[on the table] Mocha at Home

I stopped drinking coffee in 2009 when I was pregnant with my daughter. After she was born I began again and somewhere between then and my second pregnancy I quit for good [or at least until I begin again!].  So in the meantime I've switched over to enjoying Teeccino caffeine-free herbal coffee. 

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It tastes good, although coming off normal coffee it takes some adjusting to, but my favorite part is that it's non acidic. An alkaline system is a happy system, and when you drink normal coffee, especially first thing in the morning, you're basically dumping acid on acid. 

[That is as bad as it sounds.]

So with teeccino I get the coffee-like experience without the caffeine or the acid.

That said, occasionally I still get a fancy coffee drink for a treat, and earlier this winter I became obsessed with the Salted Caramel Mocha. I'd 'treated' myself to many of these [is it really a treat if you get it multiple times a week?] before I accepted how many empty calories there are in each one and added up just how much money my 'treats' were costing me.

So no more of those.

[Unless we're driving to Watertown in a ground blizzard. Then you get one before you go, and one for the ride home too, because you know it will be just as bad. It wasn't. It was like a totally different day on the trip back.]  

But we can of course make mocha's at home. So I do. Almost every day. 

You can froth milk up at home just like you get from the coffee place by whisking it briskly!

My 'recipe' goes like this:

I warm approximately 2 cups milk [I like the unsweetened coconut and almond blend from Blue Diamond] in a small saucepan over low heat. To that I add 2 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder, 1/2 Tbsp of cinnamon, 1/4 tsp ground ginger, a dash of cayenne pepper, 1/2 tsp vanilla and 2 packets NuNaturals stevia. Whisk whisk whisk. Add 2 cups strongly brewed teeccino and whisk some more. Pour into a mug and enjoy hot. This makes two servings, both of which I drink myself. 

The cinnamon, ginger and cayenne add a bit of extra heat I've become eager for on these cold South Dakota mornings. I sip my mocha and feel the warmth spreading out to my fingers.

[Or maybe that's because I'm holding the hot mug? Hmmm.] 

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