Recipe: Homemade Vanilla Maple Frappuccino

Today I'm sharing this recipe with you, but first a funny story: 

When we were in Canada a few weeks ago, B. took me out for breakfast on my birthday 

(the big 2-9, one more year in my twenties, eek!). 

We had the most amazing breakfast with freshly squeezed orange juice, fresh fruit and big stacks of french toast and waffles. 

During breakfast the (really sweet) waitress walked up to us and asked B. if he wanted some coffee, 

and while I was politely waiting for my turn to order ( yes, I'd LOVE / need some coffee!) 

she turned to me and said: 'I'm not even going to ask you if you want some, because you're pregnant'.

Uh, excuse me? 

I know very well that I shouldn't drink too much coffee while pregnant, but my one cup a day is definitely okay, not to mention: needed. 

I have no idea what the girl was thinking, 

maybe the Canadians are super strict with coffee during pregnancy, 

or maybe she heard somewhere that coffee is bad for preggo's, 

but I was a little taken aback by the fact that she decided what I could and couldn't put in my body, how well intentioned it probably was.

After that awkward moment I didn't even dare to say that, in fact, I would love some coffee, 

so I ended up ordering water.

It was a strange moment.

//

Anyways, back to the coffee, as a part time Barista I love my coffee, 

and my favorite way of drinking it is as a cappuccino. 

A good strong espresso poured into warm and frothy milk, delicious!

But now that the temperatures are rising I also love drinking iced coffee, 

Frappuccinos, to be exact.

I found the perfect way to make them at home and thought I'd share the recipe.

//

You can change it to you liking. 

I used decaf coffee, this way I can enjoy a frappuccino a few times a day without 'risking' my baby's life :) 

 Homemade Vanilla Maple Frappuccino:

4 cups of strongly brewed (decaf) coffee 

( I used 8 scoops of coffee for 4 cups of water, but you can make it as strong as you like)

1/4 cups of sugar (or 1/4 cups of maple syrup)

1 tsp vanilla extract (I only had artificial on hand, but the real stuff is better)

1 tsp maple extract (if using maple syrup as a sweetener you can skip this step)

(you can use any flavoring you like, I also love it with almond extract, and I can imagine it'll taste delicious with coconut extract)

Make the coffee, while the coffee is still hot stir in the sugar until it's dissolved, add the vanilla and maple extract.

Let the coffee cool a bit.

Pour the coffee into an ice cube tray, I needed about four trays.(about 40 ice cubes)

Once the cubes are frozen you can pop them out and store them in a ziploc bag to save space in your freezer.

To make the frappuccino: take as many coffee ice cubes as you want (I used four cubes) put them in a blender with about a cup of milk (or more, or less, whatever you want) and blend until it's nice and frothy.

Pour into a tall glass, stick a straw in it and enjoy!

If you really want to treat yourself you could top the Frappuccino with whipped cream and drizzle some chocolate sauce over top. Yum!

Love, Maria