Iced Peanut Butter Cup Latte {how to make iced coffee}

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The 4th of July is a huge day at the Hungry Harps house - not only is it the day of our annual Independence Day bash but it's also Mr. Hungry Harps' first day of summer break. {he is a college instructor} Lots of celebrating going on and lots of fun to be had!! One thing that is a total requirement on the 4th is coffee. It is a guarantee that we will be up late on July 3rd getting ready for the festivities and then turning around and waking up at some unholy hour on the 4th - it's all part of our tradition... However, this year even I'm excited to wake up with the sun rising - and it's all because of the most awesome gift I've received in a while. {a gift that will help me quickly learn how to make iced coffee!!}

Here is a clue...

I know what you are thinking, it's a contortionist who just happens to also be a barista. Seems legit, it was totally my first thought too. However, it turned out to be a Keurig and I couldn't have been more excited about it!! (although the contortionist would have been pretty cool too.} I was starting to feel like the last person on Earth to own one of these bad boys until the Keurig Walmart Team sent this wonderful package to my doorstep! And as if a Keurig K40 Elite{in Coconut White} was not an awesome enough gift on it's own, the Keurig Walmart Team also included three packs of possibly the best k-cup flavors out there: The Original Donut Shop® Sweet & Creamy Regular Iced Coffee, Lipton® Refresh Iced Sweet Tea and Vitamin Burst® Strawberry Pomegranate Iced Fruit Brew.

Wait, what? Ice brew in a Keurig? Oh yes, my friend. We're talking iced coffee, iced tea and iced fruit brews! I seriously had no idea that a Keurig could be used for cold drinks, but I do know that this discovery comes at the perfect time of year - the blazing season of summer.

Brewing iced drinks with the Keurig is just as simple as brewing up a cup of something hot - it just adds a small extra step of stopping by your freezer for some ice first. I was totally skeptical of how the hot coffee wasn't going to just melt all the ice and leave me with a watered down, luke-warm beverage. However, that was not the case at all! Instead, I took a sip of a cold and rich-tasting iced coffee - completely impressed. All I had to do was follow three simple steps:

1. Fill a 16-oz. plastic cup with ice. {the plastic mason cups I used were purchased at Walmart.}

2. Insert Brew Over Ice K-Cup pack or Vue pack and brew on 6-oz or 8-oz setting.

3. Stir and enjoy!

And just like that you also know how to make iced coffee, without the help of a contortionist barista!

For the Iced Peanut Butter Cup Latte, I added an extra step of stirring in a homemade peanut butter & chocolate syrup then adding whipped cream along with more chocolate syrup and chopped peanuts. A couple of these tasty treats are going to help Mr. Hungry Harps and I to kick off the day on July 4th and also make his first day of summer break a little sweeter.

Iced Peanut Butter Cup Latte
(PRINTABLE RECIPE)
makes 2 drinks
Ingredients
1/2 cup half & half
2 tablespoons chocolate syrup
2 tablespoons creamy peanut butter
2 brewed 6oz. iced coffees {I used The Original Donut Shop® Sweet & Creamy Regular Iced Coffee}
optional: whipped cream, chopped nuts for garnish
Directions
1. In small saucepan, heat half & half, chocolate syrup and peanut butter over medium-high heat. Stirring ocassionally, bring to boil and let simmer for a few minutes. Make sure that all peanut butter is dissolved and mixture is smooth. Remove from heat and set aside. {will work best if lukewarm when added to iced coffee}
2. Brew cups of iced coffee. Divide peanut butter mixture between two cups of coffee, stir well and add more ice if needed. Garnish with whipped cream, additional chocolate syrup and chopped peanuts.
3. Enjoy!

While I was at Walmart picking up these snazzy plastic mason cups I also checked out what they had to offer when it came to K-Cups. Oh me, oh my! There is a huge selection available and I already have a mental list going of the ones I want to try: The Original Donut Shop® Sweet & Creamy Nutty Hazelnut Iced Coffee {this will be a perfect for a quick pick-me-up before fireworks on the 4th!}, Snapple® Peach Iced Tea {I lived off this stuff in high school!} and Celestial Seasonings® Southern Sweet Black Perfect Iced Tea. Wintertime will be another story and another blog post - there are so many options for warm brewed drinks and I will be so ready to try them out, when the weather gets cold again...

Until then, you will find a cold drink in my hand - freshly iced brewed from a Keurig. Hope everyone has a wonderful 4th of July that is filled with cold and refreshing beverages!