Man, I love me some coffee flavored stuff. I drink my coffee super strong with a tiny splash of half&half every morning of my life, but if the world were perfect and forgiving, I would drink it sugared. I don’t even have a sweet tooth, but the combination of coffee + creamy + sweet is amazing to me. Ok. Technically speaking – if the world were perfect and forgiving, I would drink it with a giant amount of Irish Cream. It’s not even because I’d want the booze effect, it’s just because Irish Cream is DELICIOUS and should be there always. My husband and I have already decided that when I’m old, I’m just gonna be moderately tipsy all day long just from my coffee. So one of my favorite things to indulge in is something involving coffee, irish cream and kahlua. Anything along those lines makes me so happy.
But I don’t really enjoy putting so much sugar and dairy in my body. I’m actually lactose intolerant so it’s best if I just don’t do dairy, but I can take it in small doses (half&half splash every morn), I also have lactase pills at the ready almost everywhere I go. So I really don’t allow myself to enjoy those flavors as much as I would like.
But…
Yesterday I was in the mood for something like this and thought I’d play around with how to make it less dairy-filled and rich and a little bit healthier… without sacrificing the exact flavors I wanted.
Enter this beauty.
Oh my SWEET HEAVENLY SPIKED COFFEE GOODNESS is this thing good. It’s one of those things that I was tasting and the whole time thinking, ‘No way is this so good without ice cream or milk…’
Except Oh So Yes Way.
This drink, this creamy and rich and thick and flavorfully indulgent frozen drink, consists primarily of frozen bananas.
yup.
You’ve probably heard by now that if you blend frozen, chopped, ripe bananas (sometimes adding a nut butter and/or milk + a splash of vanilla extract + a pinch of salt), you get a fantastic ice cream replacement. Take it from me – the one who despises banana flavored anything – it’s amazing and nobody knows how or why.
So the creaminess and thickness and most of the sweetness of this drink comes from the bananas. The rest of it is black coffee and some liqueurs. (You’re not tasting banana plus coffee here, guys. Just wanna make sure that’s known.) And I don’t know about you, but when it comes to things like sugar and extra calories… you know, the stuff we need to watch… I’d rather have it in a double duty way. Like coupled with booze!
Healthy attitude, right?
I’m making this sucker again today.
BOOZY COFFEE FRAPPE
( healthy (ish) . dairy free . vegan )
technically serves 2… roughly 20-24 oz… but you do what you need to do
In a blender, combine the following…
- 3/4 cup very strong coffee or espresso, cold (when making this in the evening, I’d use decaf)
- 1/4 cup Irish Cream (such as Bailey’s Original. For this to be dairy free and vegan, use their new Bailey’s Almonde.. you’ll get a nutty flavor from the almond milk in it, and it isn’t as rich as the original, but it still works)
- 1/4 cup coffee liqueur (such as Kahlua.) (Note that I regularly use generic forms of both liqueurs)
- 2 large frozen and very ripe bananas, broken or chopped into chunks for easier blending.
Blend this until completely smooth and thickened. It may be on the thinner side, if your coffee wasn’t very chilled, but is still drinkable if so. You can also place in the freezer for a bit to tighten up before drinking!
Pour into vessel of choice. I like a jar and a pretty straw. Spoon at the ready.
Optional- Top with whipped cream or whipped cream-replacement to keep it dairy free/vegan, if desired.
Cheers, ya’ll! Enjoy the rest of your week. xo
…
Blue Cloth Napkin: DII from Amazon
Paper Straw: Target, but similar styles found HERE on Amazon.
Ball Mason Jars (regular mouth): available most anywhere… found HERE on Amazon
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