Home-made blended coffee recipes

Summer is here and who doesn't want a cold blended coffee beverage on a hot afternoon? I am a huge fan of Starbucks frappucinos, but they sure are pricey. Recently, I came across some online recipes for home-made blended coffee beverages and they were great!

One blogger, Scott D. Irwin, indicated that his recipe cost $0.32 per unit to make. Now I haven't gone to the extent of measuring the cost of my own version since I didn't have to purchase all of the supplies, but I imagine it would be pretty similar given how comparable my recipe is. Much thanks to Scott and Alice Currah for their recipes which inspired mine. You might check out their blogs to sample their recipes.

Here's my version:

Make-your-own Mocha Blended Coffee Recipe:

*You will need a blender or food processor that is capable of crushing ice* 

In the blender, place:

• 1 and 1/4 cups of milk (I prefer skim milk, but to your own taste)
• 2 tablespoons of organic sugar
• 2 tablespoons of chocolate syrup
• 3/4 cups of brewed coffee (I use Starbucks Medium Blend)
• 2 cups of ice cubes
• A pinch of xanthan gum (sprinkle throughout the mixture)

Blend on "pulse" or "low" speed for 20-40 seconds. Froth will develop, however, it will subside within a few minutes.

Pour into two smaller glasses (to share) or one larger glass (because why not!?!).

See above picture for a sample. Again, the froth disappears after a few minutes.

Enjoy!

Take the Diapers Savings Challenge

Several of my friends recently welcomed babies into their homes. Alongside the joys of parenthood, I also heard about the costs of baby supplies. Naturally, I welcomed the challenge of attempting to find these products at the lowest prices possible.

Which brings me to the topic of diapers. For those families that choose disposable diapers over cloth ones, the total costs might be surprising:

• The average baby uses 10 diapers per day (more or less depending on the age of the child)
• Depending on pricing, individual diapers tend to cost within a range of 0.30 to 0.60 cents
• As your baby grows, so does the cost per unit (fewer diapers per package)
• As a result, parents can easily spend $1500+ per year on diapers alone!

Cloth diapering is a sure way to cut down the costs, however, it’s not for everyone. If you’re purchasing disposable diapers, here are some helpful tips:

Step #1: Find Coupons

Great coupons can be ordered online, printed from special websites as well as found in local newspapers. For example, at the time of publication, you can order a coupon for “$4.00 off Pampers Cruisers diapers when you buy any ONE Pampers Swaddlers, Swaddlers Sensitive or Baby-Dry diapers” from brandsaver.ca.

Where to find coupons for diapers:

Huggies Coupons(CANADA)

Pampers Coupons (CANADA) 

Canadian Newspaper Flyers: Brandsaver, Smartsource

USA:

Hip2Save

Coupons.com

Smartsource.com

Walmart Coupons

Target Coupons

A&P Digital Coupons

Fred Meyer

“Discover the Value of a Great Buy” Booklets

Wegman’s Coupon Booklets

CVS Coupons 

Savingstar.com

Meijer mPerks

Target Baby Mailer

Step #2: Find a good sale!

Check your local retailers for good sales. Use your coupons to sweeten the deal! Just be sure that the store will accept your coupon in accordance with their coupon policy.

Retailer with the best deal won’t accept your coupon?

Step #3: Price Match!

Price Matching is when a retailer has a policy of honouring prices advertised (usually in print) at competitors. Often companies who will price match also have friendly coupon policies. So you might be able to get the competitor’s price AND use your coupon for additional savings.

See Mrs. January’s blog article on Price Match Guarantees for a list of companies that offer Price Matching.

Here is an example of a price match policy at a Canadian retailer: Walmart’s Ad Match 

Take the challenge! See how much you can save over the course of a year using these tips. And then tell me!