try a few different places to find a local espresso that you like...the most popular local shop chain here, i wont go to because their coffee tastes bitter and burned...there is a local one called Flying Squirrel (i love the name) and they make awesome mochas...each place is different...i am willing to budget for a tall coffee drink when i'm working ( i work school years, not summer) and to my best guesstimate, a nonfat sugar free tall mocha is about 250-300 calories give or take a little
At Starbucks, I've started drinking iced passion tea. Even without any sugar, it's got a sweetish taste. It's no caffeine, though, so it won't satisfy that particular need.
Starbucks and McDs both are pretty good about posting all their nutrition info on their web sites; have you compared all the different combos of sugar-free syrups, no whip, etc., to see what would be your best nutrition deal?
If you like Starbucks Mocha Frappuccinos, why not make it light? I work there, and with nearly unlimited free drinks it's really hard to cut back and make the right choices. I have started drinking mocha light frappuccinos, even with an extra pump of mocha or some drizzle on top a grande still comes in well under 200 calories (140-160). There are other awesome options too, like a coffee light frap with sugar free syrup (caramel is especially good) which cuts them way back (like, 110 calories we're talking). Since your craving is for the sweet rich blended coffee drinks I won't push you toward a regular ice coffee, but give the light options a try - makes a ton of difference and they really do taste good. The mocha especially.
That sounds like a great idea, neon - I was going to say that I know there's a "skinny" option for almost every drink at Starbucks, but I can never remember the names of them, so I couldn't really provide an example - although I know that the soy skinny caramel macchiato is great.
I also was a multiple Starbucks per day girl (frappucinno, chai latte, mochas), but now I make my own coffee in my Keurig. I also hated iced coffee before, but have now come to love it three years later.
The light frappucinnos are good, but are flavored with Splenda. Don't know if it bothers you or not - gives me a terrible headache.
One of my friends makes her own mocha drink - it is a two stage recipe. She makes cold brewed coffee and uses it in the blend. She does it by blending all the ingredients and pouring over ice, but if you blend it with the ice it comes to a frappucinno like consistency. I'm going to copy the recipe:
First - the cold brewed coffee:
Start by cold brewing coffee. Place 1/4 lb of coffee grounds in 64 oz. cold water (adjust the coffee down or water up if this turns out too strong, since it will vary based on the type and roast of the coffee you use). Stir it up and let it sit in the fridge overnight. Strain the coffee through a coffee filter (this will take awhile, and several filters, as they will get clogged). Just go slow, and pour about a cup of coffee through at a time, changing the filter every 3 cups or so.
Once strained, you have your cold coffee concentrate. You can keep this for a couple weeks in the fridge in a carafe or some other covered container to use whenever desired. You can use it for the following recipe, or just for a daily iced coffee, but remember this is a concentrate, so you'll want to add water if you like it black or some milk, creamer, etc. to each glass. If you plan to use it as an iced coffee base, rather than frozen, I would also recommend freezing some coffee (regular brewed or diluted concentrate) as ice cubes so that the melting won't dilute your drink. You can also play with the frozen recipe to make mochas. etc.
Second, the mocha:
Start with the cold brewed coffee from her recipe.
In your blender or magic bullet or shaker cup, put 4 oz of milk (I used unsweetened Almond milk, but soy, low fat, whatever will do)
Add 1 scoop of unflavored protein powder (~25g)
Add 1 T of the best quality cocoa powder you can find (I used Penzey's high fat dutch process) (~8g)
Whirl that all up in the blender with the sweetener of your choice (I used 2 pkts of Splenda).
In a tall glass with ice, pour 10-12 oz of the cold coffee, then pour over the milk mixture. Blend with a spoon or a straw.
It tastes like a Starbucks iced mocha.
I'd like to experiment with other flavors, and with maybe adding some of the Torriani sugar-free syrups to get things like caramel mocha or peppermint mocha (my favorite holiday flavor).
I'm also thinking I might pull out the big blender and see about actually crushing ice cubes in this to make a frappacino, since the Magic Bullet isn't strong enough to crush ice.
I haven't tried this with hot coffee yet; not sure how the protein powder would react or if putting in the cold milk would make the hot coffee too lukewarm. I'll continue to experiment.
But for summer cold coffee, this is really yummy! I can see myself making a small one of these in the morning on my way to the gym!
Oh yeah: Poured over a little crushed ice, it completely fills a 16 oz glass, which is the same size as a Starbucks Grande.
I gained 20 lbs in about 1 1/2 months after my mom passed away. Dunkin' Donuts Iced Caramel Lattes just got me started in the morning. I have been totally off of them right now, as I am doing IP.
I have ordered the Sugar Free Torani syrups and add a little caramel to a chocolate protein shake. Not too bad at all.
