Caramel Maca-iato

I’m not gonna lie; since going vegan, there has been a lot of foods and drinks that I miss. The upside though, is that I’ve taken a lot of things that I enjoy, and I’ve made them vegan-friendly so that I don’t feel like I’m losing out.
One of my all-time favourites was a Starbucks drink (of course…), and my drink was a “double tall non-fat caramel macchiato”. I used to have at least one of these daily for a while before giving up animal products. (Yes, I could still get soy – but I don’t do soy milk. Also, I believe the caramel syrup they use for the drizzle has dairy, at least it did the last time I inquired about it…)

I’ve had an okay time making substitutes of this with my own almond milk and espresso at home, so this weekend I decided to make a smoothie that resembled a caramel macchiato crossed with a frappiccuno. It’s significantly more healthy than the drink I used to enjoy, and much more decadent… Which makes my mouth happy! : )

I call it the:

“Caramel Maca-iato”

Ingredients for the “Caramel Sauce”

• 4 small dates
• ½ tbsp peanut butter
• Pinch of sea salt
• Just enough vanilla almond milk to cover the ingredients

Method for the “Caramel Sauce”

• Blend all until smooth, and set aside

Ingredients for the Smoothie

• Vanilla almond milk
• Frozen banana
• Espresso (you can either brew it, or use instant espresso powder – your call!)
• 1 scoop vanilla protein powder
• 1 heaping tsp of maca

Method

• Blend all of the smoothie ingredients together.
• Scoop out ¾ of the “caramel sauce” into the bottom of the glass.
• Pour the smoothie into the glass.
• Top with a drizzle of the remaining “caramel sauce” and sprinkle some cinnamon on top.
• Drink, and enjoy!