Iced Mocha Addiction

Every day since this past August I have an Iced Mocha. Rain, sun, snow: I have one. At about 2 pm to be exact. After picking Ava up from school and before getting Emily. If I am out near the military base and won't be home in time to have a homemade one, I buy one from the coffee shop there (the headaches from not having one are killer!) but Jon, and I am starting to feel the same way, think mine are way better.  I don't ever claim to make anything better than anyone when it comes to cooking (does that make sense?) but these are pretty much the best:) I think because I actually took the time to perfect them, to mess around with amounts. Below I have written out exactly how I make them. The recipe is originally from Pioneer Woman and although  it seems like a lot of steps and too fussy for some, they really are worth it:)

*I make mine with half decaf and half regular coffee*

You will need (for a much smaller batch than the original) for the coffee part which has to sit over night:

1. about 6oz (that's half a bag of Duncan Donuts Coffee) decaf ground coffee.

2.   about 6oz (that's half a bag of Duncan Donuts Coffee) regular. I used Duncan Dark.

3. a 2qt pitcher with lid (you'll need two pitchers to house the coffee separately after they are done "brewing") 

4. mesh strainer that fits over the pitcher

5. paper towels

 To make the coffee:

1. take half a bag of decaf or regular (about 5.5-6 oz)and dump in 2qt pitcher. Fill with cold water to 2qt line. Use a fork to mix it up and get all the grounds wet. 

2. Cover with lid and let sit about 8 hours (over night). See photo above? That's Frank making sure the coffee sits over night!

3. When it's ready, take an empty pitcher and place strainer over opening. Lay 1 layer of paper towels over strainer, pour coffee over paper towels and strain. 

4. Cover with lid and label if it's decaf or regular. Don't want to get those mixed up! Repeat with the other (decaf or regular). You can do them both at the same time it just means you need more pitchers! I have to have a mixture as the regular strength is just way to strong for me. I would be up till the next day if I just had the regular.

Above is the coffee after I have strained it. That's how much it makes. It lasts about a week with me just drinking it during the week and Jon having some on the weekend. 

What you need to make it divine:

1.  approx. 2.5 tablespoons of Fat Free sweetened condensed milk (I keep the left overs in a container in the fridge)*

2. approx. 1 tablespoon of Lite chocolate syrup*

* in a small microwavable bowl mix the chocolate and condensed milk and microwave just enough to soften as I keep these things in the fridge and when added to cold coffee they just don't mix well.

3. 1/2 cup to 3/4 cup Low fat milk

4. Ice (I use ice made from the regular coffee; see photo below)

All my measurements are based on using one of these 24 oz cups. 

Pour about 1/4 cup regular and 1 cup of decaf into a cup. Add heated syrup and condensed milk; stir. Add milk. add a little bit off ice and you're done! Of course you'll have to adjust the amounts of everything till it's how you like it:)

I bought these ice cube trays on Amazon just for this purpose; to make coffee ice cubes! 

Done!!

If anyone makes these using this "tutorial", let me know! I'd love to know if it helped and how it was.