Wild for Witchinos
I used to have the good fortune to work across the street from Chelsea Market in Manhattan. Which was more or less a primo location for a foodie to be ??? Sarabeth???s, Amy???s Bread, The Green Table, and plenty of other good boutique food stores at arm???s length. And in the Summer months, one of my favorite destinations for an afternoon ???I-have-to-get-away-from-my-desk-for-five-minutes??? break was Fat Witch Bakery, famous for their delectable brownies in playful flavors like Red Witch and Java Witch.
But this is not a blog about brownies, and my favorite reason for patronizing Fat Witch isn???t about brownies, either. It???s about the Witchino.
There are many ways to skinny a cup of coffee. You can skinny it up with skim milk, artificial sweeteners, sugar-free syrups in a range of flavors and serve it up hot or iced. You can also skinny it up as a smoothie of delightfully low fat proportions, as is done at Fat Witch. Their Witchino smoothie comes in several flavors in the coffee and tea territory, each featuring skim milk, ice, and a mix of other ingredients blended together into frothy goodness. That???s right, I said frothy goodness.
Patricia Helding, founder and owner of Fat Witch, introduced the Witchino eight years ago because she ???wanted something cool??? to add to the repertoire. The result was a concoction that???s less sugary than similar frozen coffee drinks yet still packs a sweet and sassy punch. Soon after it launched, the Witchino became Helding???s hot commodity ??? perfect for a season when everyone needs a little cooling off.
Now that temperatures are on an uphill creep, it???s happily Witchino season again, and the drinks are as wildly in demand now as they were eight years ago. The most popular flavors are Latte Espresso, Mocha Espresso and Coffee Espresso. Helding believes this is because people who stop by on a work-break are looking for a pick-me-up with a caffeinated jolt ??? ???something that says ???hello!??????
Whatever salutation you prefer your drink to convey, this heavenly smoothie is sure to deliver.
Sadly, the Witchino is only available at this time through the Chelsea Market storefront, though Helding is considering marketing the drink mix for home brewing in the future.
You can create your own version of the Witchino at home with your favorite ingredients, but the key, says Helding, is in the blender. She suggests using the strongest blender you can find. We???re talking an industrial strength, Margarita-mixing, frappe-making supercharged blender. No ???mix??? or ???chop??? settings will do, because the Witchino is based on the ice being ???pulverized???. Then simply blend with skim milk and espresso, and customize with your favorite sweetener. Squeeze in a few shots of chocolate syrup if you???re in the mood for mocha.
Better yet, hop on your broom and make a trip out to Fat Witch Bakery to taste the real deal for yourself.
Fat Witch Bakery is located at 75 9th Avenue (Chelsea Market), New York, NY 10011.
