Fancy, Fruity, Bubbly, Four Drinks Under 200 Calories!

This Holiday season I have some solid plans which include, Eat, Drink and be Merry! I plan to thoroughly enjoy myself through Christmas and on to New Year's Eve!

I've also been making great progress on getting fit (25 lbs down) and I don't want to sabotage my efforts over these next weeks. I've did some digging and found four great drinks us ladies can indulge in with absolutely no guilt :) 

Fancy, fruity and bubbly, a low-cal drink option for every taste. :)

Fancy:

Pomegranate Martini

A 4oz serving made with pomegranate vodka and pure pomegranate juice (about 50/50) only has 185 calories! Delicious and full of antioxidants. 

Red Wine

A glass of red wine boasts 120 delicious calories per 5 ounces. Remember a jumbo glass can hold 10 ounces or more so remember glass half full ;)

Fruity:

Strawberry Daiquiri

You can whip up your own low calorie daiquiri using frozen fruit with no added sugar. Strawberries make a perfect choice because they're naturally sweet. Mix three partially thawed berries in blender with ice, half oz lime juice and one and half shot of Rum. Add a little water to blend and you're set for 195 calories!

Bubbly:

Champagne

Pour Champagne into flutes and add a few raspberries. Pretty, delicious and only 100 calories per 5 ounce glass. Your best drink option! You can also make your own spritzer with club soda and ice added to white wine. 

4 Delicious drinks under 200! I'll toast to that!
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Seasons Greetings & Happy New Years Friends! :')

Starbucks Discoveries Caramel Macchiato Review

The quest to find the perfect cup of coffee never ceases, especially a delicious and affordable one I can drink at home. Getting coffee out is one of the biggest treats of my day, but the coffee shop can put quite a dent in the Piggy over time. I do love visiting Starbucks on occasion, my Starbucks regular changes from a Caramel Frappuccino to a Carmel Macchiato depending on my calories for the day. ;) 

Last night while shopping at Target I was surprised to see that Starbucks has a ready to drink Iced Coffee called Starbucks Discoveries in Carmel Macchiato!

I know that Seattle's Best and Silk makes an iced Coffee drink but I had yet to see a ready to drink Starbucks in this size. Best of all they had my beloved Carmel Macciato and the ingredients were whole and simple, so I just had to try!

Starbucks Discoveries Carmel Macchiato Ingredients:

Unlike the other brands of ready to serve iced coffee, Starbucks has simple and easy to understand ingredients. No artificial colors or sweeteners  I am slightly concerned about what the 'Natural flavors' might contain as recently a law passed that allowed artificial sweeteners to be labeled under Natural Flavors. However most artificial sweeteners have a distinct taste and I didn't notice one and 17 grams of sugar per serving is quite high so I think we're safe there :) 

Taste: 

This Carmel Macciato is ready to serve, plain or over ice. The Starbucks Carmel Macciato has a thin consistency but packs good flavor. A mild espresso base with a rich and warm buttery carmel flavor. It is slightly creamy. It seems to water down quickly over ice and tastes better served alone. It's not quite as sweet as an Iced Carmel Macciato from Starbucks but definitely does the job and satisfies the craving for tasty iced coffee! A Tall, 8 ounce iced Carmel Macciato from Starbucks has 170 calories per serving while each serving of Starbucks Discoveries Carmel Macciato has only 120! a diet friendly treat :) 

Price: 

Target Price: $3.99, 

1.5 qt sized carton that holds six, 8oz servings bringing the total cost per 8 ounces to $.67 each! A tall sized (small, 8 ounce) Iced Carmel Macciato from Starbucks costs $2.80. A Carmel Macciato from Starbucks comes with real carmel drizzle but for $2.13 cents cheaper I will choose my ready to serve Iced Carmel Macciato and no carmel drizzle, anyday ;)

Overall: 

Starbucks Discoveries Iced Cafe Carmel Macciato is definitely tasty, readily available both in fridge and at the grocery store. It's far cheaper than an iced coffee of it's kind at Starbucks and lower in calories as well! A definite WIN and a 4 out of 5 star beverage! I will repurchase this again and look forward to trying the other flavors as well! :)

Thanks for reading! 

Raspberry Peach Lemonade Cooler

Perfect for summer bbq's, get-togethers and backyard mixers. Sweet raspberry meets creamy peach with the tartness of ice cold lemonade. This beverage is refreshing, beautiful and so simple to put together.

What you'll need:

• 12 oz serving simply lemonade™ in raspberry
• 1 blue bell all natural fruit bars™ in peach

Directions:

1. For each serving pour 12 ounces of simply lemonade raspberry into serving glass. (we love the classic quaintness of the mason jar)
2. Next cut the fruit bar into cube like pieces. 
3. Add fruit cubes to lemonade and serve. enjoy!