One of my number one priorities as a mom is to do my best to stay in the moment and enjoy my three young kids as much as I can.
As they say, though, “The days are long but the years are short”. Which, in my case, means that’s sometimes that’s easier said than done.
That is exactly why I truly love my Keurig (like I’d be kind of lost without it) and why I think it would make such a wonderful Mother’s Day gift for anyone who doesn’t have one this year. I seriously don’t think I know a mom who wouldn’t be thrilled to have one of these beauties.
And to make it an even more perfect gift – today we’ve got three new must-try recipes to go with it PLUS a special discount for MPMK readers.
Now through May 30th the first 200 readers who use the code MODPARENTS will get 30% off your Mother’s Day Keurig 2.0 Brewing System Purchase!
Read on for those recipes from our contributor Kristin…
The right beverage at the right time can turn your mood around. Have you ever noticed that?
Wake up a little groggy and have a steaming cup of coffee to brighten your morning. The afternoon slump is a little easier to handle with a slightly sweet and refreshing drink. And in the evenings, a soothing drink can be just the thing to wind down the night.
That little cup of goodness can be just what you need to make the switch from exhausted/grumpy Mommy to a Mommy who’s ready to savor the day. (I’m especially loving the new jumbo sized K-mug pods for that in the morning!)
Plus, having one of these is basically like having a mini-coffee shop right on your kitchen counter. The Keurig 2.0 brewing system has been redesigned to actually read the lid of each K-Cup pod or K-Carafe pod to brew the perfect beverage every time. That means there’s now an option for stronger coffee (yes!), along with all sorts of teas, hot chocolates and other speciality drinks.
Plus, you can now brew a lot more sizes, including a full carafe (so handy for playdates!), of and there are more than 400 different beverages available to brew in the Keurig 2.0 system.
These delicious drinks come from over 60 brands you know and love including Starbucks, Dunkin Donuts, Folgers, Maxwell House, Lipton and even Snapple.
Our Top 3 Keurig Tricks
So here’s our idea. Use the discount code to pick up a new Keurig 2.0 Brewing System for Mother’s Day and package with the following three recipes. Who wouldn’t love that gift? (And for an extra-special touch, get it in Pantone’s 2015 Color of the Year: Marsala.)
I’m all about quick and ease as a busy mom, so I use my Keurig all the time to make a drink on the go. It’s a easy as pushing a button. I don’t have to keep any other equipment. I don’t have to grind anything, prep anything or DO anything other than insert a pod and push a button.
Even if your mom isn’t a coffee drinker, Keurig has so many drink beverage pods and so many options, it’s a great gift for anyone. To get you inspired, I wanted to share three recipes that I made using my Keurig. They do involve a little more than pushing a button, but the extra effort will pay off.
Foamy Latte (no milk steamer required)
Having a latte is such a treat. I don’t want to take the time to ground espresso and steam milk, so I found the perfect trick to make a latte at home using my Keurig and a microwave.
- Brew a 4 oz. cup of your favorite coffee. (Did you know you can choose the size you brew with the Keurig? So, you can make it tiny like an espresso. Keurig also has a Rivo Brewer specifically for espresso, but the Keurig 2.0 works for this recipe as well! It has different sizes all the way up to the K-Mug pods (brews up to 16 oz.) and K-Carafe pods (brews up to 30 oz.), which is for those of us that need a LOT of coffee to start the day.)
- While the coffee is brewing, put 8 oz. of milk into a microwave-proof container. Secure the lid and shake for about 30 seconds. The more you shake, the more foam you’ll get. Microwave the milk (with the lid on if it’s microwave-proof) for 30 seconds.
- Pour the milk into the coffee and end with the foam. You may need to use a spoon to help the foam go in last.
Iced Vanilla Coffee
This the ultimate fighter of afternoon slumps! This drink involves caffeine and hint of sweet. There’s no milk, so you won’t get too full before dinner and it’s ice cold. This will come in handy this summer.
- Start by brewing the Green Mountain French Vanilla K-Carafe pod. This is another cool feature that I love about the Keurig. Instead of just brewing one cup at a time, you can brew a whole carafe with one pod. The carafe comes with the machine and it holds 3-4 cups.
- Iced coffee can get watered down by using regular ice, so I like to use a little trick I learned at the coffee shop. I noticed that the nicer coffee shops are using coffee ice cubes. This means that as the hot coffee is poured over the ice cubes the flavor doesn’t lose any intensity. I purchased a larger square ice cube tray at Crate and Barrel and brewed a cup of coffee the day before, poured it in the ice cube molds and it was ready for afternoon coffee.
- You can also make the vanilla simple syrup ahead of time. This is something I love to just keep in the fridge for sweetening drinks as needed. All you do is boil one cup of water with one cup of sugar until dissolved. Remove from the heat and stir in one tablespoon of vanilla.
- I like to share the carafe with my neighbors or friends, so I bring out the coffee and glasses (each with a big coffee cube inside). I let my guests pour over the coffee and add the vanilla simple syrup to their liking. This is the perfect recipe for playdates!
Honeyed Hot Tea with Ginger and Candied Citrus Peel
When the day has got the best of me, I like to relax with a cup of tea after the kids have gone to bed. I know I could just brew a cup of tea and sip away, but what fun is that?! With a little prep – I like to make a bunch of these on Sunday and enjoy all week long – I can have a drink that tastes as good as it looks.
- The day before I made some candied citrus peel. This is optional, but doesn’t this garnish just MAKE it? Start by peeling an orange with a vegetable peeler. Cut the peels into strips. Then you’ll want to boil those peels in one cup of water and 2 Tablespoons of Karo syrup for about 20 minutes. (Watch the water level, if it starts to get too low, just add more water.) Drain the orange peels, drudge is white sugar and place them on a piece of parchment paper to dry for 24 hours.
- The Keurig brews coffee and everything from cider to lemonade to tea. I chose Celestial Seasonings English Breakfast my favorite tea to brew an 8 oz. cup.
- As the tea was brewing, I cut a few slices of fresh ginger and added them to the bottom of the cup. Ginger is so good for digestion and adds that little ‘kick’ to your tea.
- While the tea is steaming hot, I stirred in 1 Tablespoon of honey.
- Garnish with a candied orange peel and you’re ready to relax!
Visit Keurig.com to purchase, or for more information, and don’t forget to use the code MODPARENTS to get your special MPMK discount of 30% off now through May 30!
*This post was sponsored by Keurig, all opinions are 100% my own. Thank you supporting the brands that support MPMK.
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Kristin