Announcing our most delicious collaboration/giveaway yet!  Nové Luxury Edibles is partnering with creative foodies MattyEaats, LostBoys5280, and Keith Graham in honor of the launch of Dead Veggie’s new “Bloody Matty” cocktail mix (available 8/18).  This amazing giveaway includes the unreleased Bloody Matty mix, various Nové chocolate bar flavors, a bottle of spicy raspberry jam, and plenty more!  To add to this basket of goodies, Dead Veggies has created a new French toast recipe, topped with a cannabis-infused dalgona coffee whipped cream.  Get ready to have your Sunday brunches ramped up!

Flatlay composition.  French toast topped with cannabis-infused dalgona coffee cream rests on a table with Dead Veggies Bloody Matty mix and Nove Raspberry Bramble.

Dead Veggies wants YOU to thank your vegetables!

Dead Veggies is a new food company based in Colorado creating kimchi-based condiments.  The founders, Matt and Daniel, started Dead Veggies to reimagine Korean food in a unique and contemporary way.  Having spent their entire lives eating and making kimchi with their families inspired them to create a product that authentically represented their experiences as second-generation Korean-Americans.

Matt and Daniel explain how “authentic” means a different standard for every person depending on their individual experiences.  For them, Dead Veggies lets them combine their cultural identities and produce a product “authentic” to their own experiences but prepared with traditional Korean methods.

What is Dalgona coffee?

Dalgona coffee is a whipped coffee drink made with instant coffee, sugar, milk, and water.  The coffee is layered with a frothy, whipped coffee cream on top and iced or hot milk on the bottom.  Because it’s such a simple drink to make, many people have been inspired to make their own variations, including ones made with matcha and pumpkin spice.

Where did Dalgona coffee originate?

Dalgona coffee has a very odd history.  And the truth is, the drinks themselves don’t even contain the main ingredient it was named after.

A Korean sponge-like sweet, Dalgona (달고나) is believed to have appeared in the city of Busan during the 1960s or 70s.  This food exists throughout many parts of the globe, but under different names.  Some of the alternate names for Dalgona include sponge cake (New York and Pennsylvania), cinder toffee (Britain), honeycomb toffee (South Africa), sea foam (California and Pacific Coast), and karumeyaki (Japan). 

The coffee drink itself is inspired by an Indian coffee beverage called phenti hui coffee, or beaten coffee.  The main difference is that phenti hui coffee pours milk on top of the whipped mix, whereas dalgona coffee does the reverse. 

Another odd fact about Dalgona coffee, as mentioned before, is that it’s not made with any dalgona.  The name was actually coined by South Korean actor Jung Il-woo during an appearance on a show called Stars’ Top Recipe at Fun-Staurant in January 2020, after remarking how the taste of the whipped cream reminded him of dalgona.  However, the COVID pandemic was the largest player responsible for popularizing it. 

After social distancing orders began in South Korea, there was a significant rise in recipes and videos showing how to make dalgona coffee at home.  Pretty soon, DIY dalgona coffee recipes began appearing across multiple South Korean YouTube channels before becoming a viral sensation on Tiktok under the hashtag #dalgonacoffeechallenge.  Many people now refer to the drink as the official ‘quarantine coffee.’

Woman barista making dalgona coffee. Metal whisk with cream from coffee and sugar. Culinary whisk in woman hand. Cold coffee drink and desert. Delicious coffee beverage. Professional service

Best tips for making your own Dalgona Coffee

Although this is probably the easiest coffee drink you’ll ever make, there are a few things to remember to ensure you get the right taste and consistency. 

  • Use instant coffee ONLY

While you’d think it wouldn’t make much of a difference, many people will attest that instant coffee works better than ground coffee.  The ground coffee will not dissolve well in hot water compared to the instant.  The consistency of the drink won’t be the same and will have less frothiness to it.  That means K-cups are also a no-go.  Some have found drip coffee can work as well, but it can still be tricky to get just right. 

  • Don’t leave out the sugar

The sugar is key to getting the kind of frothiness you want for the foam.  Those who made the dalgona coffee without it found the cream doesn’t get as light or fluffy and won’t hold its form for long.  However, you can substitute it with unsweetened or other non-white sugars like brown, raw, or coconut sugar. 

  • It goes great with either hot or cold milk

As if this coffee drink couldn’t get any better, it’s great whether it’s hot or cold!  Non-dairy alternatives, like oat or almond milk, also work just as well.  But note that on this particular French toast recipe, milk is not necessary — we’ll just be using the cannabis-infused dalgona coffee cream! 

