An Official Guide to the Unofficial Starbucks Secret Menu

Tired of ordering the same few drinks each time you visit Starbucks? What if you could invent your own pick-me-up at your favorite coffee shop? What if all your favorite desserts were made into beverages?

No need for a magic wand to grant this wish! Starbucks has a secret menu, unofficially created by consumers, that gives you a choice of ordering thousands of drinks you probably never even heard of. The next time you enter a Starbucks coffee shop, order your own secret recipe and sip away.

According to Starbucks’ Media Relations, “Starbucks does not have an official ‘secret menu.’ However, in addition to the beverage options listed on our menu boards, there are more than 170,000 ways baristas can customize beverages at Starbucks, including selecting from a variety of milks, syrups, coffee/espresso options, and toppings. If customers would like to order a beverage that is not listed on our menu boards, we recommend they know the recipe so that their barista can handcraft the beverage perfectly for them.”

Many secret recipes have become popular through Instagram feeds and Starbucks has even incorporated them into their “official menus” for limited times. For example, the Christmas Tree Frappuccino spread holiday cheer for a few days in December, while the Zombie Frappuccino played a tribute to the goriness of Halloween.

Check out some of the under-the-radar creations from Starbucks’ Secret Menu.

Colored for Spring

Pink Drink, via Starbucks

Referred to simply as the Pink Drink or Purple Drink, these strawberry acai refreshers with coconut milk and scoops of berries will get you in the mood for spring.

If you have seen people walking out with drinks that have pink and blue swirls or topped with glitter, that is a Unicorn Frappuccino, a jazzier version of the Dragon Frappuccino made with green tea Frappuccino, vanilla bean powder, and berry swirls.

The baby pink Raspberry Caramel Macchiato tastes as good as it looks. Have it with raspberry syrup, ice, milk, espresso, and caramel.

Drink Your Candy Bar

Twix Frappuccino, via Starbucks Secret Menu

The possibilities are endless when it comes to having your favorite candy created into a blended beverage. The candy bar-inspired Twix Frappuccino is a scrumptious mix of caramel Frappuccino, caramel syrup, hazelnut syrup, java chips, and a drizzle of mocha.

Chocolate connoisseurs will love the Ferrero Rocher Frappuccino with double chocolate chip Frappuccino, mocha syrup, hazelnut syrup, and hazelnut drizzle.

Even if you can’t eat the real thing, this lactose-free Caramel Snickerdoodle Macchiato will surely perk you up. Ask for an iced soy caramel macchiato and add vanilla syrup and cinnamon dolce syrup.

Pick up an after-dinner indulgence in a Thin Mint Frappuccino, made with chocolate syrup, mint syrup, java chips, and honey mixed into a Tazo Green Tea Frappuccino.

Character Rich

Butterbeer Latte, via Starbucks Secret Menu

The Pokemon-Go inspired Pokeball Frappuccino was so popular that some Starbucks locations put it on the specials board. Made with vanilla Frappuccino, strawberries and crème Frappuccino, and topped with strawberry whipped cream, this pink-white and creamy drink is made to look like the ball’s opening.

Harry Potter fans invented the Butter Beer Latte, a milk steamer with caramel syrup, toffee nut syrup, cinnamon dolce syrup, whipped cream, and salted caramel bits. There’s also an iced version of it.

Sweeten the Deal

Banana Cream Pie Frappuccino, via The Odyssey

No need to bake your favorite dessert recipes. Just ask your barista to add sweet ingredients of your choice to a cup and drink away. Order a Vanilla Bean Frappuccino with a pump or two of vanilla and hazelnut syrups, plus a whole banana to make a Banana Cream Pie Frappuccino.

Skip breakfast for a Nutella Frappuccino, a coffee Frappuccino with mocha syrup, hazelnut syrup, and blended whipped cream, topped with caramel drizzle.

Winter may be almost over, but you can still enjoy a Starbucks S’mores Hot Chocolate with chestnut praline syrup, whipped cream, and mocha drizzle added to a regular hot chocolate.

