Espresso-based iced coffee drinks to make at home

4 easy, refreshing and tasty recipes

These recipes are easy to follow and require little effort, as long as you have ice cubes and an entry-level home espresso machine to make the espresso.

On top of that, you can use your milk of choice (either whole milk, low fat, skim or plant based) and espresso made with your favourite coffee beans.

Here we go: our favourite espresso-based iced coffee drinks to make at home!

Iced latte

We love this drink because it’s really simple, requires little to no preparation and all the ingredients come together into a rich and refreshing caffeinated summer combo!

Ingredients

For this one you’ll only need:

• a tall glass

• ice cubes

• your favourite milk

• a double shot of espresso

Preparation

1. Pull your double shot of espresso and set is aside, we’ll use it in a minute

2. Grab a tall glass and add as many ice cubes as you’d like. Since the ice will eventually melt, the more ice you add, the more diluted and weak the coffee will ultimately become.

3. Top up the glass with milk

4. Add your double shot of espresso on top and mix

That’s it! How quick was that? Optionally, if you prefer your coffees on the sweeter side, you can add a dash of syrup. We always have maple or agave syrup in our cupboard, but it works great with vanilla and almond syrup too!

Frappuccino

We love this recipe because the mix between the ice and the espresso results into a really smooth and refreshing iced coffee.

Ingredients

With a little bit of inspiration from sunny Greece, this drink is a small twist on the previous recipe. The ingredients are all the same, just the method is a little different, since it involves using a blender. You’ll need:

• a blender

• a tall glass

• ice cubes (crushed ice is even better)

• your favourite milk

• a double shot of espresso

Instead of using instant coffee (such as in the case of the classic frappe) or cold, textured, foamy milk (such as in the case of cappuccino freddo), we’ll use a freshly pulled double shot of espresso and bring everything together through the blender.

Preparation

1. Pull your double shot of espresso and set is aside, we’ll use it shortly

2. Get the blender ready in place

3. Pop in the blender a couple of ice cubes, add in the milk and, lastly, the espresso. You can also add a dash of your favourite syrup.

4. Turn on the blender and run it for about 5 - 10 seconds

5. Grab a tall glass, pour and your frappuccino is now ready to be served

Tada! Easy, right? When we feel like having one, we’ll use oat milk and add a small drop of almond syrup, awesome combo!

Espresso tonic

We discovered this drink a couple years ago and we’ll be honest: it’s one of those things that you either love or hate. The first time we tried it, we were far from convinced by the funky mix of flavours, but it slowly became one of our absolute summer favourites.

The bitterness and frizziness of the tonic water combined with the richness of the espresso is such a surprising and refreshing mix, it goes so well on a hot summer day!

Ingredients

For this one you need:

• a medium glass (we like using an old fashion/whiskey/lowball)

• 4 large ice cubes

• tonic water (Fever-Tree is really good, but Schweppes will do too)

• a slice of lime for garnish

• a double shot of espresso

Preparation

1. Pull your double shot of espresso and set is aside, we’ll use it in a second

2. Grab the glass and add around 4 large ice cubes

3. Top up the glass with tonic water a little over 3/4 full, plus the slice of lime

4. Add your double shot of espresso on top. We recommend to stir the espresso a few times and pour it very gently on top of the ice, this way the drink doesn’t get overly effervescent. If the double shot is too much, you can always cut back on the amount of espresso to add on top.

Iced shaken espresso

This is a recent discovery and we’re really loving it! The end result is a cold espresso with a nice smooth froth at the top.

Ingredients

This recipe is as straightforward as it gets, you only need:

• a cocktail shaker

• 3 - 4 large ice cubes

• a double shot of espresso

Preparation

1. Pull your double shot of espresso and set is aside, we’ll use it in a moment

2. Grab the shaker and add 3 - 4 large ice cubes

3. Add your double espresso and shake well for a couple of seconds

4. Serve the chilled espresso over more fresh ice. Frothing milk and adding cold foam on top is optional.

Boom! Crazy what you can do with just an espresso and some ice, right? You can also add some simple syrup for extra sweetness. We personally like to add just a touch of cold oat milk before we do the shaking part, to mellow down the strength of the espresso.

We hope you find these tips helpful and, if you’d like to dive deeper, you may consider our espresso and latte art home barista workshops. Happy brewing!

P.S. Did you find this article helpful? Please consider supporting our work for just the price of a cup of coffee here. Thank you so much!

And, if you enjoyed reading this article, you might find the one here interesting too – How to make espresso at home with a new bag of coffee beans