An easy one-minute dark cinnamon infused spicy chocolate sauce is all it takes to transform your basic lattes into a mouthwatering drink! It’s made with a quick 2-ingredient dark chocolaty base that requires no cooking, and paired with the perfect hint of spice. This vegan Aztec Iced Mocha recipe is quick to make, rich, cool, and refreshing!
One latte a day! Not only for the caffeine, but also for that coffee flavor which I’ve always loved. That’s been my standard for years now.
About 3 years ago, I caved and bought one of my favorite kitchen gadgets…this Barista Express Espresso Machine. My brother had one, and I was tempted to get one myself. Of course, it’s not the cheapest of gadgets, so I had to convince my husband and myself that I would indeed use it everyday instead of heading to the closest coffee shop.
Well it’s 3 years later, and I stayed true to my word. I LOVE everything about this Espresso Machine…it’s easy to use, cleans easily, and I’ve had zero problems with it so far (and no I don’t work for their brand nor is this a sponsored post). I actually now understand the different coffee bean flavor profiles, and have more than made up for the cost of the machine. In fact, I prefer to take my own home-made latte to a coffee shop because I’m in love with the beans from a local coffee roaster, Ryan Bros. Coffee (yes…I think I’ve become an espresso snob).
Ultimately, the main reason I bought the Espresso Machine was because I was tired of feeling the need to stop at a coffee shop everyday an espresso drink.
Things were going well, until sometime last year when this awesome new ice cream shop opened up near the beach in Encinitas, California: Handel’s Ice Cream. They have a few great vegan ice cream flavors that are made in house and the kids love it. Of course soon after, I also discovered Lofty, a coffee shop a few doors down that I had been wanting to check out. And that’s where it started…
…my love for their Aztec Mocha with homemade almond milk or coconut milk. So Good 🙂
As much as I love ice cream, I couldn’t resist the spicy rich mocha (that happened to be vegan) with their homemade non-dairy milks. Of course I’ve had drinks like this before since many places offer a spicy mocha, but their particular combination was divine. To be quite honest, when served hot, it was a bit too rich for me, but when served over ice, it was to-die-for!!
So therein lays my desire to frequent that particular coffee shop. But because it’s out of my way most days, I don’t get to go as often as I would like. Of course when the heat came in, so did that craving for a cool spicy iced mocha, and there’s really no reason I can’t re-create something similar at home.
This Aztec Iced Mocha recipe is so so easy! I wanted something quick and fast, yet rich and flavorful, and that’s exactly what I created. I stayed with the name Aztec because of the dark chocolate flavored with cinnamon and red pepper, two spices commonly paired with chocolate in Aztec culture.
The key to this recipe is the dark cinnamon infused Aztec chocolate sauce I created. Here’s why it’s the PERFECT sauce:
- 2-ingredient base (maple syrup and cocoa powder)
- stable at room temperature
- requires no heating or cooking
- takes only 1 minute to make (yes…ONLY 1 MINUTE!)
By using cocoa powder, you get that dark chocolate flavor and avoid having to melt any chocolate. Once you have the chocolate sauce, the rest is easy!
Aztec Iced Mocha Recipe in 3 easy steps:
- Mix the hot espresso shot and chocolate sauce
- Add in the ice cubes
- Pour over your favorite non-dairy milk
That’s it! You have yourself a deliciously refreshing cool spicy iced mocha in minutes! This drink saved me over the summer, especially after those long days at the beach or pool. I love iced lattes in general, so it’s nice to spice it up every now and then with this easy combination.
Not a coffee fan? Make an iced chocolate milk drink instead! Not a spicy chocolate fan? Simply leave out the spices! With a 1-minute room temperature chocolate sauce, you really can’t go wrong.
Aztec Iced Mocha Recipe
INGREDIENTS
- 2 shots espresso , see notes below
- 1-2 cups soy milk , or any non-dairy milk (coconut or almond)
Chocolate Sauce:
- 1.5 tbsp cocoa powder , unsweetened
- 3 tbsp pure maple syrup
- 1/8 teasp cayenne pepper
- 1/8 teasp ground cinnamon
INSTRUCTIONS
To Make Chocolate Sauce:
- Combine all ingredients for the chocolate sauce in a small bowl.
- Mix well with a spoon until all of the cocoa powder is fully incorporated into the maple syrup (you may have to mix for awhile, but it will happen).
To Prepare Iced Mocha:
- Add 2 shots of hot espresso into the chocolate sauce and mix well.
- Divide the chocolate/espresso mixture equally into two glasses filled half way with ice.
- Pour your favorite non-dairy milk on top and enjoy!
Rashmi
All i can say is WOW!!!
I love this drink Anjali.