Add one to three pumps of raspberry syrup to a White Chocolate Mocha Frappuccino to make it a Raspberry Cheesecake Mocha Frappuccino, or ask your barista to blend a biscotti into any Frappuccino for an impromptu Biscotti Frappuccino.

Drink to Your Health

Iced tea, via Starbucks

If sugary drinks are not your thing, order an Iced Matcha Latte that boasts antioxidants and has a lot less calories. Just mix matcha powder, vanilla, cinnamon, and ice.

Detox with a healthier option of blended drinks with a Superfruit Tea. The green tea with limes and strawberries packs flavor and is good for you too.

Feeling under the weather? Get the Passion Coldbuster Tea with passion tango tea, emperor cloud and mist, half steamed lemonade, half boiling water, and a bit of honey. It helps reduce inflammation, suppresses cough, boosts immunity, and relieves stress and insomnia.

There is an unofficial website dedicated to drink recipes (which is not Starbucks affiliated) where fans can post recipes and pictures of their own creations.  They recommend noting down the recipes as not all baristas will be familiar with the creative drink names.

Also, a ‘Secret Menu for Starbucks’ app available from iTunes provides a database of recipes on your fingertips. Search hot, cold, blended, and tea-based drinks, learn how to order, and rate your drinks.

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That Bottled Water You’re Drinking May Contain Plastic Particles

A new report claims bottled water frequently contains tiny particles of plastic in it. The study, which was conducted by the State University of New York at Fredonia and non-profit journalism organization Orb Media, analyzed 259 bottles of water from 11 different brands sold across nine countries, including the United States. And the results may give you pause before you drop two bucks on the most abundant resource on earth.

93 percent of the bottles tested positive for microplastic contamination. They averaged 10.4 plastic particles per liter of water. That’s double the level detected in tap water. The plastic particles included polypropylene, nylon, and polyethylene terephthalate (PET), which is used to make bottle caps. Aquafina, Dasani, Nestle Pure Life, and San Pellegrino were among the brands tested.

In an interview with French media outlet AFP, researcher Sherri Mason of the State University of New York at Fredonia had this to say about the contamination, “I think that most of the plastic that we are seeing is coming from the bottle itself, it is coming from the cap, it is coming from the industrial process of bottling the water.”

Experts are unclear on the extent that these plastic particles pose a risk to human health, but warn that synthetic chemicals have been linked to various forms of cancer and other ailments.

While the study wasn’t peer reviewed or published in a scientific journal, the results are being carefully considered. The World Health Organization recently confirmed to BBC that they were launching a review of the risks of drinking bottled water.

In case you needed another reason to stick to tap water, plastic water bottles are incredibly unsustainable. Though they are recyclable, it can take over 1000 years for the average bottle to break down. Also, when you factor in production and transportation, the environmental impact becomes even more destructive, given the reliance on fossil fuels.

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Baking Show ‘Nailed It’ May Poke Fun at Epic Cake Fails, But It’s Also Inspiring

The TV landscape is cluttered with competitive cooking shows. And no matter how many you watch, the narrative is always the same. A handful of amateur, yet insanely competent chefs scramble to bake the fanciest of confections under the tightest of time constraints. Sometimes they’re not even old enough to drive. When the clock runs out, they still manage to present a perfectly put together platter of cookies or three-tiered wedding cake—the kind of desserts that most of us would waste half a day to achieve and still not come up with a result that spectacular. Even at their worst, these cakes are only slightly under-baked or missing a fondant flower or two, or some other minor detail that barely even translates on screen.

“Nailed It” completely flips this script. The show, which premiered on Netflix just last week, revels in spectacular failure. These contestants can’t tell the difference between powdered and granulated sugar. They forget to put frosting between layers of multi-tiered cakes. They couldn’t use an air brush if their kid’s birthday party depended on it. For once, those of us who’ve struggled to make brownies out of the box have a show we can relate to.

Netflix

The premise of “Nailed It,” which gets its name from internet cake fail memes, is simple. A trio of amateur (and we mean really amateur) bakers attempt to replicate Pinterest-worthy dessert creations.  You know the ones—towering volcano cakes, pirate-themed doughnuts, and super-fancy cake pops—they’re all treacherously emulated by the chefs on hand. After two rounds, the winner is awarded $10,000, which they are literally showered with via a gun that shoots dollar bills.

