Mocha Cinnamon Coffee Recipe

Sometimes, I just have a stroke of genius.  Read on for a delish coffee drink recipe to make yourself!

If you've checked in every once in a while, you've probably caught on to the fact that I'm a big fan of coffee.  Unfortunately, due to hanging out at my favorite cozy coffee shops and working a brief stint as a Starbucks barista... I've also become a bit of a coffee snob.  Only to myself.  My homemade coffee just doesn't cut it any more.  Give me cafe or gas station coffee over my own any day.

Equally unfortunately, coffee shops are expensive.  Even if I just stick to my basic coffee with cream and sugar, drinking it several times a week noticeably dents a college budget.  So oftentimes, I must settle for making it myself.  A few weeks ago when I ran out of my bag of Starbucks Blonde Roast (mmmm!) ground coffee, I found myself on a tight budget.  There was no room to splurge on coffee shops or even a bag of the good stuff.  So I haphazardly grabbed a bucket of Folger's French Vanilla and went on my way.

Back in the day, I used to drink Folger's all the time.  I didn't realize that in all of my coffee shop hours and barista training, I'd passed the point of no return.  Folgers?  Blech!  Now, before I get too far into my rant let me say that I can stomach your basic Folgers original or breakfast blend.  But this vanilla stuff is horrid.  In the past couple weeks, I've tried time and time again to make a decent cup of coffee.  There were many fails, let me tell you.  

Last night, when the coffee cravings swept over me... I gave it another try.  Since my usual half-n-half (or milk) plus sugar with the vanilla roast made my stomach turn... I knew I'd have to get a little crafty to make something I could actually drink and enjoy.  I pleasantly surprised myself!  For the first time, I made the vanilla roast taste delicious!  Since I'm sure many of you resort to cheap coffee (and since I can only assume this tastes even better with the good stuff) I decided to share my wonderful recipe for you to try.

Here's a little diagram I whipped up.

In your empty coffee mug, scoop some hot cocoa mix (preferably Swiss Miss, yum!) into the bottom.  I recommend four or five heaping spoonfuls because the chocolate is what really balances out the vanilla coffee.  Add two spoonfuls of sugar on top of that.  Then throw in a couple dashes of cinnamon.  Stir the powders together, pour the coffee over top, and then add a splash of milk (or half-n-half).  Stir it all together.  Enjoy! You'll smell the sweet cinnamon as you bring the drink to your lips.  And the taste of the mocha will linger after each drink.  This would also be heavenly topped off with whipped cream and more cinna-sugar sprinkled on top.

I'm so relieved that this vanilla roast won't go to waste!

P.S. If you haven't already... check out my coffee bar diy project featured in Cook & College magazine.  I revamped old jars into cute coffee canisters using chalkboard paint.  Pretty crafty, eh eh? ;)