Chocolate Cinnamon Iced Coffee

Yes, I know you can end up drinking a lot of calories with iced coffee, but this one is so delicious and is only as caloric as your choice of dairy. The secret is a good chocolate sugar-free syrup and a good quality, fresh cinnamon. This is not an HMR food, but it fits in the 'additional' items you can have on that diet. (except maybe for the creamer. but you can make that work, too.)

1. Fill a tall glass with ice cubes. Not jammed together, just stacked on each other. about 10 cubes.)
2. Add a tablespoon of Torani sugar free chocolate syrup. Don't be stingy; remember tha ta cold drink needs more flavoring because of the temperature you are drinking it at.
3. Shake in a half teaspoon to a whole teaspoon of good cinnamon. Not the stuff in that big jar that you bought three years ago. Get some sticks and grind them up in your coffee grinder, or buy some fresh stuff in a small bottle. I got a jar of Penzeys Cinnamon for Christmas. Really good mix!
4. Brew a 6 oz. cup of medium to dark roast coffee right on top of those ice cubes. (I use a Keurig brewer, and I place the glass right under the spout.) Otherwise, just add about 6 oz. from your carafe.
5.Add 2 tablespoons fat free half and half (20 calories), or almond milk (10 calories - and that's 'in the box'.)  Stir and enjoy.


 I like it as a pick-me-up at about 2:00 in the afternoon. Great for these hot summer days. Of course, you can make this as a decafe, too.

(Sorry, no picture.)

Apple Pie & Ice Cream Shake

One of my favorite Fall flavors is apple. Since I may have any kind of fruit on this diet, I am sampling several apple varieties that are new to me. Incorporating apples into a shake, however, was a trickier business. The secret ingredient for this concoction is coconut extract. It gives a smooth, buttery flavor which gives the illusion of pie crust without the calories. I tried a couple of ways to make this using fresh apples, but I've fallen back on natural applesauce without sugar as the apple ingredient. Here's the recipe:

1 single serving natural applesauce (mine had apples and water as the only two ingredients)

1/4 teaspoon coconut flavoring

1/2 to 1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 scoop vanilla shake powder

3/4 cup water

8 - 10 ice cubes

Add water, applesauce, cinnamon & coconut flavoring to blender container. Mix on low speed until ingredients are combined. Add vanilla shake powder and continue blending on medium speed. Add ice cubes, a couple at a time, until shake is the volume & consistency you like. Pour & serve.