Every coffee lover takes their morning cup of coffee very seriously, and part of that process in including delicious, tasty, and flavored coffee creamer in their cup. Whether it is French vanilla, hazelnut, or even sweet Italian cream, the right coffee creamer can elevate and complement the coffee bean’s natural flavors.
However, did you know that some coffee creamers include some ingredients that might be not so healthy? If you’re already roasting your coffee beans to your liking, why not take a leap of faith and ditch the store-bought creamer brands and make your own with natural ingredients and flavors that you like?
What Exactly is Coffee Creamer?
So before getting down to brass tax and learning how to make our coffee creamer, we need to figure out what coffee creamer is exactly. Put simply, coffee creamer is a store-bought liquid (or powder) that is commonly added to coffee. Originally, milk or a similar-milk product like half-and-half was used. However, today most store-bought coffee creamer is not even made of dairy, but rather a combination of oils, sugars (or a similar sugar substitute), and thickeners along with artificial flavorings.
Is Named Brand Coffee Creamer Unhealthy for You?
For example, my usual go-to coffee creamer is Coffee Mate’s French Vanilla, and looking at the ingredients, milk is not even included in its ingredients list. In fact, the first three ingredients are water, sugar, “partially hydrogenated soybean and/or cottonseed oil”. The rest of the ingredients include things like “less than 2% of dipotassium phosphate, disodium phosphate, as well as mono and diglycerides”.
Sounds disgusting right? The World Health Organization has found that “Diets high in hydrogenated oils increase heart disease risk by 21 percent and deaths by 28 percent”, and in 2015, even the Food and Drug Administration of the US considered that partially hydrogenated oils “are no longer generally recognized as safe”.
With this health fact in mind, personally speaking, I think it’s high time to make a healthier alternative (and super easy to make) coffee creamer, so I can continue to enjoy my daily cup of homemade coffee for years to come.
How to Make a Simple Homemade Coffee Creamer
Making a simple homemade coffee creamer truly is not a difficult process. With a few simple and easily attainable ingredients, you can create your own healthier alternative to the sugary, store-bought coffee creamers.
The ingredients you will need are as follows…
- A can of sweetened condensed milk.
- The milk of your choice, whether that’s whole, half-and-half, skim, or 2%.
- If you would prefer to use a non-dairy product, coconut milk, almond milk or a similar option is fine.
- Additionally, if you would like to control the sugar, using maple syrup will be fine to add as well. If you want a sugar-free creamer, simply disregard adding a sugar substitute entirely.
To make your simple homemade creamer, follow the directions below…
- Add both the sweetened condensed milk and the milk of your choice in a large bowl.
- Whisk vigorously to combine.
- Pour the mixture into a lidded jar and refrigerate. The mixture should keep for about 2 weeks if properly refrigerated.
If you would like to add sugar or a similar sugar substitute to your homemade creamer...
- Heat the milk and sugar or sugar substitute in a saucepan over medium-low and bring to a simmer.
- Whisk often to reduce the milk by half.
- Remove from the heat and allow to cool to room temperature, then follow the directions above.
Making Different Flavored Homemade Coffee Creamer
Once you have gotten the basics down of crafting your creamer base, you can begin to work on creating flavored coffee creamers such as French Vanilla or Hazelnut or since Autumn is quickly approaching, Pumpkin spice!
Homemade Coffee Creamer Recipes
- French Vanilla: Add 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract to your creamer.
- Hazelnut: Add 2 teaspoons of hazelnut extract to your mixture.
- Caramel: Treat the caramel as a sugar substitute and add it with the milk over medium-low heat. Once combined with the sweetened condensed milk, add a teaspoon of vanilla extract.
- Italian Sweet Cream: Add heavy cream alongside your condensed milk and milk mixture. Combine until well-blended, then add a teaspoon of almond extract and vanilla extract.
- Pumpkin Spice: Add 2 tablespoons of maple syrup, 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract, 1 teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice, and ½ teaspoon of cinnamon.
Now armed with the knowledge to make a few simple flavored coffee creamers, you can begin to experiment on your own such as peppermint mocha or milk chocolate, and start to incorporate them into your homemade cold brew, in iced coffee drinks, or simply to add a little bit of sweetness to a simple cup of black coffee.