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Homemade Mocha Frappe

March 1, 2013 by Sandra 10 Comments

If you’re a regular reader of The Sensible Mom, then you know I am a die-hard coffee lover. I drink it every single day, at least twice a day.

Freshly brewed hot coffee, iced coffee, latte, frappe — I love them all. And while I try to keep sugar out of my coffee as much as possible, I do enjoy some sweetness in it occasionally. But even when I sweeten up my coffee, I try not to go overboard. I’d much rather have a low-sugar coffee drink, than the crazy sugar-filled creations I used to make. Reduced calorie coffee is the way to go, because I know if I want to enjoy two cups a day and still lose weight, I need to restrain myself.

I mentioned that one of my favorite coffee drinks is a frappe, specifically mocha frappes. I’m a gold star rewards member of, well, you-know-where, and part of the reason is because I love frappes. I don’t, however, like the hefty coffeehouse prices of those frappes, which is why I normally only go to you-know-where when I have a gift card.

How I create frappes that taste great but cost less

In order to save on calories and money, I have to find ways to make my favorite coffee creations at home. And a great way to create mocha frappes with all the dreaminess of a coffeehouse frappe but not all the calories, is with International Delight’s sweet & creamy Light Iced Coffee.

I recently made a trip to Walmart with my daughter to buy the mocha light iced coffee and then I got to work on creating a delicious homemade mocha frappe.

I think you’ll love it.

And I made it using only a blender so that I could be sure you could create this recipe at home, too. I have a frappe maker (a gift from my husband who knows that the way to my heart is coffee :)), but I decided to brew the coffee on its own and bring the ingredients together in the blender. It’s so, so easy.

Here’s the recipe I came up with using the mocha International Delight Light Iced Coffee.

Mocha Frappe

Ingredients

2 cups ice cubes
3 tablespoons chocolate syrup
1/4 cup mocha International Delight sweet & creamy Light Iced Coffee
1/2 cup brewed coffee, hot
whipped cream (optional)

Instructions

In the order that they're listed, add the ingredients to a blender
Blend until smooth
Top with whipped cream and a drizzle of chocolate sauce (optional)

https://thesensiblemom.com/2013/03/homemade-mocha-frappe/

I hope you enjoy making this homemade mocha frappe recipe, and I can’t wait to see what other knock off creations we come up with using the light iced coffee. Since my recipe only calls for 1/4 cup at a time of the light iced coffee, I have plenty leftover to experiment making more of my favorite frappe flavors.

I think it should last me at least a month. 😉

Have you ever tried making a homemade frappe? What’s your favorite way to enjoy coffee?

To save on International Delight’s #LightIcedCoffee, be sure to sign up on their website for a coupon. To stay in touch with I.D., you can follow them on Twitter and on Facebook.

I am a member of the Collective Bias® Social Fabric® Community. This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias® and WhiteWave #cbias #SocialFabric #LightIcedCoffee — All opinions are mine.

Save 35% on Web hosting with HostGator

February 26, 2013 by Sandra 2 Comments

For all my readers, who are also bloggers, HostGator is having a nice sale on their web hosting right now.

You can use the coupon code: FEB35 to save 35% off any web hosting package. Host Gator coupon codes like this one are pretty rare, so this might be a great deal if you are thinking about moving moving from Blogger (Blogspot) or WordPress.com to a self-hosted WordPress.org blog, where you need to have your own web hosting.

This might also be a great deal if you are wanting to switch from your current web host to HostGator. I’ve personally been using HostGator for years for all of my websites, and I recommend HostGator to my clients who either need web hosting or want to switch from their current web host.

This might also be a great deal if you’re thinking about starting a blog. How many times have I read other bloggers say that they wish they would’ve started with a self-hosted WordPress blog? A lot. Now is a great time to jump into blogging.

If you have any questions about web hosting or HostGator, feel free to ask me in the comments. I’m happy to help.

You can go here to visit HostGator and enter the coupon code FEB35 to save and get started. 🙂 The coupon code is good through February 28, 2013.

This post contains my HostGator referral link.

Eating well is easy with Mariano’s Fresh Market (and an easy recipe for Homemade Macaroni and Cheese)

February 25, 2013 by Sandra 8 Comments

I recently discovered a gem of a grocery store.

It’s a gem that is sort of right in my backyard now that I’m back in Illinois (near Chicago).

It’s Mariano’s Fresh Market, where the motto is “Shop well. Eat well. Live well.”

Shop well? Because they have a wide variety of foods at competitive prices…and double coupon days. Stores that double coupons are almost non-existent in Illinois. It’s a sad reality.

Eat well? Because they offer an amazing selection of food that is healthy and nutritious. They’ve got a jaw-dropping bakery section,too, for when you want to have a treat.

Live well? Because at Mariano’s, not only can you find fresh and nutritious foods to feed your body, but they care about you. Their employees are some of the best. Within 20 seconds of walking in the store, an employee walked right up to us and greeted us with freshly squeezed orange juice.

