Dalonga Coffee

Coffee plays an essential role in any Italian-American household. For any major holiday, my grandmother would put on a "pot" of coffee for everyone. I use the word pot in quotations because it was an actual pot. Like something you would see at a catering event. EVERYONE would have a cup, or two or six. It can be 8 at night and my mom will ask me for a cup of coffee. Whenever my twin brother comes over he asks, "Can I get some coffee, Man?" Most of the family enjoys their coffee black, though some do like cream.

Over the last few months, I kept seeing images of something called Dalonga Coffee. I had no idea what it was. As someone who prefers black coffee, I thought it was going to be gross, but after I tried it, I loved it. Essentially, it's an instant coffee cream that is enjoyed over a glass of milk and ice. I thought it might be good on coffee, but it's quite strong and bitter on it's own and I think coffee would enhance that bitterness. It might be good though! The flavor (with the milk) reminds me of a Rhode Island drink called coffee milk. If you liked that, you'd really appreciate this.

This recipe only takes 2 minutes to make and is a 1:1:1 ratio which makes it VERY easy to scale whether you want 1 cup or 10 cups. The recipe below serves 4 people. If this black coffee loving Italian-American can love this drink, you probably will too.

Ingredients:

4 Tablespoon of instant coffee
4 Tablespoon of granulated sugar
4 Tablespoon of near boiling water
Milk or Brewed Coffee

Directions:
Put the instant coffee, sugar, and water into a bowl or container. I use a 4 Cup Pyrex Liquid measure. Using a hand mixer set on medium-high, whip until very thick. Should take only a minute or so. 

Fill a glass up with some ice and add milk until 3/4 filled. Top with a few heaping spoonfuls of the coffee "cream." Let your guests stir it in as it's part of the fun. You could also add it directly to hot coffee or iced coffee, but be warned, I never tried that and I can't vouch for the flavor/taste.