DRINK: Recipe -- Iced, Iced (Espresso), Baby

Long, muggy, East Coast summer days are here and they've been wrecking havoc on my iced coffee habit, leaving me with a lukewarm coffee-scented water if I so much as pause between sips. For the days when the sun shows no mercy to those needing a cold caffeine fix, I've turned to iced espresso drinks. Shorter, stronger, and a little sweet, they're like the Tyrion Lannister of the coffee realm.

Caffe' Shakerato, which is just "shaken coffee" in Italian, is a refreshing and crazy easy pick-me-up. All you need is coffee, sugar, ice, and some kind of shaking device-- like a mason jar or a martini shaker. Simple syrup in a recipe used to intimidate me because it reeked of effort. Turns out, it's actually really, really simple. Equal parts sugar and water boiled and stirred until the sugar is dissolved. Then, cool it and add it to cocktails (or coffee) and suddenly your sweetened beverage world is blown wide open.

Caffe' Shakerato

Serves 1

2 oz espresso
1 oz simple syrup
Ice

Combine all your ingredients in a martini shaker and then get to shaking. Shake time varies on your arm strength but you want a frothy finished product.
Pour and enjoy.

Bon Appetit magazine substitutes 2 oz of cold brew for espresso in their version of the Shakerato and they also generated some serious shaking froth. For more iced espresso beverages, check out this Affogato Coretto from Boston chef Jody Adams. Coffee, booze, and ice cream... yes, please! Or head to Somerville coffee shop Bloc 11 for their coffee soda. They combine soda water, espresso, and vanilla syrup for an out-of-the-ordinary summer buzz that you could easily shake up at home. And just like that, we're over the humidity hump.