When I was in my early twenties and my waistline could handle this sort of thing, I made daily trips to one of the many coffee houses in my hometown. You’d be hard-pressed to walk two blocks in Vancouver without finding some sort of specialty coffee store. Yes, we are a highly caffeinated, but friendly lot. You know you are a regular at the coffee shop when the barista has your drink ready for you, your name written on the side of the cup, by the time you reach the front of the line. Grande cafe mocha with nonfat milk and whipped cream, please. The nonfat milk cancels out the calories from the chocolate syrup and whipped cream. If you have evidence to prove otherwise, I don’t want to hear about it.
When I spotted this mocha frappe by Deb of smithbites, I was whisked back to those lazy days of my youth (my goodness, I’m getting old). To make things even better, Deb adds a touch of brandy and a pinch of cinnamon and cayenne pepper. Are you sold yet? I was ready for a really good coffee drink, but was not prepared for the-coffee-drink-to-top-all-coffee-drinks. Deb, you are a magician.
A few weeks ago, someone (you may know her—her name’s Ree) posted a recipe for iced coffee concentrate. Make a batch of this and store it in the fridge to have on hand so you can make the perfect iced coffee or Mocha Brandy Frappe at a moment’s notice.
For the chocolate sauce, you can use a store-bought version or make your own. Since there was extra cream in my fridge and chocolate that would be eaten by the fistful if I didn’t find another use for it, I went the homemade route. Just bring the cream to a boil, pour it over chopped chocolate and whisk. Yep, it’s that easy.
This is all you will need to make this addictive frappe. Oh, and a little ice.
Place chocolate, brandy …
Coffee concentrate …
Milk (soymilk or another kind you prefer) …
And cinnamon, cayenne pepper and vanilla syrup (if using) into a blender. Whiz for about 15-20 seconds to mix well. That’s right, I said cayenne pepper. Don’t you dare skip that step. Trust me.
Add ice and process for approximately one minute or until well blended.
Top with real whipped cream. Smithbites labeled this step as optional, but I couldn’t resist using my handy whipped cream dispenser. My kids sat nearby, assuming the baby bird position, until filled each of their mouths with a generous squirt of whipped cream.
Sprinkle with a little chocolate, put on your sun hat and loll about on the patio as you sip on this heavenly drink.
I suggest you run over to Deb’s blog, Smith Bites, where she and her husband (affectionately referred to as The Professor) whip up inspiring recipes several times each week.
Printable Recipe
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Description
DIY Mocha Frappe with a twist: brandy!
Ingredients
- ½ cups Chocolate Sauce
- 1 Tablespoon Brandy
- ¾ cups Cold-Brew Coffee Concentrate (coffee Must Be Cold - Hot Coffee Will Dilute Flavor)
- 1 cup Soy Milk (or Your Choice)
- ¼ teaspoons Cinnamon
- 1 pinch Cayenne Pepper
- 2 Tablespoons Vanilla Simple Syrup (Optional, See Note)
- 2 cups Ice
Preparation Instructions
Place chocolate, brandy, coffee concentrate, milk, cinnamon, cayenne pepper and vanilla syrup (if using) into a blender and whiz for about 15-20 seconds to mix well.
Add ice and process for approximately one minute or until well blended.
Pour into glasses, add straws and serve.
Optional: top with real whipped cream.
Smith Bites note: If you make your own chocolate sauce and use a 60-70% dark chocolate, you may need a bit more sweetener. If so, use a simple syrup or a teaspoon or two of superfine sugar. If you’re using a milk chocolate or a semi-sweet chocolate to make your sauce, you probably won’t need any additional sweetener.
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Dara Michalski is a doll and a sweetheart who clearly knows her way around the kitchen. She blogs at Cookin’ Canuck, where she shares her flavor-packed recipes and fun, engaging writing. The photography’s pretty incredible, too.
28 Comments
Comments are closed for this recipe.
Megan's Cookin' on 8.24.2011
I’m sold! Off to print some recipes!
Kimby on 7.27.2011
I like your blender, Dara — an appropriate appliance for frappes with cayenne! Might have to take a walk on the wild side tonight!
