Behind every successful woman is a substantial amount of coffee.

-Stephanie Piro

When I drove my kids to and from school, I stopped at the Starbucks down the road every. single. day.

It’s an expensive habit to have.

The kids ride the bus now, and I make my own coffee every morning. I still crave the rich, creamy, calorie-laden coffee drinks I got at Starbucks, though.

For years I’ve been using the flavored non-dairy creamers, and they’ve basically been my final frontier to clean eating. Because that stuff is straight up corn syrup. Milk in my coffee just doesn’t do it (some people tell me I need to steam or froth it- maybe that’s the same thing, I don’t even know- but I just haven’t bothered with buying yet another single-purpose kitchen device).

So the newest thing for me is using heavy cream. Yes, it’s full of fat and calories, but I only need a little bit to get the body I’m looking for. And the flavor? I now get that from Torani flavored syrups, the same flavorings that coffeehouses use.

I was able to participate in a She Speaks campaign that provided two bottles of syrups to try; I received Pumpkin Pie and Sugar-Free Vanilla. The sugar-free vanilla is calorie-free, but it’s sweetened with Splenda, which I can definitely taste; it’s not for me. I passed that bottle on to a diabetic friend and replaced it with a normal Vanilla which I like much better.

So that’s the recipe for kicking the non-dairy creamer habit: heavy cream and Torani flavored syrups. You heard it here, folks.

The Pumpkin Pie syrup? WELL. From Halloween until the end of the year is pumpkin season for me, in that I want EVERYTHING to taste like pumpkin. I’ve added this stuff to cookie batter, muffins, breads. I’ve drizzled it over oats when making granola. We’ve made pumpkin milkshakes. But my favorite is a pumpkin smoothie using Lifeway Kefir. The kefir (which is like a thick drinkable yogurt, if you’re not familiar) is full of calcium and protein and probiotics, and the pumpkin pie flavor makes for a great healthy dessert that’s not too sweet.

 

I currently have the ice cream maker chilling in the freezer. We’ll see if I can make pumpkin fro-yo with graham cracker mix-ins (this is my very favoritest indulgence, from Cold Stone Creamery). If it works my life will be complete.

Torani flavored syrups come in 120+ flavors in regular and sugar free varieties. They can be used to make at-home flavored lattes, mochas, coffees, cocoas, Italian sodas, teas, lemonades, cocktails and smoothies.

I’m going to order some of the lighter flavors, like lemon and tangerine and blackberry, and see if they will work with my SodaStream to make DIY sodas.

I love being able to control the level of sweetness. Personally, I just don’t have much of a sweet tooth anymore, as I eat less and less commercially prepared treats. I’m trying to do the same favor for my kids.

The regular varieties are made from natural flavors and pure cane sugar, and they come in glass bottles (which can be recycled indefinitely), which I love.

Holiday flavors include Gingerbread, Peppermint and Salted Caramel, all of which are just begging to be mixed with some decadent hot chocolate.

Click the nice button to order your own and get 10% off. Boo-ya!

Do you make your own coffee?
How do you take it?

Disclosure: I received two bottles of Torani for review purposes and five vouchers to give to friends (one of which I snagged for a new bottle of Vanilla) through a She Speaks program. Opinions and recipes are my own.