Coffee Recipe: The Best Instant Coffee Frappé
The frappe is one of the most customizable drinks. An unlimited amount of toppings and syrups can be added to the drink to fit any person’s desires.
Instead of going to the café day after day for your frappe fix, you can recreate the best coffee shake at home while using instant coffee. We’ll tell you how to make the perfect instant coffee frappe for your needs while reducing brewing and café wait time!
The Greek Frappé
While the frappe known in the United States refers to a type of blended iced coffee drink you can get at coffee shops, the original word frappe referred to a Greek coffee drink. The Greek Frappé is a foam-covered iced coffee drink made of instant coffee, sugar, ice cubes, and water. The frappé was named after the French word “frapper” meaning “to hit” just as ice does when mixed with a drink and shaken. It was invented in 1957 by Dimitris Vakondios, at the Thessaloniki International Fair. Since then, the instant iced coffee has become the most popular coffee beverage among Greeks.
It is made by adding a bit of water, one or two teaspoons of instant coffee, and sugar together and forming foam by shaking in a cocktail shaker or blending it with a hand mixer. This mixture is then added to cold water and ice cubes in a glass and served with a straw. In Greece, the frappé is served with three degrees of sweetness. The first called glykós (sweet) using four teaspoons of sugar to two teaspoons of coffee. Next is métrios (medium) with two teaspoons of sugar. Last is skétos (plain) and no sugar is used in the beverage.
There are also a few variations of the Greek Frappé. In one version, it can be served with milk or evaporated milk and is called frappé-milk. In Cyprus, they also serve the drink without water and replace it with milk instead. The French style of this coffee beverage uses chocolate milk or even a ball of vanilla ice instead of milk. Other variations can also consist of the use of different types of liquor.
American Frappe
In the United States, the frappe refers to an entirely different drink. It is spelled without an accent on the letter “e” and is shorten version of a longer trademarked name. it is unclear whether the word “frappe” comes from the Greek Frappé or from the Boston area term for a thick milkshake. The trademarked frappe was originally developed, named, trademarked, and sold by George Howell’s Eastern Massachusetts coffee shop chain, The Coffee Connection. The recipe was created from a fusion of various cold drinks, such as the blended coffee and the New England Frappe (a blend of ice cream, syrup, and milk) with the cappuccino. It wasn’t until 1994 when the biggest coffee chain in the world bought The Coffee Connection and gained rights to the beverage. After slight changes to the original recipe, the frappe we know today was created! The recipe today consists of brewed coffee, ice, and other additives such as milk, sugar, flavored syrups, and whipped cream.
Despite the positives of the frappe being customizable, it has a very high sugar content. For example, the often used caramel in frappe shakes is about 420 calories and contains 66 grams of sugar. On average, your coffee shop frappe shake is more than the daily-recommended 25 grams for women and 38 grams for men. Additionally, there is an estimate of 100 mg of caffeine in each frappe drink.
Rather than leave your caffeine and sugar intake up to a café, you can make a homemade instant coffee frappe and customize it to your body needs and taste preferences! More or less sugar is up to you!
Instant Coffee Frappe Recipe
While there are many instant coffee recipe drinks, such as the iced coffee with instant coffee, today we will be making a premium instant coffee frappe using Waka Coffee. Made from 100% Colombian Arabica beans, Waka Coffee is a high end instant coffee that will suit all your coffee needs without the brewing wait time and long lines at a coffee shop.
This recipe is simple and hassle-free, using only three ingredients to make a creamy and delicious Instant Coffee Mocha Frappe.
Ingredients:
- 1 cup of cold Waka instant coffee
- 8 milk ice cubes
- 2 to 4 tbsp chocolate syrup
- Your favorite toppings, such as chocolate shavings, caramel syrup, chocolate chips, white sprinkles, colorful sprinkles, and marshmallows
Instructions:
Prepare milk ice cubes in advance by pouring the milk of your choice in an ice cube tray and freezing it overnight. I chose to use almond milk, but you can use any you prefer. If you enjoy a creamier texture, you can also use 2% heavy cream.
To make cold or iced coffee with instant coffee, all you need to do is to measure out a cup of room temperature or cold water and add Waka Coffee instant coffee. As Waka Coffee’s instant grounds immediately dissolve in both hot and cold water, it is very easy to use. No need to wait for 10 to 20 minutes for your coffee to brew and no clean up necessary! The ratio we used is one cup of room temperature water and mixed it with one teaspoon of instant Waka Coffee. You can always double or triple this recipe depending on how many cups you want to make.
Now all you need to do is put one cup of instant coffee, 8 milk ice cubes, and as much chocolate syrup as you desire into a blender and blend until smooth. Pour into a cup and put on your favorite toppings.
As frappes are customizable, you can use this recipe as a base for your own creation! Feel free to put whatever toppings you want and get creative.We used topping options such as chocolate shavings, caramel syrup, chocolate chips, white sprinkles, colorful sprinkles, and marshmallows. There are an unlimited amount of combinations you can use to make your frappe your own, so don’t be afraid to experiment with flavors!