Heather :) :) :) on 7.27.2011
I tried posting a comment, but somehow it didn’t go through. So I’ll try it again. Thanks for the super yummy recipe here, and for the links to the iced coffee concentrate. I LOVE fancy coffee drinks, but my wallet can’t handle the fancy price. Now I can try making more at home Love and hugs from Oregon, Heather
p.s. Thanks for making these recipes available in printable versions. That’s especially nice
Averie @ Love Veggies and Yoga on 7.27.2011
Dara…you have me wanting this so badly! I love iced coffee and anything with liquor like baileys or brandy, even better.
And whip cream is NOT optional; it’s mandatory
Pam on 7.26.2011
Oh my goodness. You have brought the wonder of iched coffee to an all new place! Absolutely wonderful!
Alyssa M. on 7.26.2011
It’s times like this when I wish I liked coffee…
Carolinaheartstrings on 7.26.2011
That looks just wonderful. My kind of everything! I am on an iced coffee kick right now and drink two every morning. Watch out!
vicky on 7.26.2011
Wonder if it will work as well with rum? Not a big fan of brandy. But rum and coffee… hard to top that. Except with a little chocolate, cayenne and cinnamon. And whipped creme.
kitchenlovenest on 7.26.2011
Mmm! I’m definitely intrigued by the cayenne pepper bit!
Katrina on 7.26.2011
Everything about this makes me happy!
Cowtales Katy on 7.26.2011
You’re just mean. My waistline doesn’t like you very much but my taste buds are in love!
Laurie - Simply Scratch on 7.25.2011
I just recently fell in love with frappe’s! I’m definitely trying this out!
Ryan on 7.25.2011
Does it end up being cheaper than going to caribou or starbucks? My wife would love this, I’m not so much of a coffee style drinker
Diana K. on 7.25.2011
This sounds really refreshing for the hot days we’ve been having! Yum!
Courtney on 7.25.2011
Holy dessert, this looks fab!
Urban Wife on 7.25.2011
This is the perfect drink! It’s so hot outside that I *barely* want to drink hot coffee anymore. I’ll take an iced coffee or in this case, a frappe.
Denise G. on 7.25.2011
It won’t actually work to use Ree’s method for making iced coffee because she dilutes it so much–it is NOT a concentrate (you notice she requires you to add no additional water)–which is fine for regular iced coffee but not fine for this recipe. The standard amounts for making cold-brew coffee are about 9 cups of cold water per pound of coffee, and then when you want to make a cup of coffee, you add one part concentrate to 2-3 parts water or milk. If you use Ree’s coffee in this recipe, your frappe will be weak.
I just had to pipe up to save anyone from not getting the best experience possible!
cynthia on 7.25.2011
Perfect drink for this type of weather we are having. Making it and sipping it while in the swimming pool. Thanks
Mrs C on 7.25.2011
Oh wow!!! What is not to love about this recipe? A little coffee, sweet and spiked with love!?! Ahhh delicious and perfect for summer!
http://www.MrsCapretta.com
Christina on 7.25.2011
Oh yes please! Looks divine!
Michelle on 7.25.2011
Brilliant! Brandy… cinnamon….cayenne…. coffee ….. cream …oh my! Is it too early? I think not! I want to turn these into cookies as well!
Heather on 7.25.2011
I am completely drooling…i love mocha anything!
Allyn on 7.25.2011
Whoa, you had me at brandy!
I love the combo of chocolate and cayenne. There was a place in my town that served a killer (and ridiculously expensive) Mexican hot chocolate. Sadly, they went out of business (again: ridiculously expensive), and I’ve yet to find another place that does it well. I refuse to learn how myself for fear of how many I might drink. Oops.
Jenna H. on 7.25.2011
I don’t drink alcohol OR coffee, but this looks incredibly delicious. My mouth is watering!
Wenderly on 7.25.2011
THAT looks splendid! I want one…except it’s only 9:45 a.m. a little early huh?
O.k. it’s on my list for later today!
patti in GA on 7.25.2011
OMGoodness, I have Ree’s iced coffee in my fridge right now–so I can make this heavenly sounding drink! 9:45am too early for Brandy? LOL!
Anita on 7.25.2011
Oh yum! I had to wipe the drool off my chin after seeing/reading this.
Amy | She Wears Many Hats on 7.25.2011
Heavens to Betsy! I need this now, like for breakfast.