Combining rich coffee with sweetened condensed milk, Vietnamese iced coffee can quickly become a habit in the summer. The traditional recipe uses a Vietnamese press, which brews a single serving of strong coffee into a glass containing sweetened condensed milk. Pour the mixture over ice and you’ve got something magical.
I’ve always thought this would be a fantastic ice cream flavor, but heat makes me lazy, and all that stirring sounds like hard labor. Popsicles to the rescue. Sweetened condensed milk is blended throughout the top and bottom layers of this recipe, so you get a nice mix of the coffee and sweet cream flavor at the top, finishing off with a little vanilla at the bottom.
What you’ll need
Popsicle molds for 12 pops
2 cups of cold dark coffee (we used our French Roast coffee, brewed in a French press and cooled)
1- 14 ounce can sweetened condensed milk
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
1-1/2 cups heavy cream
Non-stick cooking spray (optional)
Directions
- Whisk the cold coffee and 2/3 cup of sweetened condensed milk together in a bowl and pour the mixture into your molds until each is about 3/4 full.*
- Freeze for 2 hours or until the mixture is slushy, but frozen enough to hold a popsicle stick. The harder first layer is, the better the separation will be. A slightly softer layer will create a swirl effect, which is just as delicious.
- In the meantime, mix together 6 tablespoons of the sweetened condensed milk, 1/4 teaspoon vanilla and 1-1/2 cups of the heavy cream.
- Fill the remaining space in the molds with the cream mixture (you may have a little left over, depending on the size of the mold).
- Freeze until very solid. Sweetened condensed milk takes a while to harden. Let it sit overnight or longer.
* A word about popsicle molds:
Having a stick come out in your hand while the rest of your frozen treat remains stuck in the mold is a frustration no one should have to suffer ever. I recommend silicone molds, but managed to have success with the old-fashioned plastic kind by spraying a little non-stick cooking spray inside before adding the coffee/milk mixture.
If that idea grosses you out, you can also dip the frozen pops in a bowl of warm water for 30 seconds or longer before pulling the sticks gently. I recommend doing that anyway, spray or no spray. While they are an awkward shape to eat, Dixie cup pops might be the simplest method of all. Simply peel the paper off, no tugging (or heartbreak) required.
