Monday 23 June 2014

Homemade Vanilla Coffee Creamer


Half of our kids are adults, two are teenagers, which leaves just one that hasn't reached his teen years yet.  Wow, just reading that sentence makes me feel a moment of panic.  This whole growing up thing has just happened way too fast, and I'm terrified to blink in case they all graduate when I'm not looking.  But this isn't about the relentless march of time, or about how we should cherish every moment because before we know it they've all grown up.  Nope, this is about coffee.  And about how we've traded in sippy cups for coffee mugs.  


We've got quite a few coffee and tea drinkers in the house now.  As newbie coffee drinkers, these kids (why is it so hard to call them adults?) load up their mugs with almost as much milk, cream and sugar as coffee.  Recently they added flavoured coffee creamers to the mix.


 As I was tossing an empty container of vanilla coffee creamer into the recycling bin, I gave the label a quick read and I had to shake my head at the ingredient list.  It looked like this:

INGREDIENTS: WATER, SUGAR, PARTIALLY HYDROGENATED SOYBEAN AND/OR COTTONSEED OIL, AND LESS THAN 2% OF SODIUM CASEINATE (A MILK DERIVATIVE)**, DIPOTASSIUM PHOSPHATE, DISODIUM PHOSPHATE, MONO- AND DIGLYCERIDES, NATURAL AND ARTIFICIAL FLAVORS, CELLULOSE GEL, CELLULOSE GUM, COLOR ADDED, CARRAGEENAN.

So what's a mom to do when everyone's jumping on the vanilla flavoured coffee bandwagon?  Make up a batch of homemade vanilla coffee creamer, of course.  It took me about 10 minutes and the result was better than the store bought stuff.  I made a simple syrup with water, sugar, and vanilla extract.  Combined it with sweetened condensed milk, then added regular milk.  This is good stuff.  I actually caught my 14 year old pouring himself a glass to drink it straight up.  It's ridiculously easy, and you probably already have all of the ingredients.  And the best part?  You can pronounce them all.




Homemade Vanilla Coffee Creamer

One batch of Simple Vanilla Syrup (below)
One can of sweetened condensed milk
Two cups of milk - I’ve used both whole and 2% milk, both worked well

Combine ingredients in a clean mason jar.  Secure lid and shake until well combined.  This will keep in the fridge for up to a week, shake before using.

*I poured boiling water into my mason jar before using to make sure it was squeaky clean.

**If you prefer not to use canned sweetened condensed milk, you can make your own.  This recipe looks good.

Simple Vanilla Syrup

1/2 cup filtered water
1/2 cup organic granulated cane sugar
2 tbsp pure vanilla extract

Combine water and sugar in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring constantly until sugar is completely dissolved. Remove from heat, allow to cool 5 minutes, stir in vanilla extract.




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55 comments:

  1. Wow what a great idea and it looks delicious!

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  2. Cool! I'll have to give this a whirl!

    Thanks so much for sharing! Wishing you a lovely day.
    xoxo

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  3. I've always wanted to try this and just haven't gotten around to it! I've pinned it for future reference! :)

    Thanks for joining the Link Up this week!

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  4. Such a great idea to make your own! I've been thinking of making my own so I'm glad I came across this, definitely prefer to make it myself than store-bought.

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  5. Visiting from Time for Mom link up! This looks great. I don't drink coffee, but it would be nice to whip this up for my guests! Thanks for the idea!

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  6. Love recipes that are quick and easy to make, and this looks great. Tastes extra special too as it was made at home!

    Thanks for sharing at Marvelous Monday on Smart Party Planning :-)

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  7. i spend so much money on this stuff in the store, i have to try this recipe! pinning this for all my friends to see! xo, jess @ www.dreamingofleaving.com

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  8. The one exception my husband and I made during our 30 days of real food challenge was for coffee creamer. We are both addicts. I'm so glad I found this recipe so I can finally kick the store bought stuff! Thank you so much for sharing! Pinning!
    found you on the Merry Monday Linkup!

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  9. oh this is a great idea!! I usually keep one of those flavoured creamers in the fridge to have every now and then, but I like this option better. I'd probably add some caramel too.

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  10. Visiting from Tasty Tuesdays and I have been using another recipe for homemade vanilla coffee creamer for about a month now. It was easy to make but not sweet enough to match the sweetness of the flavored creamers I used to purchase. Pinning so I can try this, love the idea to make a vanilla syrup too. Thanks!

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  11. I made my own - a different flavor, but I ended up pouring it out! The milk expired :( I guess when I'm the only one drinking it, I can't drink it fast enough! I may have to start searching for smaller cans of condensed milk! Or see if it freezes, because I love the idea!

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  12. Yummy! That appeals to the coffee-loving sweet toothed, cream loving side of me for sure :-) Will have to try this. Need to find out if you can buy a bottle of vanilla extract that large in England... #allaboutyou

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  13. My kids (meaning 17 & 18 year old "boys") drink coffee in the morning before work and like it the sweeter the better (a bit much for me, but whatev). This will be right up their alley. I also save any coffee we have left over in the mornings and put it in a large plastic container in the fridge for iced coffee in the afternoons. This recipe would be perfect for that as well. Thanks for sharing.

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  14. I don't use too much creamer in my coffee but sometimes if I make an iced coffee - this will be a good recipe to have for that. I am going to definitely try your vanilla simple syrup recipe as I like to make sparkling vanilla water using carbonated water with my soda stream. Pinning this now.

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  15. I love this idea! I just pinned this and shared it on Facebook.

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  16. That looks delicious! Thank you for joining us on the Wake Up Wednesday Link Party! Have a great day!

