Chai Tea Lattes: An Easy Substitution

Last Friday I had a morning doctor appointment.  You know what that means ... this gal is treating herself afterwards!  

I guess it started at an early age with our local pediatrician.  I remember walking out of the exam room, puffy-eyed and still sniffling from having to get a shot (hate 'em!) but really excited to be sporting a sticker and pushing up a red ice pop.  The art of positive connotation, ya'll.

My treat of choice on Friday was a soy chai tea from Panera.  Which was incredible.  Except for the 200 calorie count it carries.  I will give props to Panera -- their nutritional information is extremely visible on the menu (and also on this easy-to-use site) so I knew exactly what I was ordering.  But still.  I may have had a little bit of order remorse afterwards.

Enter ... my favorite new substitution!  I found these Cafe Escapes Chai Latte K-Cups at Bed Bath & Beyond and I am here to tell you that they are AWESOME.  Each K-Cup already has the sweetener and cream added, so all you do is brew it in your Keurig and start sipping.

Nutritional Info: Cafe Escapes Chai Latte

Calories: 60

Fat: 2.5g (saturated fat)

Cholesterol: 0mg

Sodium: 170mg

Carbohydrates: 9g

Sugar: 7g

Protein: 1g

Nutritional Info: Panera Chai Tea

Calories: 200

Fat: 4g (2.5g saturated fat)

Cholesterol: 15mg

Sodium: 90mg

Carbohydrates: 33g

Sugar: 32g

Protein: 7g

Nutritional Info: Starbucks Chai Tea Latte (tall with skim)

Calories: 160

Fat: 0g

Cholesterol: 5mg

Sodium: 80mg

Carbohydrates: 34g

Sugar: 32g

Protein: 6g

You can see that the Panera and Starbucks options do have more protein and less sodium, but they are significantly higher in calories, carbohydrates, and sugar.  For me, I am good about getting my protein through food sources and I am not (on most days) a big consumer of sodium, so overall the K-Cups are a better option for me.  And they are SO tasty!  

Cost-wise, you can get 16 K-Cups for $9.59 if you use your 20% off coupon at BB&B.  That comes out to $0.60/cup.  Do we even need to compare this to the other options?

I just couldn't wait to share this great find with you!