While a minor detail, the money gun is emblematic of the fun and festive atmosphere the show fosters. The bakers are bad, but they know they’re bad. (In one episode, a contestant named Sal doesn’t even turn on the tablet that contains the recipe he’s supposed to consult!) But their self-awareness is second only to their enthusiasm. It doesn’t matter that none of these people know cakes are supposed to cool down before you frost them, because they’re too busy drinking the vodka that’s supposed to go in the buttercream. Also the winner of the first round also gets to wear a gold, bedazzled chef’s hat, just because!

Netflix

There’s a lot of good-natured goofing around, which is half the fun. While total noobs in the kitchen, these contestants are just as ego-less as anyone on “The Great British Bake-Off.” (After half his shark cake collapses, the aforementioned Sal insists his competitors should win; an obvious, yet endearing sentiment nonetheless.) Host and comedienne Nicole Byers keeps the energy high and the banter hilarious throughout as well. And an impressive roster of guest judges, including wedding cake designer extraordinaire Sylvia Weinstock and Piecaken creator Zac Young, do their best to offer constructive criticism while trying their hardest not to laugh at the ugliest Rapunzel cake of all time.

Meanwhile, legendary chocolatier Jacques Torres is on hand every episode to guide viewers through the pastry-making process and offer practical advice along the way. If nothing else, I’ve learned that you should always grease your baking pan with butter instead of non-stick spray!

It all adds up to an entertaining, and dare I say, inspirational half hour of television. If these folks are willing to burn chocolate in the microwave in front of a national audience, than maybe I can attempt to make this Black Forest beauty from scratch? Plus, as is often the case in these episodes, even if it doesn’t come out looking anything like an aspirational social media post, it can still taste great, right? If nothing else “Nailed It” celebrates the art of trying. Even the ugliest monstrosities garner rounds of applause. The mere fact that these cakes exist at all is triumph enough.

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Fermented Food Is So Much More Than a Health Trend in Boston

Vegan Italian-American Lasagna With "Ricotta"

Get Recipe!

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Walmart Is Expanding Its Grocery Delivery Service to 100 Locations

Walmart is upping their grocery game. In a bid to compete with Amazon, the big box behemoth is expanding its grocery delivery service to over 100 metropolitan areas. That’s a huge increase compared to its current crop of siz cities across the nation.

Here’s how the service will work. Walmart workers will pack orders at their stores and then a third-party delivery company, or a startup like Uber, will ship them. This is a major change compared to the original proposal, which claimed Walmart workers would deliver shipments on their way home from work, without an explanation of how they would be compensated for the additional labor. In terms of price, deliveries will cost $9.95 with a minimum of $30 per order.

Walmart’s pursuit to conquer the home delivery market in recent months has become increasingly aggressive. The retailer claims the service will be rolled out and available to over 40 percent of U.S. households by the end of the year. They also plan to increase their grocery pick-up service as well, nearly doubling the amount of locations from 1,200 to 2,200 by 2019. Walmart will also use Jet.com, an online retailer it acquired in 2016 to offer same-day grocery delivery to New York City residents.

While Amazon has been the primary source of competition, especially since their acquisition of Whole Foods last year, they aren’t Walmart’s only challenger in the grocery arena. Grocery startup Instacart, which offers same-day delivery, recently added Kroger and BJ’s to its roster of clients. Target has also acquired Shipt, a delivery startup, which has helped expand its reach as well.

Of course, you could just go to the supermarket instead of relying on any of these companies to send bread to your doorstep, but it should be interesting to see who wins over most of the delivery market. Let the grocery games begin!

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Pasta with Spinach, Mushrooms, and Brown Butter

When it comes to this pasta dish with mushrooms, spinach, and brown butter, you couldn’t ask for an easier or quicker weeknight meal.

Just sauté a hefty amount of mushrooms, add cooked pasta and spinach, and stir until the spinach wilts. Just like that, dinner is ready!

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