Homemade Frappuccinos!

I've been contemplating how to make my own homemade Frappuccinos for some time now. After a few orders at Starbucks, where I asked for a non-sweetened Frappuccino and thoroughly confused the baristas, I discovered that the coffee Starbucks uses for their Frappuccinos is pre-sweetened (in both real sugar and sugar-free varieties). This was confirmed when I discovered that The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf sells a pre-packaged coffee base for their Iced Blendeds (their equally delicious version of a Frappuccino).

Using this information, I determined that my previous attempts at making homemade Frappuccinos had failed because I used plain coffee, which resulted in a drink that was slightly too watery and didn't pack the punch of the drinks I ordered at national chains.

So last night I went on a mission to develop my own coffee base. Using what I know about brewing tea, I determined that the coffee I brewed for my base would need to be twice as strong as what I would normally drink. So I doubled the number of scoops of grounds per cup compared to what I would normally brew. Once the coffee finished brewing I dissolved two cups of sugar in the brew, and set it to chill in the fridge.

This afternoon I put together a Frappuccino based on what I had figured out by watching baristas make my drinks for years now. I filled the cup of my compact blender (I use the Cuisinart CPB-300 SmartPower model, but my parents use the Cooks 5-in-1 Rocket, and they're both excellent) with an inch of the coffee base, then filled it the rest of the way with ice. I finished by pouring in enough milk to cover the ice and blended my drink! The result was about the same flavor and consistency as the Starbucks variety, although I would prefer it slightly less sweet and with a thicker milk (I used nonfat milk, and prefer 2%  or 4% milkfat).

I wish I had pictures to share with you, but I promise the drink is delicious! I added some caramel syrup to mine to recreate the caramel-flavored Frappuccino, which is my favorite, but with an at-home recipe you can blend it any way you want!