Dalgona Coffee, milk tea, yogurt drinks—these are some of the treats everyone’s been obsessed with lately. And while we completely understand why people love these food trends, there are actually plenty of other options out there—ones that aren’t as difficult to make.
Take ice candy, for example: When was the last time you enjoyed this childhood snack? Another crowd favorite is coffee jelly; it’s usually a dessert option at a restaurant or wedding, but the good news is it doesn’t take a lot of effort for you to create this at home. To take it up a notch, have you ever considered combining the two? Because the DIY coffee jelly ice candy sounds pretty spectacular. Should this be added to your must-try treats, keep reading.
How to make coffee jelly ice candy
As the name suggests, coffee jelly is a dessert made up of coffee and gelatin. It was published in several British and American cookbooks, but since the 60s, it’s been a popular dessert in Japanese cuisine. It’s sweet and light—hindi nakakaumay.
Here’s what you’ll need to make the coffee jelly:
- 2 cups of hot water
- 1 1/2 tbsps. of instant coffee powder
- 2 tbsps. of sugar
- 3 tsps. of unflavored gelatin powder (or gulaman)
Process:
- In a square or rectangle container, pour the hot water then add the coffee powder and sugar first. Stir.
- Next, add the unflavored gelatin powder then add again.
- Cover it with an aluminum foil or plastic wrap then refrigerate until it sets.
- Slice the coffee jelly into cubes when it’s ready.
There are two steps to making the ice candy base:
- 1 can of evaporated milk
- 1/2 pack of all-purpose cream
- 1 can of condensed milk
- 1 tbsp. of dissolved coffee
and
- 2 cups of hot water
- 1/2 can of evaporated milk
- 1/2 cup of sugar
- 1/2 cup of cornstarch
Process:
- For the first step, combine the evaporated milk, all-purpose cream, condensed milk, and dissolved coffee into a bowl. Some people like to use really strong coffee to get a richer flavor. Mix well.
- Next, in a medium-sized pan, mix the hot water, evaporated milk, sugar, and cornstarch together. Stir until it’s fully dissolved and cook in medium heat until it thickens.
- Pour this into the first bowl and mix until it’s smooth.
When that’s done, take an ice candy plastic bag and combine the base with a few chunks of ice candy. Do as many as you can then leave to freeze overnight.
But this isn’t the only way you can enjoy coffee jelly. Filipinos usually eat coffee jelly with some type of watered down cream, but you can actually eat is as is with whipped cream on top.
If you’re feeling fancy, you can serve it in a frozen iced coffee. For the base, blend coffee, syrup, cream, sugar, and ice together. If you have vanilla in your pantry, feel free to add that, too. Add the cubed coffee jelly into the drink (and use a fat straw, the kind you’d use for bubble tea, so the jelly doesn’t just get left at the bottom of the glass).
A Facebook user also thought of adding Oreos to your coffee jelly dessert, where you’d pour your cream base first then add crushed Oreos on top of that. You can also do alternating layers if you want.
Don’t worry, there’s also a way for vegetarians to enjoy this simple treat. In case you didn’t know, gelatin is “made by prolonged boiling of skin, cartilage, and bones from animals. It's made primarily from the stuff meat industries have left over—we're talking about pork skins, horns, and cattle bones.” And it’s found in a lot of candy—yes, including the gummy bears you enjoy so much. Gelatin actually has a lot of uses because it’s made of collagen, which helps the skin, hair, and nails stay healthy. It also has 18 amino acids!
While gelatin has some health benefits, we understand that not everyone is going to want to consume this. A good substitute for gelatin, and something you can use for your coffee jelly recipe, is Agar Agar. It sets like gelatin but it’s a harder type of jelly. Consider this possibility when you make coffee jelly.
Enjoy!