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  17. It's cool to discover new things that can be homemade. :)

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  18. My husband and I love coffee. We can both drink it black but we both also enjoy some flavor. I don't buy traditional creamers because I like to know what I am putting in my body. I am definitely going to have to try this!

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  19. Found you on Whatever Wednesday Blog Party. Great idea! Do you know how long the creamer will last in the fridge?

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    1. I imagine it would last as long as the milk that you use. We go through ours within a week and it hasn't spoiled yet!

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  20. I am soooo going to try this, thanks for sharing it!!

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  21. Yummy! I like the idea of using the sweet and condensed milk! Thank you for continuing to link up with Orchard Girls and I for What We Eat Wednesday! I’ve pinned your tasty creation on my WWEW Board. See you next week! :)

    Alexis ♥ Laugh. Eat. Learn.

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  22. Thank you for the recipe. My daughter loves this in her coffee.

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  23. What a great idea and not only is it with good ingredients it is probably more economical too - double bonus! Stopping by from Try a Recipe Tuesday.

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  24. That looks delicious! I might give that a try soon. Thanks for the recipe!

    Best wishes,
    Natasha in Oz

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  25. Looks great. Thanks for linking up at Tips and Tricks. Pinned.

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  26. I like working with ingredients that I can pronounce and my husband is a sucker for vanilla coffee creamer!
    Thanks for linking this up at Whatever Wednesday! Pinning!

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  27. This looks so super duper yummy! Can't wait to try it! Thank you for sharing with us at Your Designs This Time!

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  28. This is a recipe that I want to try. I love vanilla creamer, but I do not love the mystery ingredients in it! Pinning now
    Kelly

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  29. Fantastic idea!!! And I feel your pain, I feel I blinked and my kids are grown up with their own lives overnight. Thank you for sharing on our Four Seasons Blog Hop.

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  30. I can't believe I have never thought to make my own coffee creamer! Definitely doing this! Thanks for the inspiration :)

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  31. Yum! I am so going to try this! I love my vanilla coffee and your recipe is a godsend!
    Thank you so much for linking up with #FridayFoodie x

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  32. This looks really yummy... probably because I love vanilla creamer in my tea! I'm going to have to try this. Thanks for sharing. (Stopping by from the That's Fresh Friday link up!)

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  33. This looks so good! Thank you so much for linking up at Tasty Tuesday! Your recipe has been pinned to the Tasty Tuesday Pinterest board! Please join us again this week

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  34. Thanks for coming and linking up at #The Weekend Social. Please be sure to come back next week starting Thursdays at 9PM EST on Kitchen Dreaming.com ! I hope to see you there! Pinned
    Dina@KitchenDreaming.com

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  35. Always looking for a new recipe and this Coffee Creamer sounds great and saves a lot of money also. Thank you for sharing with the Clever Chicks Blog Hop! I hope you’ll join us again next week!

    Cheers,
    Kathy Shea Mormino
    The Chicken Chick
    http://www.The-Chicken-Chick.com

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  36. Hi Jenn - This looks like a great alternative to the store-bought creamers. Thanks so much for sharing with the Let's Get Real party.

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  37. This is such a great recipe to have handy because my husband drinks coffee with his creamer. Thanks for sharing on Merry Monday.

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  38. Love this! I have recently convinced my hubby to make his own creamer instead of buying the yucky pre-made stuff. I will add this to his recipes!

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  39. You had me at the word 'coffee'. I am SO going to do this!! Fantastic idea. Thank you for linking to PoCoLo :) x

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  40. What a great coffee creamer! Hope you have a great week and thanks so much for sharing with Full Plate Thursday.
    Come Back Soon!
    Miz Helen

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  41. What a great way to avoid chemical additives. Pinned. Thanks for coming to foodie friday.

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  42. We love this coffee creamer and it is being featured on the Four Seasons party this week!

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  43. This looks really good. I love that it avoids all of the nasty chemicals and additives. :-) As you already have seen, it was one of the most viewed posts from last week's Try a New Recipe Tuesday. Congratulations! I can't wait to see what you have shared this week. http://our4kiddos.blogspot.com/2014/07/try-new-recipe-tuesday-july-1st.html

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  44. Thank you, Can't wait to try this.

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  45. That's such a great idea! I'll definitely have to give this a go. This has been featured as one of my favourites over at Sweet and Savoury Sunday. Stop by, grab a button and link up again with us this week. Have a great day!

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  46. Congratulations!
    Your recipe is featured this week on Full Plate Thursday. Hope you enjoy your weekend and your new Red Plate.
    Miz Helen

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  47. YUM! I am totally making this - AND featuring you at tonight's pin it party! Hope to see you back :) http://oneorganicmama.blogspot.com/

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  48. I have tried making the homemade creamer before (my favorite is hazelnut), but it never turned out creamy or sweet enough. Your recipe is different in that it calls for making a flavored syrup first, unlike the others I've tried that just use the extract. Gonna have to try this one! :) #RetroRepin

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  49. I recently bottled up a batch of homemade vanilla extract and this sounds like a great way to use it. Thank you!
    Blessings, Leigh

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  50. Wow I didn't think it would be this easy to make Coffee Creamer!

    Thanks for sharing with the Tips and Tricks Link Party.

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  51. Great recipe - Thanks for sharing on the What’s for Dinner link up!

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  52. Wow! What a simple recipe! I love my coffee ...I am so inspired to try this! Happy Thursday, from Think Tank Thursday!
    Megs

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  53. Will definitely have to try. I like the so few ingredients. Thanks for sharing on the Think Tank Thursday link party!

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