Toffee-Flavored Coffee

Recipe modified by You Want Me to Cook? – March 4, 2011

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Recipe originally published in Taste of Home, Holiday Collection 2008.

I LOVE Starbucks!  In fact, I did a short stint there (well I worked for Target but I was in the Starbucks) and I did love making the drinks.  It was a lot of fun… but working for Target sucks rocks, so my “career” as a barista was much shorter than I had liked. 

I’m not a fan of a regular cup of coffee, but give me a tasty latte or iced drink and I’ll be set for the morning.  Now, I fantasize about owning a beautiful and commercial grade espresso machine with steam, but I know that’s not going to happen… at least anytime soon.  Therefore, I’m always on the lookout for recipes that don’t require one.

This particular recipe includes toffee and butterscotch.  I can’t even get that combination from Starbucks (they don’t have a butterscotch syrup) which is a shame because I love butterscotch.  Also, it uses brewed coffee so I didn’t have to worry brewing shots of espresso or steaming milk.  I found this one in a holiday collection magazine so I’m guessing that it is meant to be served for special occasions, but I’m the type of person who would drink Pumpkin Spice Latte every day of the year, so I don’t care.

© You Want Me to Cook?
Toffee-Flavored Coffee

First, take in the awesomeness of my Chicago Blackhawks mug.  It was a gift from my husband, bought from Hawk Quarters Blackhawks Store, and the main vessel of my morning coffee.

The coffee looks very decadent, rich and creamy at least from the top.  Yes, you can’t see the coffee through the mug.  Then I looked at the picture from Taste of Home and realized that they didn’t photograph theirs in a clear mug either.

© Taste of Home

Since it was mixed in a glass measuring cup, I had a good look at the final product before it was put into the mug and dressed up.  The coffee looked a little “muddy” so I’m sure that was part of the decision to not photograph their drink in a clear glass.  Alone it didn’t look appetizing, which is why I assume they didn't put it in a clear mug.  My motivation was, of course, drinking out of my favorite mug.

Assessment:

for more details about what my ratings mean, go to Gretchen’s Rating System

Mess:  EH – This really shouldn’t be all that much of a mess, but for a klutz like me, well let’s just say I had to mop up some coffee off the counter… and the floor… and the cabinets.

Start-to-Finish Time: AROUND 30 MINUTES – It really does depend on the speed of your coffee maker and how much you are making at once.

Prep Work: ALL FINGERS STILL HERE – If you can’t find toffee bits, you’ll have to chop them up yourself, but if you do, it’s just mix and pour.  Just the way I like it.

Ease of Recipe: COOK IT IN MY SLEEP – Literally… set your coffee maker to make a pot just as you get out of bed and you should be done in no time!  No cooking skills needed because if you can make or buy a cup of coffee, you can do this.

Overall:  NOT BAD – It wasn’t what I expected and I’d rather buy a latte from Starbucks or a flavored coffee from Dunkin’ Donuts.

Recipe Information:

I am not a doctor or dietician.  I make my nutritional assessments with the aid of Nutrition Data.  I run the original recipe and my altered recipe through their calorie counter and then compute the differences I find.  My numbers are to be used as a guideline.  Anyone who is under dietary medical supervision should follow the advice of their medical professional if their opinion differs from mine.  PLEASE!

Prep/Total Time: 15 minutes

Servings: 5

Nutritional Information (1 cup)

• Calories 242
• Total Fat 17g (Saturated Fat 10g)
• Cholesterol 52mg
• Sodium 150mg
• Total Carbohydrate 22g
• Fiber 0g
• Protein 1g

In terms of servings, most of us probably drink more than 8 ounces of coffee in a day, so this may make a little less than you expect.  If you just want to have a treat at breakfast, it should be fine.

