Coffee Time!

Once you’ve had truly good coffee, anything less than is just hard to swallow.

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So far, my favorite is the Illy brand dark roast. This coffee is so good you will forevermore say no to coffee creamer and dreaded cookie flavored sugar “shots.” This coffee and bold, bare, and beautiful.

Coffee itself has also been shown to contain a good amount of antioxidants and the caffeine has the potential to raise metabolism and (maybe) protect the brain. These studies are still ongoing, but the important thing is that these potential benefits are not outweighed by dumping artificial ingredients into your morning brew.

Sorry to say, but a lot of these flavored creamers and sugar “shots” that coffee chains use contain a high amount of artificial ingredients, and usually a huge dose of sugar. A good dose of sugar without any buffers like fiber can spike your blood  sugar, later leaving to an even bigger crash and spiking your insulin ( fat storing hormone). Mix that with artificial ingredients and that leaves another problem. Most artificial ingredients our bodies don’t know how to process. So they are either excreted or stored in our fat cells. It also leaves the possibility of aggravating the body if you have an intolerance or your body doesn’t know how to process that substance.

Don’t be afraid to try something new! Good coffee can help you ditch those added sugars and artificial ingredients.

Illy offers an array of roasts and grinds so you can find your favorite!

Enjoy 🙂

Coffee & Chocolate Protein Powerhouse

What do you get when you combine coffee and chocolate?

Deliciousness.

Throw in some protein powder and a frozen banana?

MADNESS, or pure genius. You decide.

This is one of my new favorite shakes! Now, what makes it extra special is Grady’s Cold Brew coffee concentrate. This is no regular iced coffee. This is strong stuff. Grady means business.

After a long hot run or you’re looking to satisfy a sweet tooth, this is what you want. Grady’s coffee and Vega’s chocolate protein powder create an awesome flavor. Its so simple to make too!

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Coffee & Chocolate Protein Powerhouse

  • 1 banana
  • 1 packet of Vega Chocolate Protein Powder
  • 1/4 cup of Grady’s Coffee Concentrate
  • 1/4 cup unsweetened almond milk

Chop banana and freeze for at least 2 hours. Combine banana, coffee, protein powder, and almond milk in blender. Blend until smooth.

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Enjoy 🙂

DIY Cold Brew Coffee

Cold Brew is all the rage now. Popping up everywhere in local coffee shops and at your Starbucks. As a customer it seems that you’re dishing out a few extra dollars for this special brew. Well, it doesn’t have to be that way. You can absolutely do it yourself in any quantity. It’s a win-win situation. Save little cash and no more watered down nonsense.

So how is it done? Well, it takes about 12 hours to fully brew, so it may be best to do it overnight. I only wanted 1 cup of coffee for the morning. However, it is easily adjusted to fit any need. So, you will need a coffee filter, your favorite coffee, 1 pitcher (or what ever size container you wish to fill with coffee- make sure it is easily pourable), and water.

Fill your container with water. Then add the amount of coffee you wish to make into the water directly. The amount of coffee you  add, should equate to however strong you would like your coffee. If you like to normally brew a strong pot of coffee, add the equivalent to the pitcher of water.

I like my coffee strong, so I added 2 heaping tbsp of espresso grind into my mason jar.

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Let it sit overnight (or 12 hours) at room temperature or in the refrigerator.

Then, carefully pour coffee through coffee filter into another container.

There you have it. Your very own cold brew. Mix with your favorite milk or sweetener 🙂

Maybe even some maple syrup!

Enjoy!

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* Some of my favorite coffee’s are from Simpson and Vail (Check them out! http://www.svtea.com ) and Illy (www.illy.com) Coffee so rich and flavorful, it’ll put flavored creamers to shame. 😉