  • Using an electric mixer is easier and faster than doing it by hand

Hand mixers and electric whisks are far better and faster at mixing the whipped coffee cream.  While you can do it by hand, it will take much longer and may start to hurt your arm and hand after a couple of minutes.  Milk frothers also take a considerable amount of time and need to be very powerful to create such a thick and frothy texture.

Nove Raspberry Bramble chocolate bar resting on a wood surface, surrounded by raspberries and chunks of chocolate.

Recipe: French Toast with Cannabis-Infused Dalgona Coffee Cream

The sweet and bitter qualities of Dalgona coffee perfectly complement the tartness of Nové’s Raspberry Bramble bar.  With the addition of French toast, fresh raspberries, and a spicy raspberry coulis, this recipe is guaranteed to make anyone a breakfast hero in 30 minutes or less.  For a balanced breakfast, serve your French toast with the new, collaborative “Bloody Matty” cocktail mix from Dead Veggies and MattyEaats.

Prep: 20 minutes

Cook: 10 minutes

Total: 30 minutes

Yield: 4 servings

Your Shopping List To Create Dalgona French Toast

INGREDIENTS:

  • 4 T Instant Coffee
  • 4 T Granulated Sugar
  • 1 bar Nové Raspberry Bramble (50mg THC, 12.5mg per serving)
  • 4 T Hot Water
  • 3 ea. Eggs, Whole
  • 2 cups Milk, Whole
  • 1 tsp Cinnamon
  • 2 T Brown Sugar
  • 1 tsp Kosher Salt
  • 8 thick slices Korean Milk Bread (substitute with shokupan, challah, or brioche)
  • 2 cups Fresh raspberries
  • 1 tsp Cocoa Powder
  • Optional Whipped Cream

OPTIONAL:

Spicy Raspberry Coulis

  • 1 cups Fresh raspberries
  • 1 cups Granulated sugar
  • 1 cups Water
  • ½ ea. Jalapeno
  • 1 T Korean Chili Flake (gochugaru)
  • 5 oz Smuckers (or your favorite) raspberry jam
  • 1 oz. Elderflower liqueur (we used St. Germain)
  • 1 ea. Lemon juice/zest
  • 1/2 tsp. Kosher salt

Fresh toast topped with cannabis-infused dalgona coffee cream.  A Nove box and Bloody Matty are in the foreground.

Step One: Make The Cannabis-Infused Dalgona Coffee Cream

  1. Dissolve the instant coffee, sugar, and Nové Raspberry Bramble bar with hot water inside a mixing bowl.  To adjust the dosage, add more or less Raspberry Bramble (divide the total mg’s by 4 to calculate mg/serving)
  2. Using a whisk, hand mixer, or stand mixer, whip the mixture for about 5-8 minutes until stiff peaks form.  Scrape down the sides to ensure every bit gets whipped.  Keep cool in the fridge until ready to DEVOUR.

Step Two: Stir Together The Spicy Raspberry Coulis

  1. In a small saucepot, combine all ingredients except lemon juice/zest.  Bring to a boil, then immediately turn down the heat to low and simmer for 7 minutes. 
  2. Turn off the heat and add the juice/zest of one lemon. 
  3. Remove the seeds with a strainer or chinois and transfer to the fridge to cool down. 

Step Three: Fire Up The Skillet and Assemble Your Dalgona French Toast

  1. In a small bowl, combine the milk, eggs, brown sugar, and cinnamon.  Set aside briefly until ready to use.
  2. In a 10-inch or 12-inch skillet, melt butter over medium heat.
  3. Dip bread in egg mixture, soaking both sides.  Shake off the excess egg mixture from the bread and place the bread slices onto the hot skillet.  Season lightly with salt and pan-fry each slice until golden brown (about 2-3 minutes), then flip to cook the other side.
  4. Serve immediately with the cannabis-infused Dalgona coffee cream, spicy raspberry coulis, fresh raspberries, and a light dusting of cocoa powder – add whipped cream for an indulgent treat.

Step Four: Serve with Dead Veggies “Bloody Matty” Mix, Available 8/18!

Bloody mary cocktails with garnishes for brunch

The romantic chemistry between cannabis and chocolate is undeniable

This recipe is just a sampling of all the ways you can enjoy cannabis and food together, especially when using chocolate edibles.  We even added a few of our own cannabis-infused recipes to the blog

Our chocolate bar flavors can be combined with your favorite meals morning, noon, and night.  If you’re ready to start cooking, then use our store locator to find the closest Nové retailer near you!