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Winding my way down the narrow, cobblestone streets of Guanajuato, Mexico, my university town, my steps would quicken in anticipation as I approached Plaza de la Paz.
The plaza sits in a gentle, sloping triangle bordered by sidewalk cafes on one side, treacherously high sidewalks on another, and a grand church where I would get married in future on the third.
Why the anticipation? It was my weekly, standing date with my closest friends to have an authentic Mexican Café con Leche and a chat, of course.
Coffee Day
That’s why September 29th isn’t just any day for me — it’s National Coffee Day! A day that evokes memories of the many wonderful meetings and sweet conversations.
Conversations I’ve had, not only with my college amigas in Plaza de la Paz, but also with my mom back home and my high school friends years ago, all while sipping coffee in an outdoor café.
In addition to that, when my babies were young, Café Thursdays, as we dubbed them, were a lifesaver for me when I needed to have a conversation with someone of an age over, say, three, and my mom-friends and I would meet to enjoy a cup of coffee and a talk.
In Mexico, a favorite phrase among friends, “vamos a tomarnos un café,” means “let’s go have a cup of coffee,” and is how we say, let’s get together and chat.
What’s a Mexican Cafe Con Leche
Like everywhere, there are many coffee options in Mexico. But the runaway favorite in many parts of Mexico is something called Café con Leche. It translates as coffee with milk, which, of course, it isn’t!
We use whole or evaporated milk, or a mix of the two, with some coffee mixed in, a dash of vanilla, and an even dashier sprinkle of cinnamon.
Milk with coffee, as a title, would strike closer to reality.
Making Café con Leche without an Espresso Machine
I have a confession to make. I neither own a coffee machine nor have an espresso machine. In México, I used to make my coffee in a pot on the stove.
Consequently, when I moved to the USA I didn’t even think of getting a machine. However, I remember clearly the day my husband introduced me to the French press. It changed my life.
So there it is, you don’t need a coffee machine or an espresso machine to make cafe con leche, you just need either a pot with some sort of strainer or a French Press, easy. Of course, if you do have a machine, by all means, use it!
Mexican Café con Leche
Makes 4 cups
- 2 cups water
- 4 tablespoons ground Mexican coffee
- 1 cup evaporated milk
- 1 cup milk of your preference
- 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract (optional)
- Sugar to taste, or the sweetener of your choice
- Ground cinnamon for decoration (optional)
Warm up water, it needs to be very hot but not boiling hot (If you have a coffee machine, perk up two cups of your preferred coffee).
Measure ground coffee into the French press and pour hot water over it. Set aside.
Warm up the evaporated milk and the milk. You can also use just one type of milk if you like, but the evaporated milk gives a special creaminess to this special treat. Add vanilla, as you wish.
Pour half a cup of coffee into your coffee mug. Add milk, sugar or sweetener of your choice and top with a dash of ground cinnamon to taste, repeat for each mug.
If you like foam as I do, you can use a milk frother.
Enjoy!
Mexican Café con Leche
Ingredients
- 2 cups water
- 4 tablespoons ground Mexican coffee
- 1 cup evaporated milk
- 1 cup milk of your preference
- 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract optional
- Sugar to taste, or sweetener of your choice
- Ground cinnamon for decoration optional
Instructions
- Warm up water, it needs to be very hot but not boiling hot (If you have a coffee machine, perk up two cups of your preferred coffee).
- Measure ground coffee into the French press and pour hot water over it. Set aside.
- Warm up the evaporated milk and the milk. You can also use just one type of milk if you like, but the evaporated milk gives a special creaminess to this special treat. Add vanilla, as you wish.
- Pour half a cup of coffee into your coffee mug. Add milk, sweeten it and top with a dash of ground cinnamon to taste, repeat for each mug.
- If you like foam as I do, you can use a milk frother.
Did you make this recipe?
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