Taste Test Tuesday: Starbucks Iced Caffe Americano
While fishing around the Starbucks website, something I do more often than I care to admit, I found an Iced Coffee (grande) option with only 15 calories! Some of the other iced coffee have around 80 or more calories because they are lightly sweetened.
Iced Caffe Americano is just espresso combined with cold filtered water and ice.
Anyway, I ordered this and it tasted pretty awesome once I added a packet of my alternative sweetener du jour plus a big splash (1/4 cup) of lowfat milk or fat free half and half. This brought the calories to 40 calories, 6 grams carbohydrate, 3 grams protein, and .6 grams fat if you use 1% milk. The caffeine will be 225 if you order it leaded.
You can find the nutrition information for all of the Starbucks beverages on their website. They even allow you to recalculate the nutrition content based on size, milk options, etc.
Related Topics: Technorati Tags: Taste Test Tuesday, coffee, Starbucks, healthy diet
Iced Caffe Americano is just espresso combined with cold filtered water and ice.
Anyway, I ordered this and it tasted pretty awesome once I added a packet of my alternative sweetener du jour plus a big splash (1/4 cup) of lowfat milk or fat free half and half. This brought the calories to 40 calories, 6 grams carbohydrate, 3 grams protein, and .6 grams fat if you use 1% milk. The caffeine will be 225 if you order it leaded.
You can find the nutrition information for all of the Starbucks beverages on their website. They even allow you to recalculate the nutrition content based on size, milk options, etc.
Related Topics: Technorati Tags: Taste Test Tuesday, coffee, Starbucks, healthy diet
14 Comments:
can it really be that low in calories! I'm amazed by how much STarbucks has changed their tune. (maybe its the mcdonald's competition. lOL)
The flovor of the Starbucks Iced Americano is the best. It's all I drink in thye summer. YUM
i find it interesting that they call the "americano" blend the one that has been watered down by half the drink, trying to tell us something?
personally i prefer cappucino and lattes but this is great news!
The reason it is called an Americano IS because the coffee is watered down. Apparently in Italy during WW2, the Americans thought the espresso tasted too strong and ask the servers to add some hot water. Hence, espresso and water is called "Americano"
I'm a big fan of Americanos. It's espresso and water, not regular coffee, so the strength is about right. With some milk added (I use soy), it tastes delicious, hot or iced, and the calories are minimal.
Not only is the Cafe Americano low in calories, it is one of the least expensive items on the Starbucks menu.
How much did Starbucks pay you for this promo?
in any event ... a real coffee lover would never add sugar nor milk to coffee.
When I take my first sip of my tall, decaf, sugarfree, vanilla, skim latte with whipped cream all is right with the world.
the only reason there are any calories is because of the oil in the espresso beans. its basically like drinking a regular cup of coffee, only using espresso. you can get them hot or iced. the iced coffee they serve may have more calories b/c it is sweetened but you can also ask for it unsweetened therefore taking out all the sugar calories, again the only calories would be from the oil in the coffee beans which technically i dont think count. you burn those off lifting the cup to your mouth.
starbucks has always had low cal options, you just need to know what to ask for (i.e. sugar free syrup, skim milk, no whip, americanos, unsweetened iced teas or coffees, less pumps of a syrup, etc.)
the strength of an americano is comparable to a medium roast coffee. if you get an iced americano with no water, they pull the shots over the ice so that the ice melts from the heat of the espresso. it gives the americano almost a caramelly flavor which is way better than the regular iced americano which can taste TOO watered down at times. any barista will tell you that this is the preferred way to drink americanos.
I enjoy three shots over ice, nothing in it. But, lately I have been craving a little bit of sweetness. So, I will get a couple pumps of white mocha and gained five pounds even with out milk added. oh well I guess it's back to my old ways.
I used to be a barista for Starbucks. We would make all sorts of combinations of drinks. I used to do the Americano (hot or cold) with a few pumps of sugar-free vanilla in it. (of course that's back when they only had one sugar-free option). It was pretty tasty though.
Also, if you find Starbucks coffee to be a little too strong for you, ask them to put a little hot water in it for you. It takes the intensity down a bit.
Starbucks really hasn't "changed their tune" other than making a few more options for sugar free flavored syrups. anyone who has tryed the coffee at McDonalds will know that is NO kind of competition. It is gross! I have been workin for Starbucks for 7 years now. the Iced Americano with Splenda and just a splash of nonfat milk is what I drink every day. It is good IF you actually like the taste of coffee. Espresso has a nice dark caramel flavor to it. Yummmm! actually most of the baristas I work with drink it as well, come to think of it.
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