A perfect cup of coffee, there’s no perfect composition for making a perfect cup of coffee. Actually, this differs from person to person. Someone might be a sweet tooth whereas someone might adore the raw taste. But almost everyone enjoys a nice cup with coffee creamer from time to time.
Why does this matter?
Well, to be honest, without trying out coffee creamers you don’t even know what you’re missing out on. Here’s the deal – There’s a whole different world of coffee creamers. All those unique compositions give out unique blows to your brain. You’ll feel colors like never before (remember ratatouille?).
But it’s hard to know all about coffee creamers from one place that too in an orderly way. The most popular coffee creamer out there is coffee K-Cup packs. There are so many options out there, all with different flavors and textures, but many of them are way too sweet or have artificial ingredients. If you’re looking for a healthier alternative, there are many delicious and easy alternative options out there.
What is Coffee Creamer?
Coffee doesn’t mean cream on coffee. To be honest, the creams are way too heavy for coffees. Because cream normally overpowers coffee in both flavor and texture. So, what is it?
Well, coffee creamers are a light type of cream or nondairy cream like substance that’s added to the coffee brew. The intention behind this is pure. To make the coffee taste and texture a bit rich and thick.
Nutritional Alert!
Before luring you into the world of coffee creamers we’d like to give you a nutritional alert. If you’re on a diet, then coffee creamers might not be the best option for you. By adding cream or milk, you can drastically change the nutritional values of your cup of joe.
Do you know what’s the perfect way to ruin your diet plans?
Just put down some cream into your coffee and take 2-3 cups of it. Voila! Your whole day calorie intake limit has been reached.
Quick quiz- In the world of calories, what’s the worst offender?
Yeah, it’s cream. This innocent-looking fluffy and cute stuff is all about fat. This is also the criminal that makes your coffee so rich. In the second, we have our precious ‘Milk’. But things are different here. Unlike cream, milk can give you a range of fat options.
For example, skim or 1-2 percent milk will give you a low-calorie content. On the other hand, we have whole milk that can give us around 4 percent fat. However, there’s nothing wrong with adding up cream or milk with coffee. You can certainly enjoy it, and no one should judge you.
Just keep it in mind that extra calorie which comes with extra milk or cream. If you’re someone holding your tongue, then modify your diet plans. See if you can fit in a cup of coffee with coffee creamers into your plans.
#Types of Coffee Creamers
From here we’ll explore into deeper regions of coffee creamers world. There are normally 3 types of coffee creamers. These are-
- Milk Based or Dairy Coffee Creamers
- Non-dairy Coffee Creamers
- Irish Coffee Creamers
From here on, we’ll go directly into covering each of these types. So, let’s get going-
A. Milk-Based or Dairy Coffee Creamers
There’s a reason why companies put together milk and coffee. It’s because these two go together perfectly. Putting in some milk or cream is a great way to soften up that wild brew. However, there’s a lot to dig into about milk and cream in this coffee creamers world.
All About Milk
We know there are different types of milk. But not all milk is the same for coffee. We will now try to understand what type of milk affects the coffee in what way.
Types Based on Origin
At first, we’ve classified milk based on its origin. Animals have a lot of differences between them. And so, milk from those animals are bound to be different.
Cow Milk
By far, cow’s milk is the most popular for coffee uses. You’ll find just the right amount of thickness and sweetness in cow milk. However, there are some other factors that will determine your coffee taste and thickness. How the cows were raised, how fresh the milk is and what is the fat percentage are some of these factors.
Goat Milk
Goat milk is the rising star in this world. As it’s produced from a different source, it’s obvious to have some differences. It’s proven that goat milk digests more easily than cow milk. So, this is the perfect solution to those who love adding up milk but are a bit lactose intolerant.
Another difference is in the taste. Goat milk will give you a bit of an earthy taste. Whereas cow’s milk is a bit sweet. Moreover, goat milk is most of the times used with medium roasts.
Buffalo Milk
Say hello to the fattiest of all milk. Buffalo milk is not so popular in case of coffee uses. However, due to its high-fat level, it adds up a creamy texture and taste to your coffee.
Now, why should you try this as coffee creamers?
Well, to be honest, the flavor is different here. It’s a perfect mix of sweet and tangy. This perfect mix makes buffalo milk coffee creamers worth it for any coffee lover.
Types Based on Fat
Fat plays a huge role in determining your coffee taste and texture. So, we’ve put up a list of milk types based on the fat content-
Whole Milk
Baristas love this milk type. If you don’t ask them for any other type, then they just use this one simply. It’s heavier in terms of fat contents. It has around 3.25 to 4 percent fat in it. As a result, when used as a creamer, this will make your coffee creamier and sweeter than other options.
Reduced Fat Milk
Reduced fat milk is a great choice for people who are not dieting but love to eat light. This most of the times come in the neighborhood of 1 to 2 percent fat. This milk perfectly balances out sweetness and thickness in your coffee. As a result, you’ll be able to beef up your coffee by a little bit without overloading it with fat and calories.
