Iced Vanilla Macchiato

I've been busy today creating all sorts of drinks. My discovery of a cheap sugar free vanilla syrup has opened the door to so many good things.

Iced Vanilla Macchiato 

1 and 1/2 cups of whole organic milk

3/4 of espresso

1 tbsp of vanilla syrup

5 ice cubes

Place the five ice cubes in your glass, then add the milk. Stir in the vanilla syrup. Pour espresso over the top. Do not mix the espresso in, this is what makes a macchiato different than a latte or capuccino. The espresso should disperse into the milk making a beautiful cup of joe. 

Paleo Passion Lemonade

Last week I had a nasty cold. My family's age old trick is to drink a concoction of honey, lemon juice, and hot water to help shake a cold. I was consuming about three of these a day and was ready for something new when I came up with this guy.

Paleo Passion Lemonade

1 Quart Tazo Passion Tea Bag

1/2 cup of Honey

1 cup of lemon juice

I brewed the tea in 1 quart of boiling water for 5 minutes and then stirred in the honey. I filled my 2 quart pitcher with the lemon juice and ice up to the 1 quart mark and then added the tea. Enjoy!

Primal -ish Vanilla Bean Frappuccino

After my discovery of the Vanilla Bean Frappuccino at Starbucks I've been spending way to much money and carbs on them. Here is a sugar-free recipe that does use dairy and artificial sweeteners.

Vanilla Bean Frappuccino (serves 3)

2 cups of whole milk

1 tbsp. of a sugar free vanilla syrup

1 tbsp. vanilla extract

1 cup of ice

20 drops of stevia

Blend 1 and 1/2 cups of milk with the ice, syrup, and vanilla extract. Then, use a milk frother on the the leftover milk and stevia, you could add some vanilla too. Pour frappuccino into a glass and pour 'whipped cream' on top. Enjoy!

Paleo(ish) Whipped Cream

My new favorite  coffee tool is liquid stevia. You can find it at trader joes, whole foods, etc. It is a zero calorie sweetener that is actually natural!

So after experimenting with it for a while I developed this recipe.

Paleo Whipped Cream

1/4 cup of cream or almond milk
5 drops of liquid stevia

Simply mix ingredients with frother and you have amazing whip cream for your coffee!

Paleo Caramel Sauce

I have a cousin who loves Starbucks as much as me, she is particularly in love with their Caramel Mocha Frappuccino. Frappuccinos are synonymous in paleo as a sugar coma. So I'm working on developing a healthy yet tasty "Fauxccino"(get it? Faux+ccino).
My first successful component of this drink was the sauce! A caramel glaze.

Paleo Caramel Glaze

2 Tbsp. of Honey
1 Tsp. of Butter
1 Tbsp. of Milk/Coconut Milk

Put honey and butter together in the microwave for about 30 seconds, to get everything melted and gooey. Mix in the milk until the sauce is consistent throughout, you could also whip it if you feel the desire too.
Enjoy!

Look for the rest of the recipe soon!

Paleo McDonalds

Credit paleodietlifestyle.com

I know this is a coffee blog and all, but I think you'll like this. I'm going on a trip in a little while and I realize that there will probably be a time when my only option for food is the fast food giant McDonalds. Rather than winging it and feeling like crap on my trip, I'm going to go in with a plan. Here is my compilation of the best food (I stress 'best' because there really aren't any 100% paleo foods at McDonalds).

Breakfast

1. Try one of their break fast sandwiches without any bread. 
2. Coffee or Latte (just watch out, they will want you to add syrups).

Lunch

1. Go for the McDouble without a bun or ketchup, it has the most real ingredients and protein for the price.
2. Apple slices
3. Side Salad (watch the dressings)
4. Water

Dinner

1. Premium Salad with Grilled Chicken
2. French Fries (if you do potatoes and can handle vegetable oil)
3. Iced Tea (unsweetened)

Starbucks Splurge on Paleo

You know that moment when see that Starbucks Frappuccinos are 50% off and you are really want one? This happened recently to me. I know that Frappuccinos are definitely not paleo, but when you need to bend the rules (or use your 10% non-paleo food as my family puts it) how do you do it without getting sick? The last time I had a slice of cake I was as sick as a dog. My strategy here is to watch the sugar as only a couple of their Frappuccinos have wheat. In my opinion, having artificial sugar once in a great while is better than the insulin spike from refined sugar.

Tip #1

• Go for the "Coffee Frappuccino® Light Blended Beverage" without whip. According to Starbucks's website there is no added sugar in it.

Now that is literally coffee, milk, and ice blended. For me, if I'm going to splurge I want something with a little more flavor.

Tip #2

• Most major flavors have "Light" options, such as mocha, cinamon dulce, caramel. These use artificial sweeteners to keep the sugar content below 23g.

Credit to Starbucks.com

The only problem with the light type is that it is made with non-fat milk. From a paleo perspective, it is better to have whole milk than non-fat. You can order whole milk in your "light" drink, but I can guarantee the barista will give you a weird look.

Tip #3

• Forget the whipped cream, it is really foamy sugar and oil.

I have encountered some Starbucks with real whipped cream, but most don't have it.

Tip #4

• Don't be afraid to order a tall/small.

If you don't know how your body will handle milk and artificial sweeteners now that you started paleo, this is a good idea.

Tip #5

• Make your own!

You can then control the ingredients and even make it pure paleo if you want. Check out this recipe!