Have you ever looked at the ingredients on a bottle of flavored creamer? *Shudder*
This is from the Coffee Mate website (here).
This is for plain, unflavored creamer.
Water is the first ingredient. Followed by corn syrup solids? Then Partially Hydrogenated oil? Really? It is creamer. Ick. Not to mention all the other stuff I stumble over in pronouncing.
Let's check International Delights. Maybe they are better?
International Delights doesn't have unflavored creamer. So let's go with the French Vanilla (here).
This image is small but it is marginally better. First ingredient is water (really?), cane sugar (better than corn syrup solids... how can a syrup be solid?) and palm oil. At least none of that partially hydrogenated stuff. Still. If you have to avoid dairy I'd go with International Delights before Coffee Mate.
I want to look at one more.
I used to buy this all. the. time. Peppermint Mocha. Who doesn't like Peppermint Mocha?
Pretty much the same as the regular creamer. I got this snippet here.
There has to be a better way right? Something that you can have and you won't feel your arteries hardening with each sip. Thought they be glorious sips.
Well step right up and welcome to my world. I am going to tell you how to make a peppermint mocha right at home. Along with some other flavors.
Disclaimer: Yes, I have a disclaimer. I don't measure (thanks mom). I smell and taste to get it where I want it. So, use your sniffer and your taster to get the flavors where you want them.
Always use half & half. Pint, quart, Half gallon.... doesn't matter as long as you are comfortable knowing that you will be stuck with that flavor for a while if you get a large carton.
So here is the list:
Peppermint Mocha
Peppermint Extract (not Peppermint Oil. If you get peppermint oil it will just sit on top and be ruined)
Half & Half (carton of your choice)
Cocoa Powder
Hot water
Sweetener (your choice, I use cane sugar at the moment)
Cup of plain coffee
I don't have pictures yet. I haven't made this yet this year. I will and get the pics posted!
If you get a large carton of half and half then get 2 or 3 bottles of peppermint extract. Or get this, I have this in my cupboard now. It seems pricey but in my local grocery store it is about $4 per one ounce. Do the math on that.
So first step is to make your chocolate sauce. I make about 12 ounces at a time. Take about 6 ounces of water (to start) and get it real hot. It doesn't have to boil, just hot. If you don't make it hot the cocoa powder doesn't mix with the water well at all. Add chocolate powder to it until it is like a thin but not watery syrup. Then add more water/chocolate until you have the amount you want. Keep it in the fridge. I don't know how long it lasts since it always gets used very quickly. As a side note. If you add sugar to it you can use it as chocolate syrup for chocolate milk.
Now take your half and half and remove some of it. The amount you remove is directly related to how much extract you are going to use. So take out about 1/2 oz for a pint, 1 oz for a quart and 2-3 oz for a half gallon. Take out more at first in case you like it a little stronger. Add extract a half ounce or so at a time. Add enough so that you can smell it in the half and half carton. Make sure you keep coffee grounds on hand for this part. Sniff the coffee grounds before sniffing the creamer. By doing so you are cleaning your olfactory system (like those big words eh?). It is like clearing your nose palette so your don't get used to the smell.
Next brew yourself some coffee. Add the amount of sweetener you would like. Then add 2 tsp or so of the chocolate syrup then add some of the peppermint creamer.
Viola! Peppermint Mocha. Sip. Enjoy. Repeat.
Other flavors... (you don't need the chocolate part unless you want it!)
Hazelnut - Use hazelnut extract.
Amaretto(ish) - Use Almond extract. Amaretto has a bit of cherry as well but I haven't missed it)
Vanilla - Use Vanilla extract
Irish Creme - Baileys Irish Cream.. get it at your local liquor store. There is no substitute for Irish Creme.
Raspberry - Raspberry Extract
Cinnamon-Hazelnut - use a ration of 1:4 cinnamon and hazelnut. Maybe a little more cinnamon if you like it a little stronger.
I don't have any recipes for the fancier creamers like the Girl Scout cookie flavors or Cinnabon. I like to keep it quick and easy and those would require a little more experimenting.
Let me know if any other flavors you have tried and I will add them here (with your name!)
