DIY Cold Brew Coffee Bags — Fried Dandelions — Plant Based Recipes « Fried Dandelions — Plant Based Recipes (2024)

Easy DIY Cold Brew Coffee Bags come together in minutes, and costs just a fraction of the store bought version! Get some brewing in your fridge today!

An ode to coffee.

I’m so excited to share this recipe…or more of a how to guide…that I’ve been working on for a while! Everyone knows I love my coffee. And it’s always iced. I haven’t always loved coffee, but once Jonny came along and decided not to sleep for a year it became a necessity. And then a treat. And now, even though I have slept through the night for 4 years, I still have my coffee every morning. Not right when I wake up—I’m busy hustling my kids out the door, throwing lunch boxes and hoodies at them, and making loving comments like “if you don’t get in the car right this second….” Hmmm….maybe I should do the coffee first thing? But I don’t. I wait until I’ve gotten home from my hour of school drop offs, change back into my comfy jammie clothes, and make myself a giant mug of iced coffee before plopping down on the couch to start blogging, Facebooking, etc. And despite coffee not actually being that hard to make, I’ve made it a tiny bit easier with my DIY Cold Brew Coffee Bags. Just in time for warm weather!

Cold Brew Coffee

I drink my coffee iced. Year round. Virtually no exceptions. I just really prefer it that way. And you can make any coffee iced. It doesn’t have to be cold brewed. But cold brew is kind of fun in the summer. It’s hands off. It doesn’t involve hot water. The real theory/science behind cold brewed coffee is that it’s gentler on the coffee, and therefore the taste is a little more mellow. Less harsh. By the way—this is Jonny’s new favorite thing to say—”whoa, that was so harsh.” Apparently he’s heading back to the 90’s to hang out with his friend Cher? But anyway—cold brew is where it’s at for yummy, easy, summertime coffee!

DIY Cold Brew Coffee Bags

I really struggled with what to call these guys. Because when I mention them to my friends I say “I’m making these little coffee bags, sort of like a tea bag, but with coffee in it. You know what I mean?” It has a certain ring to it! But then I say “coffee pouches” or “coffee tea bags.” And neither sound right. And I’ve seen them in the stores called “coffee sachets” but that just makes me think of potpourri and that’s not really what I want to think about while drinking my coffee. So DIY Cold Brew Coffee Bags is what I’ve landed on. I think it works!

How do you make Cold Brew Coffee Bags?

I’ve experimented a fair amount with these little coffee bags. I know, I know. How hard can it be? But I actually learned some things along the way. I use unbleached coffee filters to make my little coffee bags. This way I can pop the rubber band off when I’m done and throw the filter and grounds into my compost! I like to snag the rubber bands off of my produce and reuse them—look at me, so eco-friendly!

This morning I told my mom about this post that I was writing and she said “oh, but couldn’t you just use a tea ball?” I felt a little bit like an idiot—why hadn’t I thought of that? I was relieved when after I rushed home to try it I realized that none of the tea balls I have (several, in different sizes!) could hold the coffee grounds. Little bits of ground up coffee beans spilled through the mesh and left coffee grounds all over my kitchen counter. Phew—I was happy to know that I didn’t have to go back to the drawing board. Paper filters are definitely the way to go.

I also learned that you have to use wet grounds. They have to “bloom.” I tried making a bundle with dry grounds and the inner grounds remained dry for 2 days, despite the coffee bag being fully submerged in water! Not so great for extracting flavor. So wet it is. That means that you can’t make a ton of little packets and store them in your cupboard. But you can brew about a week’s worth of coffee at once, and that’s pretty handy! I just pour some coffee grounds into a bowl, top with a bit of water, and give it a stir. Then divy it up into the coffee filters, bundle them up with a rubber band, and pop them each into their own jar with some water. 2 days later they have sufficiently brewed (1 day is too weak in my humble opinion!). If you make multiples I recommend removing the coffee bags by the second or third day and just storing the brewed coffee in the fridge. If you let them brew any longer than that the filter paper gets pretty flimsy. It will defeat the purpose if it breaks and dumps the grounds back into your coffee!

Coffee! Coffee! Coffee!

All this coffee talk has me craving more coffee! You already know about myCold Brew Coffee Milk and myCoffee Date Shake! Here are some other recipes from my blogger friends that I think you will also love!

• Coffee Granola by Veggie Inspired — how yummy is this? A perfect way to start your day!
• French Press Coffee Ice Cream with Rum Raisins by Glue & Glitter — coffee ice cream is my favorite flavor. It only makes sense to make your own at home!
• Toasty Graham Coffee Latte by Spabettie — take your coffee to the next level!
• Espresso Chocolate Chip Muffins by Vegan in the Freezer — these could be breakfast or dessert!
• No Bake Espresso Fudge Cake by A Virtual Vegan — for a truly decadent dessert!

Vegan Coffee Creamer

I love my coffee with cream! You know those memes that float around Facebook? The ones that have you identify yourself as a color of coffee on a grid? Yeah….mine are always pale, pale, pale! I like to use soy creamer—it has a good consistency, flavor, and it doesn’t curdle. Plus I like the joke about a vanilla soy latte being a three bean soup! Oat milk comes in second place—it’s fairly thick and mixes well. Almond milk seems watery, and separates from the coffee which looks less than appetizing, so it’s not my favorite. Oh, and don’t forget a good squeeze of agave!!!

Ready to make DIY Cold Brew Coffee Bags at Home?

Let’s get brewing! Just a few simple steps and you’ll have a fridge packed with cold brew coffee! I like to make enough over the weekend to have one ready to grab and go every day of the week! Give this a try and leave me a note (and a star rating!) in the comments below letting me know how it goes!

Video Music: Ben Sound