For some, summer is the season for refreshing, ice-cold beverages like iced tea and tropical cocktails with flavors like pineapple and coconut — anything to go with what’s on the grill at a summer BBQ. Or maybe you’re loading up your summer sweet tooth with frozen drinks like milkshakes and smoothies. But when it comes to summery drinks, we can’t leave iced coffee out of the conversation. Afterall, we still need that morning caffeine boost (plus, we can start the day with coffee and end on cocktails)! And with coconut cloud coffee you can have the best of both worlds — coffee and that tropical coconut flavor.
This coffee drink has popped up on TikTok as the perfectly refreshing coffee option for summer since it features coconut water as a prominent ingredient. Plus, as is key when it comes to trending drinks, it looks cool with a puff of coffee-flavored cloud sitting atop a clear base of water and ice (fancy ice recommended but not required). So forget about summer’s sunny days and enjoy a cloudy (coffee) day instead with a coconut cloud coffee.
What’s in coconut cloud coffee?
The “cloud” in cloud coffee comes from the fluffy frothed espresso that is poured over ice and coconut water for that fresh, coconutty essence. Yup, that’s right, coconut water. I was a little surprised too, but hey, don’t let your initial reaction cloud your judgement. The espresso “cloud” is made by combining heavy cream, espresso, and some kind of sweetener — TikTok users used everything from agave to maple syrup to vanilla syrup to regular sugar.
And voila! A coffee drink as light as the clouds to start your morning with, or sit back and relax with in the late afternoon.
How can you make coconut cloud coffee for yourself?
If you want to try out this cloud coffee for yourself, TikTok has got you covered like the sky on a cloudy day with recipes and instructional videos. User @ac_homecafe provides simple instructions in the caption of her video, claiming the drink “tastes like coffee ice-cream.”
First, froth 1 tablespoon of agave, 1.5 ounces of heavy cream, and 1/2 ounces espresso together in a container of your choice (you can whisk this or use a frothing tool if you have one on hand like she does) for roughly 30 to 45 seconds. Then, put ice and pour 10 to 12 ounces of coconut water into your cup. Top with your coffee cloud.
If you’re looking for ways to make the espresso, you can make it if you have an espresso machine, or buy it pre-made. User @siri_niph recommends using a little milk if the cloud is too thick to pour, and garnishes their cloud coffee with cocoa powder.
Twists on coconut cloud coffee
And of course, other TikTok users have made variations of cloud coffee in case you can’t get enough. User @baristainpajamas spices (or sweetens) his cloud coffee up with honey, mixing honey and water for the water base instead of coconut water and using honey as the sweetener in the coffee cloud.
If you can manage to get your hands on some matcha (hard to do with the current shortage), you can make a matcha cloud instead of a coffee one. User @siri_niph froths 3 tablespoons heavy cream, 2 tablespoons milk, 1 tablespoon vanilla syrup, and 1 teaspoon of matcha powder and pours over pink(!) coconut water. But they note that regular coconut water will work just fine too.
May you find your way to cloud 9 with all of these cloud coffee (or tea) recipes.