Homemade Creamer 101

[HOMEGROWN.org]

The following 101, on homemade creamer, comes from Nicole, a HOMEGROWN Texas mama who’s working to become more self-sufficient. Thanks, Nicole, and please keep the good ideas stirring!

 

Like many people, I cannot function without my morning coffee. Even more importantly, my coffee needs creamer. I got the idea of making my own creamer for a few reasons:

1. I ran out.

2. I'm trying to live a healthier lifestyle, and commercial creamer is full of additives and chemicals. I was also surprised to see that my store-bought non-dairy creamer contains milk. I'm not allergic, but that sort of mislabeling really turns me off. The method I use below involves dairy, but for a homemade vegan version, check out the Naked Kitchen's recipe.

3. Anything I can make myself fills me with immense pride!

 

So when I came across this recipe, I decided to try it. Store-bought creamer is relatively cheap, $3.68 for 32 ounces, but since my husband and I use a lot of it, making my own saves me an average of $20 a month. I feel it’s worth it, especially since this way I know exactly what’s in it.

I make powdered creamer since it has a long shelf life. (The same website I used also has a recipe for liquid creamer that calls for store-bought sweetened condensed milk, but you can make your own.) Homemade creamer is easy and only takes a couple of minutes. The first thing to do is get all of your ingredients and equipment together.

 

WHAT YOU’LL NEED: INGREDIENTS

» Powdered milk (yep, organic versions exist)

» Powdered sugar (ditto)

» Coconut oil (optional; if you do use it, ditto again)

I know! That's all! If you look on the back of any commercial creamer, the list is 10 times longer! My eyebrow went up when I saw coconut oil, but I like the creaminess it adds to the coffee. It also leaves your lips feeling super soft.

WHAT YOU’LL NEED: TOOLS

» Air-tight container (I use an old pickle jar)

» Fork

» Measuring cups and spoon

 

WHAT TO DO

Put 1 cup powdered milk and 1/2 cup powdered sugar in a bowl. Drizzle 1 Tbsp melted coconut oil over the top. Using a fork, combine the ingredients thoroughly, breaking up clumps as you go. At this point, you can either transfer the mix to an air-tight container and shake well or to a blender or food processor and give it a good pulse. Continue stirring and blending/shaking until the consistency reaches a fine powder.

 

Simple as that! I honestly don’t know why I didn’t think of doing this before. I keep my creamer in the refrigerator, but you can keep it on the counter just as well. It will last several months, but mine doesn’t make it that long before I gobble it up. I'm more of a plain Jane when it comes to my coffee, but you’re only limited by your imagination. Mrs. Happy Homemaker shares recipes for more than 20 varieties of flavored creamers. Bottoms up!

 

SPEAK UP!
Got a question for Nicole? Or a homemade creamer tip to share? Post it below and keep the conversation rolling! You might also be interested in 101s on making your own evaporated milk, sweetened condensed milk, and horchata, or on making your own extracts to flavor your homemade creamer. And we haven’t forgotten the brew! HOMEGROWN member Cynthia shares how to roast your own beans at home and how to make a caffeine-free dandelion coffee. And then there’s Sabrina’s homemade coffee liqueur (think Kahlúa). You can always find more things to cook, preserve, make, craft, plant, grow, and blend in the HOMEGROWN 101 library.

 

ALL PHOTOS: NICOLE CAROTHERS

[Janet Buechler]

I usually use half and half, organic when I can afford it, but when my children visit they insist on flavored creamers.  I wonder if adding something like vanilla or coconut extract would flavor this?  In any event, this is great and I would need to worry about it going bad if I didn't use it by the exp. date. 

[Julia]

I've been using powdered whole milk for years. You can get it at any Asian or Indian grocery store, if your town has one. They apparently use whole milk in other countries where in the US you can only get non-fat in stores. You can even get it online from Amazon. I get Nido in the store but there are several different brands:

http://www.amazon.com/NIDO-Instant-Full-Cream-Powder/dp/B0013HCP4I/...

[Julia]

I should have said I just use the powdered whole milk by itself, not to make any sort of mix. If you want to add sweetener, you can use whatever you usually use after adding the milk powder. I love the Nido powder, have not tried any other brands.

[HOMEGROWN.org]

One of Nicole's reasons for making her own creamer was to have a little more control over the ingredients than she'd get with a packaged product like Nido, which does include additives. (Organic powdered milk, for example, doesn't include maltodextrin or corn oil.) Glad to hear people are thinking about trying Nicole's method. Janet, you'll have to let us know if you experiment with a flavored extract.

[Janine Shideler]

Hi, I think is the first time I write and I will like to contribute my bit to this, I sweeten my coffee with honey crystals and love it.  I get the jar at the Chinese market, not too expensive, 1.5 lb is about $5

Is made in the USA by www.popus.com, health products from around the world.

[John F. Houpt II, PhD]

Nicole, reading your 101 made me return to making my own creamers. I make a liquid creamer since the chief coffee drinkers is my wife who likes liquid creamers. Recently I changed my basic recipe of organic milk, homemade vanilla and maple syrup to include some spices. Basic Recipe: 5 tbls organic dry milk mixed with 1 cup of water; ~ 1 tbls each homemade vanilla and light maple syrup (to taste). Blend with an immersion blender until thoroughly mixed. Spiced Recipe : Add to the basic recipe ~1tsp cinnamon, ~1/2 tsp of ground nutmeg, 5-6 Jamaican Allspice berries ground in a mortar/pestle. Blend thoroughly.