The festive holiday season red cups are out in full force at Starbuck’s. Hot lattes are so appealing in these cold months. My Starbuck’s partner, aka my sister, asked me, what is the healthiest option at Starbuck’s? She begged me to write a post about it because she just loves her peppermint mochas, and I think she just wants to know how bad they are for you.
Nutrition Ranking (Based on Tall, 12 oz., Nonfat Milk Beverages)
#1: Nonfat Latte, Misto, or Cappuccino: Just coffee and milk–can’t go wrong
#2: Skinny Cinnamon Dolce Latte (any Skinny Latte aka nonfat and sugar-free): About 90 calories
#3: Soy Latte: Adds 30 calories and 4 grams of fat compared to the standard nonfat latte, but the soymilk adds a hint of sweetness and is satisfying
#4: Steamed Apple Juice: At least it’s 100% juice
#5: Nonfat Gingerbread Latte (or vanilla, caramel, hazelnut flavors): Adds about 15 grams of sugar compared to the skinny version
#6: Cinnamon Dolce Latte (regular sugar syrup used)
#7: Nonfat Mocha Image Source
#8: Nonfat Hot Chocolate: 190 calories and 37 grams of carbohydrate (mostly sugars)
#9: Pumpkin Spice Latte: about 200 calories and 38 grams carbohydrate for this festive treat. Want to save 50+ calories? Choose the cold drink: pumpkin spice light or pumpkin spice creme frappuccino.
#10: Peppermint Mocha: 210 calories and 44 grams carbohydrate. Don’t worry, Caitlin, you don’t have this treat very often, and hey, you need the sugar and carbs to run! Well, maybe the sugar syrup isn’t a very good source of carbohydrates, but I am just trying to make you see the positive.
#12: Toffee Mocha
Whip Cream: You can save 60 calories and 6 grams of fat by skipping the whip!
What about bakery options?
Choose a bit-sized sweet: mini donut, treat-sized cookie, or petite scone all are about 100-150 calories. The marshmallow dream bar is only 210 calories, or split a sweet treat with a friend. And don’t forget that Starbuck’s offers oatmeal as a healthy start to your day. The worst offenders are the banana nut loaf, cinnamon chip scone, cranberry orange scone, double iced cinnamon roll, iced lemon pound cake, raspberry scone, and zucchini walnut muffin which come in at 470-500 calories.
My advice would be to make your own festive holiday treats because you can incorporate healthier ingredients into your recipe and save money! And you can even make your own coffee beverages with skim milk, a dash of cinnamon, vanilla, and pinch of a sweetener. But, that’s a whole other topic for a post…
Hope this answers your question, Caitlin! To check out more Starbuck’s nutrition facts, click here.
November 9, 2010 at 4:34 pm • Permalink •
Yesss!! Thanks for the starbucks info!!!
November 10, 2010 at 1:50 am • Permalink •
Just ate their spinach and egg wrap for breakfast the other day. Haven't looked up the nutritional value yet. But it was good enough to get again; and better tasting than an egg McMuffin.
November 17, 2010 at 1:08 pm • Permalink •
I love their egg sandwiches! I cracked and got an eggnog latte over the weekend and felt so dumb when I was like, "So, do you have sugar-free eggnog syrup?" (I'd never had the eggnog latte before.)
They were like, um, no, this is real eggnog. I knew it was all over at that point. But 350 cal is less than I was expecting!