Truth be told…my sister and I don’t drink coffee HOT… But absolutely love the ice coffee drinks and how funny that you posted this recipe because last night my husband and i were just chatting about coffee machines and how I would love to get one for home, he still even said “But you don’t drink coffee”, hahaha!
I will definitely be re-creating this at home because all I crave these days are something cold and icy.
We are in our Spring season and its getting quite warm, i know summer will be the killer and the perfect time for this drink 🙂
Your pictures are ON POINT!
anjali
What an awesome review! Thank you SO much Rashmi!! I’ve really been into the iced coffee drinks as well, especially with this heat! This espresso machine is SO worth it, but definitely an up front investment. I love the taste of coffee, so I can’t get away from the one cup a day. And yes, you could modify this and add the chocolate sauce to any drink and it’d be great. It works best if you are able to mix the sauce into something hot before pouring it over ice so that everything mixes in well, otherwise it’s delicious! It’s sept here but still really hot and humid. Thanks Rashmi!
Maggie Unzueta
I’m looking at my coffee thinking I should be drinking this mocha instead. Printing recipe!
anjali
Haha! Yes you should…so good! Let me know if you try it. Thank you!
Pam
Looks delicious, easy and what a beautiful drink it makes! I love any recipe that’s versatile and this one definitely fits!
anjali
Thanks Pam! I love when the milk mixes in with the coffee for that marbled effect!
Karen @ Seasonal Cravings
This looks so delicious, I want to run make one right now. So easy to put together too! What a great afternoon pick me up before the kids get home from school.
anjali
Exactly ha! Thanks Karen!
Prasannahede
Love all iced coffee versions. This looks perfect for the heat.clicks are spot on.
anjali
Thank you!
Amy @ The Cook Report
Wow, this looks amazing!
anjali
Thanks Amy!!
Vanessa @ Veganfamilyrecipes
What a delicious iced drink! I love anything chocolate, coffee and spicy so this is absolutely perfect for me! Can’t wait to try it 🙂
anjali
Thanks Vanessa!!
Reshana
This has to be one of my favorite recipes Anjali.
As my sis mentioned, we are not hot coffee drinkers but I do love the iced ones.
I actually had an iced latte last week and it was delicious.
My hubby is a coffee drinker so I am sure this will work well with him on the hot days. Our summer seems to be creeping up on us.
Absolutely gorgeous pictures xx
This recipe deserves 10 stars **********
Jessica
Just made this with coffee from the keurig and it was fabulous!!!
anjali
Oh Awesome!! I wanted to try it with something like a keurig and see if the ratios still work out to update the recipe, so that’s great to hear!! Did you just add it to the top of your coffee with a little milk or creamer? Thanks so much for the review and trying it out! I have a feeling it’ll become a staple for you 🙂
Linda from Veganosity
This looks so amazingly delicious. I definitely need to try this. Although, this is not going to be good for my coffee addiction! 🙂
anjali
Haha…you and me both! I try to keep it to one cup only a day, but that middle of the day craving kicks in and all i want is an iced latte!!
Jasmine
This sounds amazing, and I LOVE the photo you got of the mix, so beautiful!
anjali
One of my favorite marble effects! When I was photographing this recipe, I knew I had to capture that shot 🙂
Sarah Newman
“An easy one-minute dark cinnamon infused spicy chocolate sauce” – nothing more needs to be said, LOL! Sounds divine!
anjali
We are drink twins then…
Tina
I’m for sure making this over the weekend!!! Can’t wait!
anjali
you’ll love it! one reader made it with her keurig and said it was awesome! You’d love this…
Natalie | Feasting on Fruit
This looks incredible! Not just the flavors but the gorgeous swirling photos too? Totally trying this!
anjali
The swirl is one of the best parts of my day…just watching it go in and mix…only a few seconds but i love that marbled look! thanks Natalie!
Strength and Sunshine
What a wonderful icy drink! Not only decadent tasting but beautiful too!
Erin
I love this recipe! I am a type 1 diabetic, so I can’t use maple syrup. Instead, I use maple-flavored monk fruit syrup. It works great. I also don’t have an espresso machine, so I add a couple teaspoons of instant espresso powder into the chocolate sauce and add boiling water. Works great! Thanks for the recipe.
anjali
That’s so great to hear! And I’ve been wanting to try the maple-flavored monk fruit syrup…will have to try it soon! Glad to know instant espresso powder works well in this recipe! Thank you for tyring it out!
Kay Hughes
Tremendously! The amazing recipe, Me and my family really enjoyed this recipe, and now I am making the different recipes from your site at weekend. Thank you, guys.
anjali
Yay!! Thank you for trying it out! Let me know which recipe you try out next! This is a favorite of mine and i have it once a week probably ha!