This past month of quarantine has given us all the opportunity to try something new. For some that was binge-watching all of Tiger King, others it was bleaching a pair of jeans. As a devout coffee drinker/enthusiast, I decided to try the trendy “whipped coffee” that has been popping up on my For You page. 

The recipe is almost too simple: one tablespoon of instant coffee, one tablespoon of granulated sugar, and one tablespoon of water. The most important part of this recipe is that it is made with INSTANT coffee. There’s something about the chemicals in instant coffee that allow it to take a whipped form. I don’t know the science behind it, but that’s something you can ask your chemistry teacher on your next Zoom call. 

When I realized I didn’t have any instant coffee, I put my mask on and ventured out to Giant to get some! Unfortunately, all they had left were little individual Folger’s instant coffee packs, but I grabbed them anyway. 

With my three ingredients, I got to work. After dumping roughly a tablespoon of each one into a bowl, I had a choice. I could take my whisk and hand mix it until all the muscles in my hand cramped up, or I could just beat it with my electric mixer. For the sake of my hand, I chose the electric mixer. 

Initially, the dark coffee mixture does not look like it could possibly become a light meringue-style texture. However, in the course of three minutes of meticulous whipping, the mixture began to bubble, lighten and eventually thicken. Once it was all whipped, I tasted a little bit of it with a spoon. I do not recommend this, it was VERY bitter. 

Next up was assembly and I definitely felt like a Starbucks barista at this point. I filled half a cup with ice, poured in about a cup of almond milk (but any milk is fine) and stirred in a spoonful of the coffee. I recommend splitting the coffee with another person, as this recipe makes a large amount and dumping in the whole thing would make for a pretty bitter cup.

Once I mixed everything together, it was time for the moment of truth. Was this coffee worth all of the hype that TikTok gave it? After taking one sip, I came to my conclusion: absolutely! It tasted like I was enjoying some Starbucks from the comfort of my own home. It has a rich flavor yet maintains a light and refreshing texture. 

FINAL THOUGHTS

Whipped coffee is definitely something fun and delicious that shakes up the average at-home brew. In reflecting on the recipe itself, it is actually very flexible. Virtually any kind of instant coffee will do the trick and its taste is easily customizable through adding more or less sugar in the whipping process. Feel free to add any kind of milk and/or creamer, but I found vanilla almond milk to taste great. 

Next time you’re bored in quarantine and want to be your own barista, I 10/10 recommend this recipe!