Coffee is awesome, but sometimes there's stuff getting between you and that hot, glorious cup of caffeinated goodness.
Fortunately, the world is full of coffee lovers who've shared their inventive alternative ways to get the fix we all need so much.
1. Make cappuccino in a French press.
It turns out the plunger in a French press is great for frothing up milk. Just make some espresso or strong coffee, heat some milk, and froth it up in the French press!
2. Straight up eat coffee beans.
If you can't handle the taste, there's always the chocolate-coated option. But the beans don't taste that bad and there's literally no more direct way to get the caffeine flowing through your bloodstream.
3. They're like tea bags, but for coffee.
Tie off a filter with some unflavored dental floss and you've got a travel-friendly coffee bag. That beats a mug of Earl Grey any day.
4. Don't scald yourself.
So you want to get that coffee into you, but it's hotter than the surface of the sun. Solution: Put some coffee creamers in the freezer, plop them in your mug and don't burn your tongue.
5. Treat your mug right.
Pouring hot coffee into a cold mug can mess with the flavor and cool the coffee. Here's a simple solution to warm your mug up while you wait for the java to brew.
6. Bulletproof coffee bites.
I shouldn't need to tell you what an awesome boost bulletproof coffee can be. You know what's better? Pre-making these gems so you're ready to go whenever, wherever.
7. Avoid spillage with those dumb to-go lids.
If your local cafe uses those flip-top lids (*ahem* Tim Hortons...), flip the lid into the coffee, rather than over the top, to keep it from spilling while you drive.
8. Cool it faster with a spoon.
If that molten-hot diner coffee is too hot for your palate, just dunk your spoon in and leave it. You'll be surprised at how quickly it comes down to a drinkable temperature.
9. When it comes to iced coffee, go strong or go home.
Iced coffee needs to be served over ice, which dilutes the coffee. That means you should brew extra-strong coffee if you want it to taste halfway decent.
10. Use a French press to make espresso.
Espresso is just strong coffee, so you can replicate it pretty easily without a fancy espresso maker. Just grind your coffee super-fine and use a small amount of water.
11. Forget the freezer, get a decent container instead.
Freezing coffee doesn't help keep it any fresher, trust me, I've done the real-life research. The key is to keep it away from moisture, light, and air. Pick up a good opaque container.
12. Never have to guess again.
You just never know how fresh the coffee in your office is. If you're sick of spitting out hours-old coffee, make a simple notification device using styrofoam cups.
13. Game Starbucks.
Take it from me, a longtime Starbucks barista: Starbucks goes hard on its Christmas blend, then discounts it heavily — like, 75% off — come January. It's delicious, high quality coffee for super cheap.
14. On the go? Drink it cowboy-style.
The bar-none simplest way to make coffee while camping is cowboy coffee. Basically, heat up water, add coffee, let the grounds settle and drink. You'll drink a few grounds, but they're good for you!
15. Drip coffee in a pinch.
It doesn't take much to make good drip coffee, but what if you have little more than a filter? Add a mason jar and you're ready to go with this clever hack.
16. Shake it off.
Pouring ground coffee from the bag it came in is a great way to get coffee grounds spilled everywhere. Create a coffee shaker for mess-free distribution of coffee grounds.
What are your go-to coffee hacks? Tell us in the comments!
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