Caramel Frappuccino On a Budget

I can't be  the only one that craves the sweet, creamy coolness of a caramel Frappuccino on a hot Summer's day. But I think we all know the sacrifices one must make to get a small size of this loved drink. A small size of this smoothies is usually around four to five dollars! Yikes!

I knew I could make a similar tasting drink in my own kitchen, so I hunted on Google for ideas and recipes, and sure enough, Starbucks baristas spilled the info on how they make a caramel Frap. delicious. So here are the instructions so you can save your own four bucks.

Ingredients:

- A little less than 1/2 cup of  half and half or milk
- 1/2 cup of chilled, dark coffee
- 1 tablespoon of sugar
- 1 tablespoon of caramel
- 1 and 1/2 cups of ice
- Whipped cream and a swirl of caramel (for garnish)

Blend:

- Put the coffee, half and half or milk, sugar, and caramel in the blender and blend for about a min. so the sugar can disolve
- Add the ice. Blend

Viola:

- Pour into cup
- Add whipped cream and caramel and drink with straw. Yum!

I found out that all of the ingredients costed about the amount of one and a half Frappeccinos at Starbucks. So each med. sized Frap. I make costs under a dollar!

These are really delicious and taste almost like the ones they sell at coffee shops. And remember, you can always substitute the caramel for chocolate syrup and make a mocha, add pumpkin, caramel, and crushed pecans, and make a pumkin caramel Frap., or add choclate and peppermint and you have a peppermint mocha! The possibilities are endless!

Comment your ideas!