Today I’m sharing a pretty simple drink that’s perfect for the fall. This weekend is Dia de los Muertos, and cafe de olla is a common drink to include on an ofrenda or to drink along side pan de muerto. A few weeks ago I hosted a workshop with Jess from Xochimilli Sweets. She talked us through how she makes cafe de olla while we waited for our bread to bake. At first, I thought cafe de olla was complicated to make since it tasted so good, and was full of so many flavors, so I had been intimidated to try it for myself. But Jess talked us through all of the ingredients and it was so simple to do! Usually recipes call for one or two of these ingredients, but I love how she uses all of the them, and her recipe is the only I’ve seen that adds a little orange zest!
During the workshop we even mixed a little cafe de olla with a little chocolate caliente…and it was the best thing ever!
Gather the Ingredients
4 1/4 cups water
1-2 oz of piloncillo** (For me adding 1 is just the right amount of sweetness, since I don’t like things too sweet)
1 star anise
2 cloves
1 Mexican cinnamon stick*** (I personally will add two because I like cinnamon)
small piece of orange zest
4 tbsp coarsely ground coffee
Now what?
1. Put the piloncillo in a pot with the water & bring to a boil until dissolved
2. Once boiling, turn burner off and add in the rest of the ingredients.
3. Cover & let the coffee steep for 10 minutes.
4. Strain & enjoy!
**Piloncillo is a raw form of cane sugar that is commonly used in Mexican cooking, and can be used as substitute for any type of sweetener. It’s unprocessed and has no other additives, which is why it has a golden color.
***Mexican cinnamon (canela) or Ceylon cinnamon (Native to Sri Lanka) is used in a lot of sweet and savory Mexican dishes. I always have a bag of these cinnamon sticks in our home. The cinnamon in stick for will last longer.
This would be a great drink to try to make for Thanksgiving or Christmas as a little something different to have with dessert. Jess mentioned that she sometimes makes this in her french press and lets it steep overnight in the fridge for a cafe de olla cold brew. I haven’t tried that yet, but I’m sure it will be just as amazing! Let me know if you try it!
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