*Special thanks to Ninja for providing product. I received a Ninja Coffee Bar &Nutri Ninja Auto-iQ Compact System for this post to review, however all opinions as usual are my own.
Back in November I had the joy of attending a huge food bloggers conference. If you’re not a blogger you’ve probably never heard of it. If you are – then I’m sure you have. BlogHerFood ’15 was held November 6-7 in Chicago. If you follow me on Instagram you probably saw my photos here at the famous Chicago sign, here at the AMAZING Giordanos pizza place, here at Eataly the most adorable Italian marketplace, or maybe even the highlight of the weekend when I partied the night away here with Ree Drummond THE PIONEER WOMAN! It was pretty epic I tell you. I had the most wonderful time with great blogger friends (my partner in crime for the weekend was my girl Rach from EZPZ Mealz… she’s pretty awesome, you should follow her if you don’t already!). Ate delicious foods. Connected with some really great people, and awesome brands.
I’m not a huge coffee drinker myself. I will however have a cup here or there on occasion. Typically I will if we’re at a friends and they are brewing up a fresh pot AND if they have something chocolatey for me to mix in. While I was doing my thang meeting the brands during some of the breakout sessions at the conference I kept walking by the Ninja booth. At first I wasn’t eager to stop because like I said, I’m not much of a coffee drinker. In fact, we had some friends of ours years ago give us a coffee maker that they were no longer using (as they were upgrading) and I never once used it. I’ve learned about myself if something is too much work to figure out I don’t take the time to… figure it out. So back to Ninja. I had some of my fun business card gifts I was handing out and decided ‘what the heck, why not?’. So I stopped by.
I handed out my fun little treats and grabbed a cup of something AMAZING! A Peppermint Mocha Ninjaccino to be exact. It was SO freaking good! While I was there I decided to hang around for a demo of the new Ninja Coffee Bar. I’ll be honest, I really listened with only about 50% attention. What? I said I’m not a big coffee drinker! But then they whipped out the Nutri Ninja Auto-iQ Compact System which is what made the peppermint mocha a specialty blended drink. Alright. Alright.. the 50% went up to about 75%. What can I say? I’m a sucker for kitchen appliances. The rest of the weekend I kept peeking my head over into the booth to see if they’d made any more of the peppermint mochas.
One thing led to another and next thing you know the kind folks at Ninja sent me both a Ninja Coffee Bar AND a Nutri Ninja Auto-iQ Compact System! HELLO generous! I couldn’t’ wait to get my hands on each of them and start creating fun things. Over the last month I’ve been making coffee like a maniac. The thing is, the coffee bar is SO easy to use. The reason I didn’t use the old coffee maker from our friends was because it was too complicated to figure out (and an old model of something or another). The Ninja Coffee Bar is CRAZY easy. Here’s a little more about it:
- Thermal Flavor Extraction™ technology, which delivers a variety of sizes and styles while achieving the perfect brew richness level every time.
- Auto-iQ™ One Touch Intelligence Technology delivers customizable options for smooth, rich coffee in a cup, travel mug or carafe.
- Makes refreshing iced coffee by allowing users to dial up the richness of their coffee to offset the dilution caused by melting ice.
- Offers a variety of brewing options including Classic Brew, Rich Brew, Over Ice Brew and Specialty Brew.
- Available at major retailers nationwide September 2015, starting at $179.99 MSRP
Yikes! It’s taking me a really long time to tell you about my mocha – but it only made sense if I filled you in on the back story first. SO with all of that said, this mocha was fun to make! I LOVE the Nutri Ninja Auto-iQ Compact System. It’s a pretty powerful machine and whipped up this frapuccino in a heartbeat. Here’s a little more about the system:
- Nutri Ninja® Auto-iQ™ Compact System now includes Smooth Boost™ Technology, allowing you to truly customize your drink-making experience whether you’re using Nutrient Extraction* or High Performance Blending. Now you can choose whether you want deliciously drinkable nutrient juices or whip up an ultra-creamy frozen smoothie all at the touch of a button. With Nutri Ninja® Auto-IQ™ with Smooth Boost™ you can see, feel, and taste the difference.
- This compact system includes a 40 oz. Blend & Prep Bowl for added functionality to create healthy meals and drinks with ease. The precision processing offers even chopping, smooth purees, and perfect dough consistencies.
- Nutri Ninja® Auto-iQ™ Compact System includes a double-walled stainless steel cup that keeps your favorite frozen smoothies colder for up to 4 hours.** Regular and Jumbo Multi Serve Tritan™ Nutri Ninja® Cups with Sip & Seal® Lids allow you to make delicious smoothies to take on the go.
- $159.99 MSRP
The point is this drink is awesome. These machines are awesome. And drinking coffee whenever l please is awesome.
Items used in this post:
Mocha Frappuccino
This frozen Mocha Frappuccino drink is a delicious pick-me-up that's perfect any time of the day! Made with only a handful of ingredients you'll feel refreshed and spunky after just one sip!
Ingredients
- 4 tbsp. ground coffee
- 3 c. ice
- 1/4 c. chocolate milk
- 1/4 c. chocolate syrup
Instructions
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Combine brewed coffee and ice with chocolate milk and chocolate syrup in a 24-ounce or larger blender container. Blend until smooth, about 25 seconds.
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Divide between 2 glasses, top with whipped cream, and drizzle with additional chocolate syrup.
If you're using a Ninja Coffee Bar to brew your coffee:
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Size: Travel Mug setting. Brew: Specialty
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Place the ground coffee into the brew basket. Place the ice into a large plastic cup; set cup in place to brew. Select the Travel Mug size; press the Specialty Brew button.
Recipe Video
Recipe Notes
Adapted from Ninja
Joe Quinn
I changed up the recipe by deleting the chocolate milk and the chocolate syrup and added chocolate protein powder and honey instead. Changes noted below. It’s delicious, and arguably healthier, but substituting the powder for the chocolate milk made for a “foamier” drink. Maybe I should add some water next time…
INGREDIENTS
4 tbsp. ground coffee
3 c. ice
DELETE: 1/4 c. chocolate milk
AND ADD: 2 scoops chocolate protein powder instead
DELETE: 1/4 c. chocolate syrup
AND ADD: 1/4 cup of honey
madison
do you just put 4 tbsp of coffee ground or 4 tbsp of brewed coffee
D.
Is the Ninja Coffee Bar appliance worth the money spent? I have a Keurig now & I like it, but, it’s going on the fritz. Should I consider Ninja?
You should definitely get a Ninja. You can make a cup or a whole pot of coffee. The versatility is great. The coffee is the best. It tastes like professional made every time. It has definitely spoiled me.
Eric Weeden
Yes it is worth it. Buy the new version. It will give you the most versatility. Also everything is so convenient.
Sophie Walsh
It’s look nicely! But from where can I buy this machine?
Yvonne
You can for sure order online, but as far as in stores – I’m not 100% sure. I can see if I can find out for you!
Larry Carroll
Walmart
This just made my coffee addict heart sing a song of joy! I think we need to schedule in a coffee date asap – sounds like you’re making the coffee… i’ll bring some treats. deal?!
Yvonne
Definitely a deal!