Tuesday, May 1, 2012

Homemade Sugar Free Coffee Creamer

Do you like all those yummy flavored coffee creamers on the market, but hate how expensive they are? Or how much sugar they put in them? Well, lucky for you, I decided to experiment with a few homemade sugar free coffee creamer recipes this past weekend and I'm going to share them with you!

First, let's talk about the sweetener.  I opted to get a little crazy and try out an all natural sweetener by making a date paste....something I remembered reading about on the triple "w" a while back.  It worked beautifully, but it does add the extra step of straining the creamer through a fine mesh sieve before storing in the refrigerator.  Feel free to diss my suggestion use whatever sweetener you feel most comfortable with, just make sure you taste as you add to be sure it has just the right amount of sweetness for your taste buds. 


So, let's start with the paste!  This was so super easy to make....

Ingredients:

1 Cup of Dates, pitted
1 Cup of hot water


Directions:
Place Dates in a food processor.  Turn processor on and slowly add the hot water.  Then let the machine run for about 1 minute and you will end up with a very smooth date paste.





Now we'll move on to the flavors!  I'll start with my riskiest flavor combination first...Chocolate Peanut Butter...inspired by the hubster who is obsessed with Reece's Peanut Butter Cups!  Why NOT add that delicious flavor to your morning cup of joe, right??  I wasn't sure how this one would turn out in the end with the peanut butter possibly being too thick of a consistency.  I thought it might just sink to the bottom, only to be left with a big gloppy mess after the coffee was slurped down.  BUT, it turned out fabulously!  I think the key to getting the correct consistency was melting it all together over the stove.  In full disclosure, I found that I did have to add quite a bit of the creamer to my coffee to get the desired taste.  But sticking my finger in sampling this creamer before I added it to the coffee was a wonderful taste of heaven!

Chocolate Peanut Butter Creamer
Ingredients:
1 Cup of Cream
1 1/2 Tablespoons of Cocoa Powder
1/3 Cup of Date Paste (or your own sweetener, added to taste)
1 heaping spoonful of all natural Peanut Butter (yeah, sorry, not an accurate measurement! lol)

Directions:
Place cream and Cocoa Powder in a medium saucepan.  Heat over medium heat and whisk until cream begins to steam. Then add Peanut Butter and whisk until smooth.  Turn off heat and whisk in Date Paste or other sweetener. Strain through a fine mesh sieve. (Not necessary if Date Paste is not used.)  Will store in a glass jar in the refrigerator for about a week.



Now, on to a much more basic, yet, Über popular flavor.....French Vanilla!  This turned out simply fabulous....and I'll just leave it at that.  I know, I know....that is hard for me to do.

French Vanilla Creamer

Ingredients:
1 Cup of Cream
1/3 Cup of Date Paste (or your own sweetener, added to taste)
1 Tablespoon of Vanilla Extract

Directions:
Whisk all ingredients together in a bowl.  Strain through a fine mesh sieve. (Not necessary if Date Paste is not used.)  Will store in a glass jar in the refrigerator for about a week.



Lastly, another slightly off the wall flavor, but SO worth the risk....Cinnamon Streusel!  Yup, you read that correctly.  This one was my absolute favorite!  All the flavors blended so perfectly together that I just wanted to drink the creamer straight from the jar.  Not such a pretty picture, I know.  But, you know you would be tempted too!

Cinnamon Streusel Coffee Creamer

Ingredients:
1 Cup of Cream
1/3 Cup of Date Paste (or your own sweetener, added to taste)
3/4 Teaspoon ground Cinnamon
1 Teaspoon of Vanilla Extract
1/2 Teaspoon of Almond Extract

Directions:
Whisk all ingredients together in a bowl. Strain through a fine mesh sieve. (Not necessary if Date Paste is not used.) Will store in a glass jar in the refrigerator for about a week.
  


And there you have it!  Which one would you love to try?  Or, perhaps this will inspire you to come up with another crazy coffee creamer concoction!  Let's us know in the comment section below!


**FOR MORE GREAT RECIPES CLICK HERE**

Friday, April 13, 2012

2012 Creative Travel Mugs Giveaway! CLOSED




Well, it's that time of year again! 
Time for our annual Creative Travel Mugs Mother's Day Giveaway!  The giveaway is for one custom designed Creative Travel Mug and will include one hot beverage lid AND one sport lid.  You don't have to be a mom to enter this giveaway...you don't even have to be a woman for that matter!  We are equal opportunists here and whether you enter for yourself or enter to gift to the amazing mom in your life, is totally up to you.  Let's just have some fun and spread the word!

Creative Travel Mug Features:

 16 oz durable and insulated stainless steel hot AND cold tumbler 

Non slip, scratch resistant base

Automobile cup holder friendly

Environmentally sound and free of Bisphenol-A


Customized photo inserts are interchangeable, so purchase an additional photo insert to update your mug at any time!
 

The giveaway will run until May 4th 11:59pm EST, so the winner has enough time to custom design and receive the mug for Mother's Day (Juuuuust in case you actually ARE going to give it to the amazing woman who gave birth to you.....no pressure to give it up, though, I promise! lol)  Please use the Rafflecopter form below to enter.  There are several ways to gain entries.  Two are mandatory (and will be verfied) and some can be collected DAILY!  If you have any questions, concerns, or difficulties entering, please don't hesitate to contact us via the comment section below.

GOOD LUCK and thanks for supporting Creative Travel Mugs!!!

**If you would like to make a purchase please visit our website and take advatage of our Mother's Day Sale!**

Giveaway terms and conditions:
Open to US residents only. The winner will be selected at random, will be notified by email and will have 48 hrs to reply back. Additionally, all necessary info and photos must be received by the winner within 7 days (May 13, 2012) or prize will be forfeited.