Lavender Maple Cold Brew Coffee

A refreshing cold brew coffee with a hint of lavender and sweetened with a touch of maple syrup

Being back home for the summer has me missing one of my favorite coffees at my favorite coffee shop in Fullerton, a maple lavender latte. I loved the little cafe so much I decided to use it for one of the restaurants I was researching for a marketing project for a class. I visited quite a few times and became well versed on their coffee menu (and spent too much money on coffee)! I always like trying new flavors, and so (despite initial hesitation) I decided to give the lavender maple latte a try and loved it. Since I first tried that lavender latte, I have seen other ones pop up (even the on campus coffee shops at my school offers lavender as a coffee flavor option). However, I have also noticed that a lot of lavender flavored coffees do not actually taste like real lavender. I learned that the coffee shop where I got my favorite lavender latte brewed the espresso with dried lavender buds in it. Since I do not have an espresso maker, I decided to go for a cold brew latte instead!

If you haven't made cold brew before, it is one of the easiest ways to make coffee and the hardest to mess up! Also, it solves the problem of watery iced coffee. To get the lavender flavor, I used lavender essential oil (food grade!) that I already had. When I get some dried lavender, I'll have to try brewing it with my coffee and see how that goes, but since I already have the oil and know it is good I just went with that. There are a few other options you could try to get lavender flavor in your coffee by using dried or fresh lavender instead of the essential oil. Probably, heating maple syrup up with dried or fresh lavender would be the best plan, but I want to try adding lavender buds into the coffee as it brews and see how that is. I love having essential oil around, though, and lavender can be a fun flavor to add to desserts, so it is a worthwhile investment in my opinion.

For this recipe you will need to make cold brew, which is simple! You can also buy it at the store already made, or if you already have a brewing method you like for cold brew, you can do that. I have also provided the ratio I use to make cold brew below! There are lots of ways to make cold brew, but I prefer either putting it in a jar and the straining it through a pour over coffee maker or just making it in a french press. I am still shocked by how good the coffee comes out when you just mix water and coffee together and let it sit overnight!

Ingredients
makes one lavender cold brew latte

½ cup cold brew

½ cup milk (whatever type you like!)

1 tablespoon maple syrup

1or 2 drops of lavender essential oil (food grade)

Ice

Directions: Put everything into a jar, put the lid on and give it a good shake until it is cold and frothy on top. That’s how easy it is! If you don’t have a jar or don’t want to use one you can stir it all together, but the shaking it makes it foamy and so tasty!

Cold brew
Ingredients

¾ cup coffee

4 cups water

Directions: mix together the water and coffee (I do it in a french press). Let it sit out overnight, then in the morning, strain the mixture and store it in the refrigerator.