Skim Milk
Skim milk is the healthiest. Skim milk is widely popular among the people who are counting calories. This milk is sweeter than other options. But is nowhere near others in case of texture. This happens because of the low amount of fat. As a result, you won’t get that much of creamy coffee with this type of milk.
All About Creams
This is a shout out to all the lightweight people. To those people who aren’t concerned with calorie intakes and everything. You people are lucky. Some consider cream as the best addition to a cup of freshly brewed coffee. But many have to avoid it because of its calorie richness.
But there are different types of cream. Every type has a different amount of fat in it. As a result, you’ll get a different taste and texture with different types of cream. So, let’s explore the relation between cream types and coffee-
Half and Half
This is the most popular cream in case of coffee uses. We already know that adding up full cream can make the coffee too thick. ‘Half and half cream’ is a perfect solution to this problem.
This is actually a combo of half milk and half cream. The trick here is to lighten up the cream with milk. However, even after making it light, half and half contains around 12 percent fat. As a result, you get a coffee creamer that’s thicker and sweeter than whole milk.
But this isn’t as thick as pure whole cream or whipping cream. If you’re a fan of balanced sweetness and thickness, then half and half is really the best option for you.
Light Cream
Light cream is thicker than half and half. As you know already that increased fat means increased thickness. So, we have our fatty and fluffy light cream here with 20 percent fat.
This means this guy here is filled with calories. However, considering some other options, light cream is still pretty light. So, give it a try.
Light Whipping Cream
Welcome to the region of heavy creams. From now on you’ll get introduced with the heavy members of the family. Light whipping cream has about 30 percent fat.
As a result, with this, you can make a thicker, heavier and sweeter coffee. However, the next two family members of the cream family are even thicker.
Whipping Cream
This is the 2nd thickest family member in the cream family. It’s actually much thicker compared to half and half.
Now, what do you think is the fat percentage in whipping cream?
Well, it’s around 35 percent. If you opt for this option, you’ll get a much thicker and creamier texture. Not to mention the increased sweetness.
Heavy Cream
We get it. You might want to try out some heavy stuff once in a while. You might want that coffee to melt in your mouth. For those individuals, we have the heaviest option available out there.
Heavy cream is the champion of thickness with approximately 38 percent fat in it. However, don’t use too much of it as a coffee creamer. Put in more than needed and you’ll have a coffee flavored cream at your hand. Use just a bit to enjoy the thickest texture out there.
B. Non-Dairy Coffee Creamers
It’s time to get out of the loop of natural products. Just like the name suggests, these creamers are free of dairy. For many reasons, people opt for these creamers. Now, let’s explore the regions of non-dairy coffee creamers.
Store Brought Creamer
You can find some non dairy creamers on stores. These are premixed and processed in the factory and then packaged for distribution. Some popular brands of these criteria are-
- Coffee-Mate
- International Delight
That’s not all- To make things more interesting these creamers come in a wide range of flavors. French vanilla, hazelnut, caramel, etc. are some fine examples of this.
Now, why does this matter?
Let’s assume that you’re a super busy person and you want to spike up some of your taste buds without spending a huge chunk of your time. In this situation, the store-bought coffee creamer versions can save your day. Although nothing can beat the fine taste of a homemade creamer, this will do to some extent.
Other Non- dairy Creamers
Many lactose intolerant people consider themselves unlucky. But to them, we’d like to bring in some good news. If you want to taste a creamier and richer coffee without using dairy products, then we have a solution for you.
These options could give you a thickness like half and half along with a variety of flavors. Moreover, these are low on calories. Some of the popular members of this family are-
- Almond Milk
- Cashew Milk
- Soy Milk
- Coconut Milk
These kinds of milk are much healthier considering the dairy-based alternatives. Just like the store-bought creamers, you can find these in different flavors. However, these creamers aren’t the complete substitute of the dairy creamers considering the taste.
But these kinds of milk can bring in their own spin to your cup of joe. Therefore, coffee with these creamers gets listed into the worth a try list in the coffee universe.
C. Irish Coffee Creamers
This should have been on the non-dairy store-bought creamer list. But it’s here only because of one reason. Because it’s Irish coffee! Irish coffee creamers are more like a combo of Irish Whisky and cream.
So, you’ll get a drink which will doze you off and turn you on at the same time. Some ready mixes are available for creating this adult cup of fun. Just don’t drink up much if you want to stay normal.
Video: How to Make Coffee Creamers At Home?
Final Verdict
We have traveled through this world of coffee creamer like dairy, non-dairy and others. We believe by now you know about all the types of creamers. You know which is the best coffee gear for you. Just while trying out different coffee creamers keep that calorie count in mind. Now, go and make that delicious creamy thick cup of coffee. Good Luck.
