When I lived on campus, I spent every dining dollar at the on-campus Starbucks. Now that I have my own apartment and am buying groceries, I not only realize that Starbucks is too expensive, but also that my kitchen is much closer than the shop. Another thing I realized was that I've spent 20 to 30 minutes in an aggravating line before, especially when I'm in a rush to get to class. Not to mention the walk or drive back to where I need to be! If I do this all in a matter of minutes in my kitchen, there's no need for me to worry about tardies and hateful professors.
Let me prove it to you with my all-time favorite Starbucks drink: Green Tea Creme Frappuccino. I can make an absolute copy-cat of this drink, in a blender, with this recipe:
*****1 cup whole milk
*****1.5 teaspoons matcha powder
*****3 tablespoons powdered sugar
*****1 teaspoon vanilla extract
*****10 ice cubes
1 gallon of whole milk is $2 for 16 uses. That's $0.13.
1 oz of matcha powder is $12 for 15 uses of this recipe. That's $0.80.
32 oz of powdered sugar is $2 for 21 uses. That's $0.10.
2 oz of vanilla extract is $4 for 4 uses. That's $1.
Ice is generally free, assuming you have a freezer with an ice maker. If not, you can buy a 7lb bag of ice for $1.
Congrats! You just made a $6 Matcha Frappuccino in your kitchen, in less time than it takes to wait in line, for $2.03. No tax. No tip.
A blender might be the defining factor to whether or not you can truly afford this change but, to be fair, at least one person in a whole apartment unit has a blender. Moreso, you're a college student; aren't specialty drinks mandatory?
Still not persuaded?
A grande green tea frappuccino from Starbucks, without whipped cream, is 320 calories. This recipe is 264 calories (15 for matcha powder, 149 for milk, 88 for powdered sugar, and 12 for vanilla extract). You might have noticed that the recipe calls for 8 ounces of liquid but, to be fair, milk fluffs when you blend it right. The last time I made this recipe, a little less than an hour ago, it fit perfectly into a grande Starbucks cup.
That's 84 calories less. If you're someone who drinks Starbucks every day, that's 30,660 less calories a year. If nothing else changes in your diet, you would lose 8.8 pounds and, with the mini-workout you do in the kitchen in opposition to standing in a line, you might lose a little more.
If you're like every college student ever, depressed and anxious over your new bank account, figure, and diminishing free time, you can find any Starbucks copy-cat online for cheap, fast, and low cal!
