I love coffee. I am not a psychotic coffee person, but I love it. People are very sensitive about their coffee, and there can be lots of coffee pride. You don’t want to mess with someone’s coffee. I understand…
I used to be one of those people who said, “I’m not giving up my coffee.” “I’ll do this, this, or that, but don’t tell me I can’t have my coffee.” Things along that line…and I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard people say this! It’s kind of funny. But not funny- really…don’t get mad. I’m not telling anybody to give up coffee. I know there are people out there who will tell you to give up coffee, but I won’t. You hear mixed things about it, but a lot of good things are said about its health benefits. Either way, I drink 2 cups most days and I love it.
The way we drink our coffee is also a sensitive topic. And I was one of those people too who said I would never give up my creamer. I used to love the International Delights French Vanilla creamer, or the hazlenut, or if I was feeling crazy the Irish Coffee flavor. Mmmmm…I loved it. I’ve also told the story of my brother-in-law who said coffee with creamer was the reason he woke up in the morning. It was yummy stuff.
My logic for not giving it up was- what does it really matter? It’s not like I’m using that much of it. If I have a little bit of something not so healthy just in my coffee what’s the big deal? And I stuck by that for a pretty long time, indignantly drinking my coffee. But, eventually, when I started reading and learning more about what’s in our food, I took another look at the label. And I was pretty horrified.
NON-DAIRY PRODUCT INGREDIENTS: WATER, CANE SUGAR, PALM OIL, CONTAINS 2% OR LESS OF EACH OF THE FOLLOWING: SODIUM CASEINATE* (A MILK DERIVATIVE), DIPOTASSIUM PHOSPHATE, NATURAL AND ARTIFICIAL FLAVORS, MONO AND DIGLYCERIDES, SODIUM STEAROYL LACTYLATE, POLYSORBATE 60, CARRAGEENAN, SALT.
Grossed out at the least. Water, sugar…and palm oil? Not to mention the other stuff I don’t recognize in the rest of the list? Ugh. And was the amount I was putting in my coffee each day really just a little? It was probably more than I thought.
I then thought, ok, maybe I need to give this up. I came across a make-your-own-creamer post on Pinterest, and did that for a while. Milk, vanilla, and sweetened condensed milk. I felt a little bit better about that. All it is is milk and sugar. But pour enough cans of sweetened condensed milk and you’ll get a little grossed out about that, too. That little can must contain a lot of sugar!
My next step was half and half. No sugar! After a few days, I was used to it and even liked it. I drank half-and-half in my coffee for a while. And indignantly swore I would never give up my coffee with half-and-half. But, again, you hang around reading enough clean eating stuff and you get a nagging feeling that maybe the half-and-half has to go, too.
I did the 21 Day Fix, and it’s not allowed on that plan. At first I thought I’d do it anyway- how bad could it be when everything else I’m eating is so healthy? But I wanted to go by the book the first time, so I decided to let go…I tried switching to just milk in my coffee, but I didn’t like it. I would rather drink it black. (And I can drink black coffee- I do like it, but I just don’t enjoy it like I did with half-and-half.) That’s when I heard about coconut oil in coffee. At first I was very skeptical; how could that possible be any good? How could it get creamy and frothy? It didn’t seem possible from an oil.
It also seemed like a big pain in the butt. But I discovered my blender base fit on mason jars, and filled my mason jar with coffee and a teaspoon of coconut oil and gave it a whirl. It was true! It was creamy and frothy…one sip and I was in love. Sprinkle a little cinnamon on top and it was like a coffee store latte. Delicious!
So…I’m not telling you what to do. But if you’re drinking flavored creamer just plant this little seed in the back of your head…it’s gross and it’s a sugar bomb. After I had given it up for a while, I tried it a friend’s house, thinking oh I’ll have it as a treat. Yuck. So sickly sweet, I couldn’t even drink it. (Coming from a girl who not so long ago could eat an entire container of vanilla frosting.) Maybe you could find another way…half and half plus stevia or raw sugar and some vanilla? Give it a few days, and I think you’ll get used to it and enjoy it. Maybe one day you’ll even try it with coconut oil…it’s so good, so creamy, frothy, and delightful.
Plus, think of all the health benefits you’ll be getting from the coconut oil!!
Leave a Reply