When I wasn’t sure where to sign up for a Mariano’s Rewards Card, I was helped by another employee who was more than happy to give me the rundown on what I needed to do. Then she kindly steered me in the direction of the kiosks at the front of the store where I was able to go through the quick process to sign up for my rewards card. (There’s no standing in the customer service line to fill out a form to get a rewards card. Approximately two minutes at the kiosk, and you have your card.)

When I was wandering around with three kids looking for the bathroom, an employee actually asked if she could help me, before I had the chance to even ask.

I was completely impressed by Mariano’s, and the icing on the cake was when we went to leave the store and saw that there were three tables set up for kid’s crafts.

All five kids left the store with adorable marshmallow snowmen. They were a fun treat on the car ride home. And we needed to get home quickly, because Mariano’s is a bit of a drive for us and we had eggs, milk, and cheese that needed to get into the refrigerator.

We went to Mariano’s to pick up ingredients to try a recipe on their website.

So even if you don’t have a Mariano’s store where you live, you can still visit their website and try one of the many recipes there.

I’ve never made homemade macaroni and cheese before, so I knew when I went through the recipes on the website that their Macaroni and Cheese Temptation recipe was going to be the one for me.

I would finally make homemade macaroni and cheese. It’s been a long time coming.

I like this recipe, because it only requires one type of cheese. It’s simple and easy to make, and it provided a nice Sunday lunch for my family.

I ate too much of it, and the scale will pay me back tomorrow. 😉

But it was totally worth it.

Here’s the recipe:

Macaroni and Cheese Temptation

Ingredients

1/2 lb macaroni or other dry pasta
1 tbsp butter
1 tsp yellow mustard
1 whole large egg, lightly beaten
1/2 tsp salt
3 cups (about 12 ounces) grated cheddar or other yellow cheese (divided use)
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1-1/2 cups milk

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350°. Grease a 1-1/2-quart casserole (I used coconut oil).
Cook macaroni in large saucepan according to package directions. Pasta should be tender, but not too soft. Drain well and allow to cool slightly. Return to saucepan.
Stir in butter, mustard, egg, and salt. Add 2-1/2 cups cheese and flour, tossing well to evenly distribute ingredients. Turn mixture into prepared casserole dish. Pour milk over macaroni and cheese. Use the back of a spoon to press down ingredients and level the top. Bake for about 35 minutes. Sprinkle remaining cheese on top and bake about 10 minutes longer or until the custard is set and the top is golden and crusty.

https://thesensiblemom.com/2013/02/eating-well-is-easy-with-marianos-fresh-market-and-an-easy-recipe-for-homemade-macaroni-and-cheese/

I doubled the recipe to make enough for my family of seven, and we had leftovers. Without doubling, this recipe makes 4-6 servings. I hope you enjoy it.

Have you ever made homemade macaroni and cheese?

If you’re interested in finding out more about my shopping trip to Mariano’s, you can check out my Google+ story — there are lots of pictures! 🙂

You can also follow Mariano’s Fresh Market on Facebook and Twitter for their latest updates and recipes.

I am a member of the Collective Bias® Social Fabric® Community. This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias® and Mariano’s — All opinions are my own. #cbias #SocialFabric

How I found cute and trendy clothes for my kids at Old Navy’s Kids and Baby Sale

February 18, 2013 by Sandra 5 Comments

It can be hard not to break the bank when shopping for five children.

I’m a frugal mom, and I always try to get the best deals on clothes for my kids while still allowing their personalities to shine through in their clothing choices.

After all, you’re only a kid once, right? If they want to wear Angry Birds shirts five days a week, I say, “Let them.” 🙂

And do you know who has great prices on Angry Birds shirts right now? Old Navy.

Old Navy’s Kids & Baby Sale is going on right now, so recently we headed to the store in search of new outfits for the kids. I wanted to find one complete outfit for each kid without it costing me an arm and a leg. Before I went to the store, though, I made sure to do an online search for a printable Old Navy coupon, and I found one. It was for $10 off a $50 purchase, and that was perfect, because I knew we’d be spending over $50.

When we got to the store, I was greeted with a huge selection of kid’s clothes that were on sale at great prices. And my kids took almost no time in finding clothes that were just their style.

Nathan and Isaac picked out new pajamas. I love that they’re matching.

Breanna, Elisabeth, and David all decided on new Angry Birds shirts and pants to go with. I loved the assortment of leggings available for little girls, since those are the pants that Elisabeth is most comfortable wearing.

I didn’t get a great picture of Breanna in her clothes, but she picked out an Angry Birds shirt and some new black yoga pants.

Here’s a picture of my girls in their new outfits.

Overall, the kids were extremely happy about their new clothes, which totally fit their personalities. My husband and I were happy with the prices, and we ended our trip to Old Navy on a happy note.

Because of the large selection of clothes that my kids loved, we ended up getting in and out of the store before ~~either I or~~ one of the kids had the chance to have a meltdown. 😉

How do you save money on kid’s clothes?

I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls Collective, and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.

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