DIY Cold Brew Coffee Recipe - Not for Caffeine Light Weights

I always say it's been a busy week, but last week was probably the busiest I have been all year. I'm the only employee at my 9-5 job, so that's been as intense as always, then add family events, etsy orders, and hosting a last minute paint party in Camden, NJ where I had to get all the materials...it was intense. I have a meatless Monday post that will be up later tonight (it needs photos), but I thought it'd be fun to share the drink that kept me going this week. 

At this point you guys know I rarely drink coffee. I went through a phase where shots of espresso and caramel helped me survive college, but since then coffee and I have taken a break from one another. Now, when I do drink coffee, it effects me pretty strongly. This recipe I'm about to share with you KICKED MY BUTT.

Maeil Mild Café Latte - H-Mart

Maeil Mild Café Latte - H-Mart

I like coffee, but these says I drink it (maybe) once a month. Which is something a lot of people find shocking.

Back in college I was working two jobs (I was a Trainer at Panera Bread and a graphic designer at a print shop), all while juggling a full course load and running a school club with field trips, bake sales, events...etc. and I was keeping up with my etsy shop. I was sleeping maybe two hours a night, and I was chugging a 32oz soda-sized iced espresso after every Panera Bread shift to keep myself going. (My go-to-espresso drink of choice was 4-shots of espresso and two pumps of caramel, over ice, with skim milk and occasionally whipped cream. If the coffee wasn't enough to keep me going, the sugar picked up all the slack.) I was a walking zombie, but I got so much done! Eventually my under eye circles got so bad that the make-up-counter-ladies suggested an industrial concealer, which was pretty much beige-colored Spackle. Thankfully I moved on and didn't need to keep pushing myself quite so hard, and when I did, me and coffee/espresso had a bit of a falling out.

I don't rely on it to get me through the work week like a lot of my friends do, instead I treat it kind of like medicine. If I am drinking it, it's usually to get me through an especially tiring day, so I don't buy it very often, but when I do, it has to have adorable packaging.

Vita Cocoa Cafe in Original & Vanilla - Aldi

Vita Cocoa Cafe in Original & Vanilla - Aldi

Coconut water is so three years ago! Seriously, this stuff was everywhere and it was ungodly popular. Why? I have no idea. Sure it's all super hydrating and stuff, but it's only beneficial to people who are seriously into physical activity or sports, like marathon running.

You tell 'em Ann! (You beautiful sunfish!) 

The average person simply doesn't need coconut water, so why were they all drinking it? Was it the taste? When this stuff was at the height of it's popularity, I tried the Rhianna-endorsed tropical fruit flavored coconut water that was really popular at the time. I mean, if it's good enough for Rihanna, it's gotta be tasty, right? It tasted like I was drinking Hawaiian Punch that had been filtered through a week-old gym sock. I thought something might have been wrong with my package, so I gave a few other coconut water products a try, but it was always the same. No fruity flavor could mask the sweat-sock-y-ness.

Flash forward to now, when the trend is (finally) dying, and the product has become so unpopular it finally ended up on Aldi's discounted shelves. I saw these two products, and that they were pretty cheap, so I figured, why not give it one last go? If it's awful, I'll at least get a funny review out of it.