Espresso Milkshake from Summermoon (Austin, TX)

One Saturday in late March, we ditched Houston and headed to Austin. It was a beautiful sunny morning with hardly a cloud in the sky; there was enough of a breeze to stay comfortable in the 80°F weather. We saw plenty of bluebonnets and wildflowers along the highways and I even convinced C to stop for pictures along highway 36. I was shocked he stopped after we'd spent a whole Saturday the prior weekend driving around looking for bluebonnets, with success!

Just like our first trip to Austin, our first stop in town was at Summermoon Coffee Bar. Last November, C had a "golden weekend," those coveted two days off in a row that only come around every few months, so we visited his best friend from high school who lives in Austin. As soon as we arrived, we stopped at a coffee shop for a "study date" so that C could knock off a few sets of practice questions for his third (and final) medical licensing exam (which he passed! Woo hoo!). While he studied, Elliot and I goofed off.

At one point, Elliot disappeared and returned with an espresso milkshake for C. I'm not a coffee drinker (nor is Elliot), but  C convinced us to try it. It was amazing. Creamy, but not from ice cream, sweet, ever-so-slightly chocolatey, with an earthy, coffee flavor. Summermoon fire-roasts their coffee in-house, so their coffee has a distinct woodiness. Every time I bring up that milkshake, C laughs at me because I claim that I don't like coffee. He also got a kick out of me finishing all of his lattes in Guatemala. Ok, I'll admit it: coffee is growing on me. Now, can I have another espresso milkshake, please? I set off to recreate it at home.

This second time we were at Summermoon, I watched the barista make the milkshake. First, he put ice cubes and a tiny bit of moon milk in the bottom of the blender. He grabbed a to-go cup and drizzled in chocolate syrup. Then, he poured hot espresso into the blender. After that, I got distracted, but I'm pretty sure he added more moon milk (and maybe more ice cubes), blended it, and poured it into the plastic cup. I started drinking it, and the rest is history. It was gone by the time we made it to the Barton Creek Green Belt for our walk.

According to Summermoon's Facebook page, an espresso milkshake is "espresso, moon milk and ghiradelli sweet ground chocolate, blended with ice." So, what is moon milk? Summermoon's top secret, homemade creamer/milk made of 7 ingredients. Coupled with the wood-fired coffee, moon milk gives their drinks a uniquely delicious flavor that their devotees can't get anywhere else. Though many of their patrons are convinced it's made of crack cocaine because it's so addictive, I have the impression that moon milk is made of cream, sweetened condensed milk, other milks and vanilla.

Materials
ice cubes
sweetened milk?
espresso
chocolate syrup

Methods
1. In a blender, combine the ice cubes and milk. Pour in the hot espresso. Blend.
2. Drizzle chocolate syrup into a cup and pour in the milkshake.

Ok, that's not a helpful recipe. I don't even know what one of the ingredients is. So, I tried another route. I stopped at Whole Foods and picked up a jug of double espresso iced coffee with almond milk. I tried blending it with both ice and ice cream but neither gave me the desired result. To be fair, I wasn't digging the flavor of the coffee (I like almond milk, but apparently not with coffee). When I told my mom about the experience she asked, "Why do you always try to recreate things? Why not make it a treat for yourself whenever you're in Austin?" Though I don't want to, I will listen to her. Next time you find yourself in Austin, Texas, head over to Summermoon and try their milkshake!

Interested in making an espresso milkshake on your own? Here's the closest recipe I could find based on the ingredients I saw added (though it uses espresso powder instead of espersso). Give it a shot (pun intended) and report back!