Iced Mocha Caramel Shake

And when I say better this mind-boggling Iced Mocha Caramel Shake comes to my my immediately. Coffee-lover? Go ahead with it. Chocolate-lover? Go ahead with it. Ice cream lover? Go ahead with it. Just go ahead with it, any which way. You get me. See, it’s almost 40ºC outside and feels like 45ºC. Even if you meet a friend at CCD or Barista, you order one such drink. So listen to me, call your friend home and make it for him/her. That way you save money (not calories, unfortunately) and the heat as well. I am a milk-hater, but still I love it. My mother is an even bigger milk-hater, and she asks me to make it for her at 1 o’clock at night and wipes the entire glass clean. I kid you not! So you know how addictive it is? Good!
I have just made one version of this decadence here. But feel free to play around with toppings. Use butterscotch chips, toasted marshmallows, cacao nibs, peanut butter cups, crumbled oreos or any other cookie, leftover brownie bits, chocolate truffles or anything exotic (or non-exotic) that you can lay your hands on. I had most of these things at an arm’s length, but chose to go with these many because the shake was already spilling out of the glass! And before you think that I had this entire thing and probably have burst by now, let me tell you, I made my Mother skip lunch so that I could feed her this mid afternoon (and spare my humble self from the sin). Appreciate my self-control, please? Thank you! 🙂

Makes: 1 tall glass
Ingredients:

Very strong black coffee, freshly brewed and cooled: 1/2 cup (or more, depending upon the intensity you want)
Milk, cold: 3/4 cup
Vanilla ice cream: 2 scoops (you can use chocolate or coffee ice cream as well)
Sugar, preferably brown: 2 tbsp (or according to taste)
Cocoa powder: 1 tbsp
Chocolate syrup (I used Hershey’s): 4 tbsp + for lining the glass and for garnish
Caramel: 4 tbsp + for lining the glass and for garnish (I used this caramel recipe except the salt)
Whipped cream: for topping (if you don’t have whipped cream you can use another scoop of ice cream for topping)
Chocolate chips: 1 tbsp for garnish
Chopped nuts: 1 tbsp for garnish
Ice cubes: Lots and lots of it

* All the ingredient proportions are subject to taste. Feel free to cut down on the coffee content and up the sugar content according to your taste. You can also use sweetened cold coffee mix, but in that case eliminate the sugar. But please don’t compromise with the ice. You’d need all of it for the smooth, creamy and luscious texture. The more the ice, the thicker your shake.

Method:

1. Line the inner wall of the glass with chocolate and caramel syrup. Shove it in the freezer for 15 minutes for them to hold shape.

2. Throw everything (apart from the ingredients for garnish) in the mixer and give it a few good blends till the consistency is thick and creamy. You can of course add some chocolate chips or chopped nuts in your shake but I chose to avoid it. This in itself was rich enough.

3. Pour into a tall glass, add a generous helping of whipped cream. Drizzle chocolate and caramel syrups and sprinkle the chips and nuts. Show a Greg Chappell finger to Summer! 🙂

PS: This post was written last week, when the first splash of rains hadn’t yet lashed the city. Hence the rant. We’re somewhat better off now, thanks for your concern. 🙂
Summertime Love: Day 2
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