Healthiest Mocha Latte in the Universe

Ingredients (as always, as organic as possible)

Consider this a LARGE cup of Mocha, so you'll need a large cup in which to make this.

This recipe if flexible, because everyone likes theirs a bit different. However, you have to start with the best coffee.

The best coffee on the planet is Organic Fair Trade Shade Grown coffee. It's good for the planet, good for the economy, good for the farmers who grow and pick it, and just good tasting.

The best way to make coffee, according to many connoisseurs, is in a French Press.

To use a French Press, you add your coffee, boil water, add the boiling water, let steep for up to four minutes, and then strain.

Take all the dry ingredients (powered milk, powdered coconut milk, and Organic Zero) in a separate cup. See below for more on Organic Zero.

My favorite way to make the cocoa section of this recipe is to use Organic Cacao Nibs. Cacao is a bean (seed) that first must be dried and roasted. The shell is removed, and what you have are the nibs.

Take your two tablespoons (rounded if you want) and grind them up in your coffee grinder. Don't worry about any left over residue in the coffee grinder; it can only add to the flavor of your coffee when you grind it up.

Put the ground up nibs in one half cup of water. Boil for about two minutes, then filter through a very fine sieve into a very large coffee cup.

The reason I like using the Nibs is personal. I like knowing that I'm starting entirely from scratch. I know what's in my recipe and I prepare it all. It's not much of a hassle to do all this while waiting for the coffee to steep. I press out the last of the cocoa juice and toss the left over nibs in the garbage and quickly wash the sieve and put it away.

However, if you want to use the cacao powder, have at it. Simply take one rounded teaspoon of cacao powder (Fair Trade; so you're not complicit in the crime of child slavery) and add to a cup of all your other ingredients. You won't need the half a cup of water; just add more water to your coffee, depending on how strong you like it.

Pour the coffee into your coffee cup and then add the dry ingredients.

You're going to have to use a submersion blender to blend it all up. My choice is the Hamilton Beach Turbo Twister. All the dry ingredients tend to clump, so make sure you whip it up till everything is smooth.

A Few Tips

We're writing about Organic Zero in our next newsletter, but for now: Organic Zero has 0 calories and a glycemic index of 0. It is expensive, but I'm worth it. It has 70% the sweetness of sugar, so if your recipe calls for two teaspoons, you might need three. In my mocha (the size I make here) it takes me three tablespoons of Organic Zero to sweeten it. Expensive? Yes, but I'm worth it!

Organic Zero can be found here: Zero (Organic) - 8/12Oz Organic Zero: GR

However, you can add any sugar you want from Honey, to Sucanat, to Maple Syrup. Just keep in mind that we're shooting for health and wellness here. If you don't want the side effects to these sugars, you might want to add Stevia. Stevia is POTENT, so add a drop at a time and test. Find out how much you need. (Stevia comes in a powder, and in a liquid mixed with glycerin). 

Chocolate is created from two parts of the cacao bean: cocoa solids and cocoa butter. In this recipe we are using only the solids. (Even if you are using the nibs, mostly what you're getting in your water mixture are the solids.)

Some people miss the "creaminess" of their local mocha, but we have a healthy substitute for that too: Coconut Oil.

If you miss the creaminess of your regular mocha, just add some Coconut Oil. It will melt quickly and blend in. Just remember that it's more calories, and you really don't need that much.

There is no reason NOT to add a drop of pure Vanilla, either.

Whey Protein Powder

If you are dieting, you need protein. You can find the best at the links below, and they come in both chocolate and vanilla flavor (either one is great in this drink). This is one healthy cup of coffee.

Higher Power 100% Whey Power, 2 Lbs., Chocolate and Higher Power 100% Whey Power, 2 Lbs., Vanilla.

Note

We used to link to Wilderness Family Naturals, the perfect place to get everything chocolate or coconut, but the FDA won't allow us. Instead, we can give you this google link and you can find it on your own. We want to support their little business because they are great people with great products: Wilderness Family Naturals.

One more thing: if you have problems with milk, you already know there are substitutes (such as the Whey Powders listed above). Just don't think that the "creamers" are healthy. Most are filled with trans fats. There is no allowable limit for this stuff in our bodies.