Now the original recipe states 15 minutes of total time, but if you have to brew your coffee first, it may take a little longer, as it did for me.  It kind of depends on your coffee maker and how much coffee you’re making at once.  Here’s how my timing worked out:

• Coffee brewed: 15 minutes
• Finishing: 10 minutes
• Total Time: 25 minutes

Obviously, you’re using chocolate pieces & heavy whipping cream for this dish, but CRIPES – 17g of fat?  There isn’t even cream IN the drink, just a dollop of whipped cream on the top!  Even though I didn’t change anything, I usually check their numbers as well just to see how close it comes.  The results were kind of upsetting.  Here is the nutritional data on the original recipe per Nutritional Data:

• Serving Size 1 cup
• Calories 583
• Total Fat 36g (Saturated Fat 19g)
• Cholesterol 49mg
• Sodium 518mg
• Total Carbohydrate 65g
• Fiber 0g
• Sugar 59g
• Protein 1g

Granted, we are going to be dissolving some of the toffee bits & discarding the rest, which the original recipe could have accounted for, but I can’t believe this huge of a difference.  And where the heck did the sodium come from?  Basically this is a drink high in saturated fat and most of the calories come from sugars, so not a health food/drink for sure.

Ingredients:

Changes denoted by red text

1/2 cup heavy whipping cream

1 tablespoon confectioners' sugar

1/2 cup milk chocolate toffee bits

5 cups hot brewed coffee

2 tablespoons butterscotch ice cream topping

Ingredient Notes:

Toffee Bits – I used Heath pieces, but you can use any toffee bars/bits that you like.

Coffee – We had Folgers (I know, yuck) in the house, but if you want to save time, you can always get a Box o’ Joe (12 cups of coffee at 8 ounces/cup) from Dunkin Donuts and just pour and serve.

Equipment Needed:

Coffee Maker (if brewing own)

Hand mixer

Large glass measuring cup – 6 cup minimum

Spoon – mixing

Fine mesh sieve

Pitcher

Equipment Notes:

Large glass measuring cup – Mixing in coffee pot is a pain and can be treacherous since I’ve never met a coffee pot that isn’t thin and easily broken.  Also, the measuring cup has a spout and you can get exact measurements for the coffee.

Fine mesh sieve – Use a small one that can fit over the mouth of your serving pitcher.

Serving Pitcher – Try to use one that will keep the coffee hot so you don’t have to reheat if the coffee cools off.  Re-warmed coffee = yuck

Directions:

(1)  Brew at least 5 cups of coffee.

You can skip this step if you are buying the coffee from somewhere.

(2)  While coffee is brewing, beat cream in a small bowl until it begins to thicken.

(3)  Add confectioners' sugar; beat until stiff peaks form.

This isn’t my preferred method of making whipped cream and I have to say that the result was not sweet enough for my liking.

(4)  Pour brewed coffee into a large glass measuring cup.  Stir toffee bits into coffee; let stand for 30 seconds.

(5)  Strain coffee into a serving pitcher and discard any undissolved toffee bits.  Keep coffee warm until ready to drink.

Make sure you stir the coffee well before straining it.  The toffee may settle in the bottom and not dissolve, but giving it a good stir will help it dissolve and mix with the coffee.

(6)  Pour coffee into mugs; top with whipped cream and drizzle with butterscotch topping.

Again, if you’re not serving right away, make sure you stir coffee well before serving

So would I make this and forgo a trip to Starbucks, saving me a lot of money?  The answer is an absolute NO!  It was okay, but not as sweet as I thought it was going to be… or wanted it to be… or should have been considering the nutritional information.  I think another issue I had is that I prefer lattes, and this was really more of a coffee drink with only a dollop of whipped cream for milk.

If I was going to make it again, I probably would:

1. Use canned whip cream to save time.  Okay, I really want one of those whipped cream carbonating machine thingys, but that will come after I buy the espresso maker of my dreams – meaning never.
2. I would do ¾ cup of coffee with ¼ cup of skim milk or soy milk to make it a little creamier.