Another throwback to that time I made up a tasty little smoothie on the fly. I was trying to use up some of the flavoured oatmeal packs I had a lot of at the time before they started to turn rancid.

My favourite coffee order when I grab coffee at home or out and about has to be, hands down, the delicious Americano Nuevo. It’s simple, straight forward, and tasty. It won me over in one sip.

I ask for it at every coffee shop. Not by name because this is a Starbucks creation that, funny enough, a few Starbucks locations didn’t know anything about. So I l started showing everyone taking my order this above screencap from my phone so they understood what I was after.

Americano Nuevo:
1 shot Espresso
1/2 C Hot Water
1/2 C Steamed Milk
1-2 pumps Hazelnut Syrup

Highly recommend.

This will be something I want to drink this summer for sure to go hand-in-hand with my beloved blended coffee drinks.

The measures I think I will be dropping into the blender jar are:
1 C Lemonade
8-10 Ice Cubes
1/4 C Coconut Milk
1 tbsp Vanilla Syrup (optional)

This is my take on the new Starbuck’s Strawberry drink that’s going to be hot this summer.

Strawberry Milk Drink:
1/2 C Milk, frothed

4 Ice Cubes
1/4 C Milk
1/4 C Strawberries, frozen
1/4 Strawberry Jam

6 Ice Cubes
1/2 C Cold Water

Start by fluffing up a 1/4 C of milk in a tall mug with a frothing wand. Set aside.

Into a blender, place the 4 ice cubes, 1/4 C milk, frozen strawberries and the jam. Blend that up quickly and pour it into a tall glass or drink jar with a lid and straw.

Top that blend with the 6 ice cubes and the 1/2 C water. Top with the frothed milk.

Enjoy!

I found this recipe online awhile back (can’t recall where at this point) but trust me, it’s delicious. However… This is a huge indulgence drink. If I ever make more than one of these in a summer, I’m probably going through some stuff in my personal life. LOL

I have been bringing these to work with me for a good chunk of August and September. I’m already looking forward to drinking more of it next Summer. 😀 It’s very easy to assemble and not too expensive to purchase the materials for. So, here we go:

The Pink Drink:
1/2 C chilled Pineapple Juice
1 C chilled White Grape Juice
1/8 C frozen Blue Berries
3 frozen strawberries
1/4 C chilled Coconut Milk, frothed
4-6 Ice Cubes

What I love the most about this drink is, as the fruit thaws, it releases lovely fruity juices into the other ingredients. It gets better tasting the longer I have it sitting in my large travel cup. As it sits, the coconut milk will start to separate from the acidic grape juice, so give it a shake before you open the lid to take a sip.

Blue Drink:
1/2 Frozen Blueberries
1 tbsp Maple Syrup** (or any other sweetener/sugar)
1C Ice
1/2C White Grape Juice
Splash of Coconut (or regular) Milk

I like to hard shake the ice over the blueberries in the cup before adding the liquids to help quasi muddle them as they start to thaw. It brings out the great blueberry colour.

** Use real maple syrup, not that table pancake crap.

I have a second drink that’s a riff of this Blue Drink called the violet drink.

Violet Drink:
1/2 Blackberries
1 tbsp Maple Syrup** (or any other sweetener/sugar)
1C Ice
1/2 Passion Tea (or any exotic fruit juice)
1/4C Coconut (or regular) milk

Same thing with muddling the berries with the ice in your large cup, giving it a hard shake or three so the ice really breaks the berries up to release its flavour and colour before adding the other liquids.

** Use real maple syrup, not that table pancake crap.

Summer gave way to Autumn last week, but this week I ran out of my expensive coffee that I only buy on sale, so for now I made a small batch of cappuccino “coffee” drink mix. It’s nothing more than a jar of dry ingredients that have been well whisked together for almost a full minute (for full incorporation and to break up all of the clumps).

Cappuccino Dry Mix:
1 cup Hot Chocolate powder
1 cup Non-Dairy Creamer powder (optional)
2/3 cup Instant Coffee powder
1/2 cup Sugar (or sweetener of choice)
1/2 teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon Ground Nutmeg

I find the cost of the non-dairy product too high to pay in these parts, so I leave it out. I do add milk at some point to cream it up, but in liquid form. I store this in a 500 mL mason jar with a tight fitting lid.

Formula: 3 Tablespoons of mix per mug + 1/4 cup (not a precise measure each time) + 1 cup boiling water.

Instructions: As the water is heating up to a boil, run the mug under hot tap water for a few mins. Turn the water off and let what’s in the mug sit until the boiling water is ready. When the water hits boil, empty the mug into the sink and dump in 3 tbsp of the mix. Add your milk at this point and stir to make a somewhat slurry that allows the powders to start to blend into the liquid. At this point, add about 1/4 cup of the boiling water to the mug and stir vigorously until all of the clumps melt into the hot liquid. Add the rest of the boiling water. Stir a bit more and taste. If you need more creaminess, add a bit more milk.

Bonus mix recipe!

The other mix I like in the colder months when I’m bored of coffee or all out is my Mocha Mix. It’s pretty much the same as the above cappuccino mix without the warm spices and the addition of vanilla. Oh, and it’s the only one I have so far converted to metric for kitchen scales. I know, I know. I’m slower than a dinosaur. 🙂

Mocha Dry Mix:
30g Instant Coffee
50g Cocoa Powder
100g Sugar (of choice)
110g Milk Powder (optional)
1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract

Again, like in the above mix recipe, the milk powder can be left out in favour of your fave liquid milk product. Same deal as above for whisking the mix together. I like to put mine in a 500 mL mason jar with a tight lid.

Formula: 2 Tablespoons of mix + 1/4 cup milk + 1 cup boiling water.

Instructions: Exactly as above for the cappuccino mix to set the drink up in a warmed up mug.