Ahhhhh…..one of my most treasured food “discoveries” when I moved to Mexico in my 20′s was the café de olla. I had never tried one before and didn’t even know it existed. This coffee is a delicacy and it’s due to the patience put into preparing it with just the right ingredients like piloncillo, cinnamon and freshly ground coffee.

And because it’s such a special drink, it’s very difficult to find it made from scratch, and that’s even given that I live in Los Angeles. The reality is I don’t have the time to prepare it myself, so I was fascinated to recently find out that NESCAFÉ has created an instant coffee version of the café de olla. I have to admit that I approached the tasting of it with a bit of hesitation because I expected to not like it, but I was wrong. The taste can’t replace the original, but it comes close enough to make me want to drink some more.

To take the Cafe de Olla experience even a bit further, I’m sharing this recipe of Café de Olla Atole made using the NESCAFÉ Café de Olla Instant Coffee Beverage Granules. Would love to know what you think!

Café de Olla Atole

Estimated Times:
· Preparation Time: 5 mins
· Cooking Time: 15 mins
· Yield Size: 4
· Yield Description: to 6 servings

Ingredients:
· 4 cups milk
· 3 tablespoons cornstarch
· 1/2 cup granulated sugar
· 3 tablespoons NESCAFÉ Café de Olla Instant Coffee Beverage Granules
· 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
· Ground cinnamon for garnish

Instructions:
1. Combine milk and cornstarch in medium saucepan and whisk until combined.
2. Add sugar and coffee granules; cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly for about 15 minutes or until thickened (do not boil).
3. Remove from heat and add vanilla extract.
4. Serve warm and sprinkled with cinnamon.

Serving Suggestions: This fragant atole is wonderful with pan de muertos!

Are you on Pinterest? NESTLÉ ABUELITA and NESCAFÉ Café de Olla launched a Día de los Muertos-themed sweepstakes on Pinterest.  Just follow the instructions on how to participate by visiting Pinterest.com/vivecultura for the chance to win up to $200 in prizes! One grand prize winner will receive a $200 gift card and two first prize winners will receive gift cards for $50!  All entries must be received by November 2, 2012. ¡Suerte!

Disclosure: No compensation was received for this post. We just loved the recipe and thought you would too.