water and cooling it in the fridge overnight.  Then, I heard on NPR that coffee can be steeped overnight in the fridge.  Since then, I've been enjoying iced coffee, steeped with unsweetened cocoa and almond extract.  Yum!  Haven't tried the following recipe yet, but I will.  It sounds good!  Will have to revive the mint plant on the back deck first.

The 7 Coffee Roasting Co. MethodYield: Two 10-ounce servings
Time: 16 to 18 hours, almost entirely unattended

8 ounces coarsely ground coffee beans, preferably medium roast, of African origin
4 sprigs of mint
16 ounces water, plus 12 ounces for diluting after brewing 

1. Wrap the coffee grounds and sprigs of mint together in two layers of cheesecloth. Secure together as a bundle. (A rubber band works well to keep it closed.)

2. Place in medium bowl and pour 16 ounces of room temperature water over your coffee bundle. Cover with plastic wrap and let steep for 16 to 18 hours.

3. After steeping, remove the coffee bundle and squeeze excess liquid into the bowl before you discard it. (It’s also possible to use these same ingredients in a French press; I prefer the cheesecloth method.) Pour the coffee liquid through a coffee filter (a pour-over setup is ideal for this) and into a medium-sized jar or small pitcher. This removes any excess grounds or sludge that may have accumulated. Give the filter a few squeezes if it’s particularly slow to drip through.

4. Once the coffee has been filtered, you should have about 8 ounces of liquid. Add 12 ounces of cold water (you can add more or less to taste) and stir. Pour into two glasses with ice and enjoy with your favorite milk and/or sweetener.

Pro tip: If you are a 9-to-5-er like me, start steeping this first thing in the morning before you leave for work, let it sit for the 16 or so hours, and finish up with straining and mixing with water right before bed. You can stick your ready-to-pour over iced coffee in the fridge and it will be waiting for you the next morning.