Make your own homemade Peppermint Mocha Frappe with this delicious, easy recipe. It will save you money and is a great way to use up that leftover coffee!
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Several weeks ago after enjoying a peppermint mocha frappuccino at Starbucks, I decided it was time to figure out how to make my own at home.
I’m fine with spending the occasional $4 for the pleasure of sipping one of my favorite drinks.
But the thing is, I’m not able to get out to coffee shops very often and I loved the idea of being able to enjoy a peppermint mocha frappe any time that I wanted to!
And being able to do that for a mere fraction of what I typically spend at Starbucks, was just added incentive!
So, using my easy Caramel Frappe recipe as a starting point, I got to work.
It was a tough job since I had to drink multiple frappuccinos for taste testing. Yup, totally a hardship. ?
How to Make a Peppermint Mocha Frappe
Use coffee ice cubes
Using regular ice cubes as most frappe recipes do, results in a rather watered-down beverage.
I’ve discovered the secret to a really good homemade frappuccino is to brew coffee, freeze it in ice cube trays and then use that instead of regular ice.
Use cocoa powder
Cocoa powder gives this frappuccino the perfect, rich depth of chocolaty flavor that totally hits the spot!
Initially, I tried using chocolate syrup but not only was the chocolate flavor less intense, but it also made the frappe too sweet in my opinion.
Use peppermint extract
A lot of homemade peppermint mocha frappuccino recipes use peppermint syrup. But I prefer to stick with ingredients that have multiple uses.
And since a lot of bakers have peppermint extract in their pantries, I decided to use that.
I was quite happy with the end result and felt satisfied that I had created a Peppermint Mocha Frappuccino that even Starbucks would be proud of!
In fact, my husband and I both agreed that this homemade version is actually tastier than Starbucks. And obviously much cheaper too!
But don’t just take our word for it, be the judge and try it for yourself!
Other drink recipes that you’ll enjoy:
- Homemade Caramel Frappe
- Homemade Mocha Frappuccino
- Homemade Iced Vanilla Latte
- Homemade Pumpkin Spice Iced Latte
- Warm Vanilla Custard Drink
- 3 Minute Frozen Fruit Smoothie
Homemade Peppermint Mocha Frappuccino
Peppermint Mocha Frappe
Ingredients
- 2 cups strong coffee, frozen into ice cubes (see Note below)
- 1 cup milk
- 3 tablespoons brown sugar or to taste (see Note below)
- 1 ½ tablespoons cocoa powder
- 5 to 7 drops peppermint extract
- 1 tsp instant coffee granules or to taste (optional, but will give a stronger coffee flavor)
- whipped cream and chocolate shavings (optional)
Instructions
- Place all ingredients except whipped cream in blender. Blend until ice cubes are crushed. If you have trouble getting the frappe thoroughly blended, let it sit for a couple of minutes and try again. (I’ve discovered that if you let it sit for 5 to 10 minutes before blending it works much better!)
- Pour into glasses and top with whipped cream, if desired.
Notes
- For me, 2 cups of coffee is about 14 ice cubes or one ice cube tray full
- I recently started to use stevia to sweeten this and love that it gives it fewer calories.
- You can also defrost the coffee ice cubes in the microwave if you are having trouble blending them. Just use caution as it’s easy to melt them too much and then you end up with a runny frappe. I do 45 seconds on the defrost setting, but obviously, every microwave is different.
Madison
Could you perhaps use premade coffee like a cold brew you buy in a jug at the store? If so what would you recommend? I just don’t own a coffee maker !
Lydia Beiler
Yes, you most certainly can, Madison! I would just use 2 cups of that. And if it isn’t as strong as you’d like, you can always add more instant coffee. I hope you enjoy it!
Ali
the very best thing? none of the long list of chemicals that Starbucks uses in all their beverages!
ThriftyFrugalMom
Yes!! One of the big reasons I love it too. 🙂
Emily
Peppermint is such a great treat this time of year! I always have leftover coffee that I use in iced coffee for an afternoon pick me up, but this sounds like a great use for the leftovers too.
ThriftyFrugalMom
I like iced coffee, but for some reason, I like the frappe form even better! But obviously, you could always just add the cocoa and peppermint to your iced coffee too. 😉 I just made my first Peppermint Mocha Frappe of the season and am enjoying as I type. Yum!
Bridget
Hahaha! Yes, we do make a lot of “sacrifices” when we research and fine-tune recipes. Cocktail recipe research is especially grueling! I’ve pinned this frappe recipe — it sounds perfect.
ThriftyFrugalMom
Yes, it’s a hard life taste testing and fine-tuning recipes! 🙂 So happy you were inspired and hope you enjoy the peppermint mocha frappe!
AdoringFamily
This sounds delicious! I too would like to try it hot. I have an immersion blender so hopefully that will burns the cocoa. Thank you for posting 🙂
ThriftyFrugalMom
I hope you enjoy it! Yes, I really need to work on the hot version. I tend to be a cold beverage girl, even during the winter months. But I do like hot drinks occasionally too.
Kayla
This looks amazing! I especially like the peppermint on the rim 🙂
ThriftyFrugalMom
Thanks, Kayla! It is actually colored sugar that is peppermint flavored. 🙂 Kind of perfect for this recipe!