Coconut creamer and coffee
Breaking news: I have given up half-and-half.
I have long since given up sugar and white flour. I even gave up Diet Coke, though I think I’ve been drinking it since birth. I walk right past the processed foods in the grocery store like they don’t even exist. My counter is crowded with things I sprout, ferment, and soak in the name of better health and nutrition.
But. I love my half-and-half.
Deep down inside, I knew my health would benefit if I gave up this dead, nutritionally void food. So, when I came across a recipe for coconut creamer, I thought I’d give it a try. I didn’t have the exact ingredients, but I tried it anyway. Surprisingly, I liked it. It was by far the best option I had tried for a non-dairy, non-soy, minimally processed creamer. In fact, I liked it so much, I haven’t used half-and-half since, even though there’s still half a quart in my fridge. Now that’s saying something.
Here’s my modified recipe:
Coconut Milk Creamer
1 can coconut milk*, room temperature
1 very fresh, organic egg from 1 very happy, pasture-raised hen
Optional:
Stevia (I don’t like sweet coffee, but I find a few drops of liquid stevia makes up for the lack of lactose in the coconut milk)
1 t. Vanilla
Cinnamon
Whirl the egg in a blender. Be sure to use the best eggs because you’ll be eating them raw. Slowly add the coconut milk and any optional ingredients you like. Blend until frothy and somewhat thick, about a minute in my Vitamix. Pour into a container and store in the fridge. Mixture will continue to thicken as it cools.
Coconut creamer makes a yummy topping! Try a breakfast parfait of bananas, raw granola, blueberries, and coconut cream.
*The original recipe calls for regular coconut milk. The first time I tried it, I used light because that was all I had in my pantry. I thought the creamer was tasty even so. I’ve since tried full-fat coconut milk, and even half-light, half regular. In my opinion, the taste difference between light and regular in this recipe is minimal, especially if I add a couple drops of stevia. Sure, the full-fat is creamier, but the fat and calories are more than double. In fact, full-fat coconut milk is much more calorie-dense than half-and-half. Eep!
In the end, the choice is yours. But, if you choose to use light coconut milk, look for a brand with no additives, like Trader Joe’s (a steal at only $.99 a can).
The original recipe also calls for 2 T. of coconut oil. She blends the egg and the oil slowly to create an emulsion, then adds the coconut milk. This creates a very thick whip. In fact, you have to spoon it into your coffee. She does this to keep the coconut milk from separating, but I find the lecithin in the egg is enough to keep the coconut milk from doing funny things in my coffee. So I cut out those extra calories. However, add the coconut oil in if you want a divine topping for a bowl of berries or a diary-free dessert!
Questions
Won’t a raw egg kill me? No. But it’s important to use farm-fresh eggs from reliable sources. See Nourishing Traditions for more about rawness.
Does the creamer taste like coconut? No.
Does a carton of coconut milk work as well as a can? No.
Is this coconut creamer gritty like the coconut milk creamer you buy in the store? No. In fact, it tastes much, much better than store-bought coconut creamer.
How long will the creamer last? I would try to use it up in about a week (I have no trouble with that!), although it may last longer than that.
Ready to give up dairy in your coffee? I hope you give this a try!
Thank you! I am trying to give up dairy for my ebf daughter so see if it clears up some issues for her and I have been having such a hard time with the coffee cream. This should work nicely, thanks again.
I am looking for an alternative to dairy in my coffe because I recently discovered I’m slighlty lactose intolerant. However, I do like sweet coffee 😉 so I wonder if honey would be an good sweetner in this recipe….I think I might try it!
I’ve never used honey in coffee so I can’t really say if it would work, but it’s worth a shot! My sister-in-law also loves sweet coffee so she just ups the stevia. But, she likes the packages of stevia better than liquid for her drinks. I don’t use enough to taste the difference. But, I do know that flavored stevia is really yummy. You can get it in vanilla, hazelnut, etc. to add a twist to your coffee. Yum!
I like Coconut milk in my coffee occasionally but I am not an advocate of Dairy free diets.. Raw Unpasteurized Dairy products are good for you. 😉
I agree! Normally, we drink raw milk (goat milk, actually) and eat raw cheese. But I think I might have a milk allergy so I’m cutting it out for 30 days to see if I notice a difference. Also, I really don’t like the taste of goat milk in my coffee. I don’t mind raw cream from cows, but goat is a little too much for me! Haha!
If your goat milk is tasting goaty when it gets warm the goat may have mineral issues.. Or the buck is in with the does and he is lending his own personal Ahem Flavor to the milk!.. Very few people are actually allergic to goats milk. If they have to have a severe allergy to be allergic to it.. Most people I know that have an allergy to regular cows milk will not be allergic to goats milk.. BUT the Coconut cream is good in coffee and hot chocolate! 😉
Interesting 🙂 How long does it last in the fridge?
Love your spin on the recipe and I’m so glad the recipe helped you find a good creamer! Thanks for sharing the link! ~Patty
Thanks for the great idea, Patty! If not for you, I might not have been able to make the leap to dairy free!
I’ve used coconut creamer for a while now for tea and coffee but never thought of making my own! thanks for the great idea! I will be giving this a try! Are you a tea drinker too? If so have you tried it in black tea?
I have tried it in tea and love it! Just make sure you don’t put it in until your tea has cooled slightly or you might see some floating bits of cooked egg. I did that once. 🙂 It doesn’t have to cool for very long, but freshly boiled water is too hot!
Sounds interesting. I wouldn’t mind if it DID taste like coconut!
I know! It might be yummy!