I was elementary school age the first time I tried coffee. My aunt and uncle would load up their houseboat and take my siblings and I over to a sandbar on the Illinois River. We would wade out in the river to ride the waves from the passing barges and come back to the beach to eat and drink coffee with milk and lots of sugar. It was warm and tasted so good!

As a young adult I started drinking tea. Green tea has a little caffeine and tastes very satisfying to me. Coffee alone just tastes like a dark, bitter liquid.   With the birth of Starbucks and blended coffee drinks, I tried and liked latte’s and mochas. These drinks remind me of Aunt Evvie’s coffee from my childhood. It is clear the only reason they taste good to me is because of the milk and chocolate.   In the past few years, I discovered that I liked the coffee taste of espresso with hot milk and steamed milk foam-the Cappuccino!  Choose a smaller fat and sugar free coffee drink.

Blended coffee beverages can have a very high calorie count. A Grande White Chocolate Mocha or Grande Peppermint White Chocolate Mocha each have over 450 calories-yikes! A woman’s daily caloric intake should be approximately 1800 to 2000 calories depending on her age and activity level. Regular indulgence of these drinks does not fit into a healthy diet.

A much healthier choice would be a Tall Caffe Americano (without cream or sugar) with 10 calories or a Tall Nonfat Caffe Latte with 100 calories. Better yet, go Italian with a traditional 8 ounce Cappuccino with a little sprinkle of cinnamon.