Homemade Skinny Peppermint Mocha (With or Without an Espresso Maker)

My favorite holiday drink from Starbucks has always been their skinny peppermint mocha - it's not as sickly sweet as the regular peppermint mocha, and frankly, I can rarely justify the calories and sugar in a non-skinny drink. What I ALSO cannot typically justify is the price of a handcrafted Starbucks drink (there's a reason why some people facetiously call it "Sixbucks"). Enter, my at-home skinny peppermint mocha recipe! The first time I made it I was delighted at how similar it tastes to the real thing - I don't need Starbucks anymore! Although sometimes it is nice to drink one out of one of their holiday cups...

I understand that not everyone has or wants an espresso maker, so I've also concocted a modified version that can be made with regular coffee. Scroll down for that version! 

Linking my mug, it's on sale for $7 right now! I also linked the rest of my favorite holiday mugs here (most are $5).
If you like my tiered tray in the background, I did a whole post on how I decorated it last week!

Skinny Peppermint Mocha

Ingredients

• 1-2 shots espresso
• 8-12oz milk of choice (I use unsweetened vanilla almond milk)
• Sweetener of choice, to taste (I use one packet of stevia)
• Heaping teaspoon of unsweetened cocoa powder (the kind you bake with)
• 1/16 teaspoon peppermint extract (just a few drops)
  

Directions 

1. Brew espresso into a mug. Meanwhile, froth or heat your milk as desired.
   
2. Add sweetener, cocoa powder, and peppermint extract to the espresso. Whisk to combine. (I love these mini whisks!)
   
3. Add milk to the espresso mixture and stir gently to combine. Top with some additional cocoa powder and garnish with a candy cane if you wanna be ~FANCY~
   

If you don't have an espresso maker:

If you have a coffee machine but no espresso machine, you can still get the peppermint mocha taste! Just brew a cup of coffee and add creamer and sweetener as you normally would (I use Silk sweet cream almond creamer), plus a heaping teaspoon of cocoa and a few drops of peppermint extract. Whisk, and add whipped cream if you want. Easy! 

I hope you have a great weekend with plenty of coffee! Tag me on Instagram if you make this recipe! 

xoxx, Laura