By ERIN TURNER
Do you need a last minute Christmas gift idea?
I have the perfect thing…homemade coffee creamer! The recipient will love it, use it and will think you are the next Martha Stewart! But what they won’t know is how easy and fairly inexpensive it was to put together!
Homemade creamer and locally-roasted coffee make a gourmet Christmas gift!
Have you ever looked at the ingredient list on a bottle of coffee creamer? Oh, my…it scares me! I can’t pronounce most of the items and I can’t seem to find anything that refers to cream or milk in it. At $3-4 dollars a bottle, I want real cream and real ingredients!
As kids, my brothers and I always looked forward to “coffee breaks” when we were working in the garden.
My dad would stop for coffee breaks so we thought it was cool and wanted to do the same thing! Mom would let us have a little coffee along with lots of milk and a little sugar. So, I guess I got used to having a touch of coffee with my milk and never grew out of that!
Since I struggle with drinking straight black coffee, I was very excited when I found a way to have a tasty creamer without all the chemicals!
The variations of flavors are only limited to your taste buds and creativity. Think: pumpkin spice, salted caramel, chocolate almond, Irish cream, peppermint, coconut, cinnamon… and the list goes on!
Now, I can’t say this recipe is extremely frugal since real dairy products are expensive but I still made my batch for around $2. Since I’m not throwing my money away on a bunch of chemicals, I’m good with the price!
You can whip out a batch right now in time for gift giving this week. Here is a simple recipe for French Vanilla Creamer! It should last in the refrigerator for up to ten days or so.
Homemade French Vanilla Coffee Creamer
- 1 cup cream
- 1 cup milk (I use either whole or 2%)
- 4 Tbsp of real Maple Syrup or Honey
- 1-2 Vanilla beans (or 1-2 Tablespoons of pure vanilla extract)
- Place the cream, milk and syrup in a medium sauce pan.
- Slice vanilla beans in half and scrap seeds into pan and throw in the pod as well.
- Then heat to steaming over medium heat.
- Once the mixture is warm and beginning to steam, turn off heat and cover to steep.
- Steep for 30 minutes.
- Remove vanilla bean pod and strain through a fine sieve to remove the seeds.
- Pour into a jar and refrigerator. Makes 2 cups.
You can use a mason jar with a nice label and ribbon to give as a gift or use a fancier bottle if you have one lying around.
This makes such a nice, thoughtful gift for the coffee lover in your life. Match it up with a nice bag of locally-roasted coffee beans and you’ll be the best Santa ever! Ho-ho-ho!
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all our Make It Missoula fans!
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Erin’s got tons of tips for saving money, couponing, sticking to a budget, and living sustainably in her blog archive. And be sure to check out the Missoula Save it Club.
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Erin Eisenman-Turner is proud to be a native Missoulian. Along with her husband and three sons, they raise chickens, pigs, rabbits, and vegetables at Turner Family Farms in the Orchard Homes area. When the farm chores are done, the coupons clipped, and the blog written, you can find Erin exploring Montana, collecting antiques, and trying to maintain a well-run, happy, and organized home for her family.
