Just an fyi for any occasional coffee drinkers... while at the mall I made a calculated decision to try one of Carabou's new LC Lattes. Now ... I am not a coffee drinker at all... maybe once or twice a year I will have a coffee drink...

So I ordered a LC Carmel Latte in a medium size. And when she was ringing me up I happened to ask how many carbs were in the drink so I could plan the rest of my day accordingly. She handed me a nutrional chart showing the small, medium and large sizes. I just about fell over! I saw 10 carbs in the medium and like 1100 calories!

At this point I wished that I could cancel my order and walk away, but the cashier was already onto the next person. So I waited for my drink.
Let me tell you it tasted great! I told myself that I would only drink half and then toss it. So I continued to shop and drink... well when I finished shopping I took the cover off to see how much damage I had done, and I had only drank about 1/8th of it. So I wasted a good $4, but at least I didn't sabotage my day with the high calories and carb count.

Lesson learned!

NOT GONNA QUIT!

START-DATE 9/10/03
WEIGHT 235/186/160 5'5"
SIZE 16/10/?

Hi Shelly, Thats too bad, I was hoping it would be something good. What I do now when I have coffee out, I order decaff with a shot of suger free flavor. Its pretty good. I se you are from MN , Did you get lots of snow? We got about 10-12 inches here in the central area.
Jackie

Bergee 101 > I will have to remember that... we went up to the outlets at Albertville to go shopping pre-Christmas and they had the s/f syrups at their coffee shop, and that was really good. Do most of the chain coffee shops have the s/f syrup?!? I am not a coffee person, and I try to avoid making myself look like a fool when I do go there! So order a decaf coffee w/ ____ flavored s/f syrup?!? so that would be 0 calories, 0 carbs?!? Help!

I live in the east metro area, and work in Bloomington. There was only about 3-4 inches on the ground this morning, but it hasn't stopped snowing yet. It sure makes the drive to work a pain, but it is nice to get a good snow fall!

NOT GONNA QUIT!

START-DATE 9/10/03
WEIGHT 235/186/160 5'5"
SIZE 16/10/?

Shelley, with any of the coffee drinks, such as latte's at Caribou or Starbucks and such, you can request they be made with cream or with half and half, which will cut the carb count accordingly. When you are in OWL or maintenance, you can make a choice whether to have regular milk or not, depending on your particular carb allowance.

A cafe americano might be a good choice too. It's coffee, but made with expresso and water. Add half and half and/or a flavor shot.

Most of the chain coffee shops do have s/f syrups, although generally a very narrow selection. I usually opt for a plain latte, then use the cinnamon liberally at the napkin counter, and sometimes a sprinkle of cocoa, too, if it is "plain" cocoa and not a cocoa/sugar mix.

Love my espresso drinks! Make them at home, but also buy them out as a special treat occasionally.



BC
172/108/108
Zone since 4/98

[This message was edited by BC on 01-27-04 at 03:28 PM.]

Hi Shelly, I like my coffee sweet so I have either SF french vanilla or hazelnut added. And yes it is calorie/carb free.And it is also sweetened with splenda. I have 4 bottles in my cupboard. When I get the munchies, it usually takes care of the problem.I also add it to tea.
We got 20 inches over the last 24 hours. It is supposed to quit about midnight.
Jackie

OK, frequenters of Starbucks - I had something last week that was very tasty, and purported to be low-carb, called a Breve Latte - I was led to believe it was espresso, water, and steamed cream. I got the medium size, 16 oz, Grande I think they called it.

WELL - about 20 minutes after drinking it, I got a carb Jones Like I haven't had in ages!! I looked it up on the website, and while it didn't list the ingredients, it DID say that dang thing was 550 calories, and 20 GRAMS of CARBS, with less than 1 of sugar? What the ????

I can't for the life of me figure out WHERE those 20 grams came from, but I sure FELT as if I'd had 20 grams!

Any aficionados/Starbucks baristas out there able to enlighten me?

From now on I'll just get a decaf coffee and pour in my OWN cream! This was at work, and was brought in by a pharmacy rep, we THOUGHT we had something good there!!

Char

Don't squat with yer spurs on!

Char, a breve is usually made with half and half, not cream. 8oz half and half has about 10-1/2 carbs, so 16 oz...... sorry.

Someone there obviously didn't know the difference between cream and half and half



BC
172/108/108
Zone since 4/98

I have tried to make my own coffee and sf syrup at home, but it always tastes icky! We aren't big coffee drinkers, so we just bought the instant coffee, so maybe that is the issue? oh well... I will have to try the decaf coffee w/sf syrup at a coffee shop... num num... especially up here in the cold!

NOT GONNA QUIT!

START-DATE 9/10/03
WEIGHT 235/185.4/160 5'5"
SIZE 16/10/?

Shelley, I think most instant is really nasty stuff, and I don't touch it unless absolutely desparate. And decaf instant--gag me!! I think you're better off with the real thing. However, I know some folks who love instant!

To tell the truth, I don't even make "coffee" anymore. I use the old expresso machine for my caffeine habit.



BC
172/108/108
Zone since 4/98

I just moved to washington state a few months ago ( not to far from seattle ) and man I got the coffee bug - I was sick of paying for coffee so much so I bought an esspresso maker - best investmen! I make 2-4 shots of esspresso then add half and half which has maybe 1gram and sugar free hazelnut and some splenda and I am set with a low carb beverage. I just started using french vanilla cool whip instead of half and half and it's good too. As far as i know coffee in it's esspresso state doesn't have any carbs at all - so it mostly comes from the creamers and sweetners you add to it. By the way next time any one is at a coffee shop - ask for a breve or americano for low carb drinks ( the breve is not as strong).
thanks
-s-

samm, as I said in my earlier post, half and half has 10.4 carbs per cup, so the carb count will depend on how much you are using.

Please also be sure you are counting the carbs in the Cool Whip. There are usually about 2 carbs per serving, which is two tablespoons. The measuring kind of tablespoons--the tiniest little glop you can imagine. Try whipping your own cream--it's luscious. You'll get "real ingredients" and can enjoy more. You may know all this, but I just want to make sure you aren't sabotaging yourself.

A breve is a latte made with half and half (10.4carbs/8oz)

An americano is a coffee made with two shots of espresso and hot water. You can add your own half and half and judge the carbs accordingly.



BC
172/108/108
Zone since 4/98