Iced Coffee the Tightbucks Way

I have to admit. I'm a coffee addict. Flavored coffee, decaf coffee, iced coffee -- I love it all. I have even been known to take coffee to bed with me in the evenings, while I catch the last few minutes of quiet reading time. Yes, my addiction has become that bad.

While I love coffee, I don't always love the price. Especially the cost of fancy iced coffee. So, I devised a recipe for iced coffee that is certainly much less expensive than the fancy namebrand coffee, and allows me to use my leftover coffee at the end of the day. I use the term "recipe" lightly, because I don't know that it's a recipe exactly, but rather just a few ingredients thrown together. And all that's needed is a blender.

1/2 blender full of cold coffee (regular or decaf)
about 2 tablespoons of instant vanilla pudding
approximately 2 heaping tablespoons of prepared whipped topping
a large splash of milk (low-fat, 2%, or whole) or half and half

Place all the items in a blender for about 15 seconds. Add a handful of ice and blend again for about 10 seconds. Pour into a glass (or glasses) and add additional whipped topping on top.

This is not an overly sweet iced coffee. But, the great thing about this "recipe" is that it can be adjusted for almost any taste. For a sweeter taste, more pudding, whipped topping, or even sugar can be added. And, I won't tell you how terrific chocolate syrup tastes blended with this.

It's hard to say exactly how much I save by making my own iced coffee, but I think it's safe to say that one serving is definitely less than the $4.75 I might pay somewhere else.