Suggestions for healthy coffee creamer

cmccardleart
cmccardleart Posts: 7 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I'm not a complainer and I am good with eating clean and have even conquered my sugar cravings at this point. However, I am addicted to powdered creamer and can't seem to find an alternative that tastes good in my coffee.

It's the one thing I can't seem to give up and I can't deal with black coffee. What are some good alternatives that you have used?
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Replies

  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,454 Member
    Yeah, I wouldn't change my coffee too much. I did in the beginning when I was trying to eat 1200 calories. THAT got old real fast.

    I think the trick with coffee is to cut back on the number of cups in general. I went from three a day to one, and I use five ounces of 1% milk and a homemade chocolate syrup...total about 90 calories. It's worth it to me for the one cup. If I was drinking three cups...it wouldn't be worth it to me. I decided to not sacrifice that morning comfort and instead switch to tea for the rest of the day for 15 calories of sugar in each cup.


    Choices have to be made along the way in order to change weight for the long-term.
  • stephie_nyc
    stephie_nyc Posts: 96 Member
    Have the powdered creamer or half and half. I usually account for 40-80 calories (depending on how many cups I have) for my half and half. I can't do a black coffee later in the day but at 6 am I need that fat.
  • tcunbeliever
    tcunbeliever Posts: 8,219 Member
    I use half and half, but very little, which is probably not any less calories that the powder creamer...what is it you want to eliminate in the powdered creamer, the sugar? Maybe something like honey or stevia might work for you? But really, I don't think the amount of sweetener in coffee creamer is likely to have that big an impact on health unless having it is somehow causing blood glucose issues or triggering you to crave sweets later in the day or something beyond just what you are consuming in coffee.
  • Anthem76
    Anthem76 Posts: 81 Member
    edited May 2021
    I use Nido. It's powdered whole milk. It's not low calorie (because it's whole milk), but it tastes good and adds protein. It's also great to take on a trip for oatmeal/cereal. It tastes worlds better than nonfat dry milk. I take it camping for my kids.
  • wi1234567890
    wi1234567890 Posts: 57 Member
    In my opinion there’s nothing wrong with the powdered creamer and it’s the only thing I would put in my coffee. I used to use 2 or 3 tablespoons of powdered creamer in my coffee which added a lot of extra calories to my day as I was drinking 4 to 5 cups every day. Slowly over a period of a month I reduced the amount of creamer and the amount of coffee cups I drank. I now use 1.5 teaspoons of creamer and only drink 2 cups of coffee. My tastebuds got used to the reduced amount of creamer over time and I didn’t feel deprived at all.
  • springlering62
    springlering62 Posts: 8,662 Member
    My fat free half and half is 20 calories for two tablespoons (30gr).

    Silk unsweetened version Cashew /almond milk is 30 calories per cup, and gives a good color, and creamy feel.

    I can put 1/4c skim milk in my Ninja hand pump frother, pump hard for twenty seconds, then give it 25-30 in the microwave, and it yields nearly a full cup of very rich foam, which lasts a long time.

    Jordan’s Skinny Syrups will rock your world. Zero calories, no bad aftertaste, and the only problem is there’s toooooooo many flavors to choose from. I really liked the peanut butter cup in my coffee. Next up is white chocolate, which sounds very tempting, too.
  • davew0000
    davew0000 Posts: 125 Member
    My wife is a big fan of oat milk in coffee. She prefers it to anything else.
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
    cmccardleart wrote: »
    I'm not a complainer and I am good with eating clean and have even conquered my sugar cravings at this point. However, I am addicted to powdered creamer and can't seem to find an alternative that tastes good in my coffee.

    It's the one thing I can't seem to give up and I can't deal with black coffee. What are some good alternatives that you have used?

    Wait - why would it be good for me to give up, what's unclean about it I'm unaware of?

    Or is the quantity?

    If it's more than a teaspoon a cup, perhaps the coffee can be made weaker.
    1 tspn not many calories.
  • penguinmama87
    penguinmama87 Posts: 1,155 Member
    I just use regular half and half, but one thing I've noticed since I began weighing it is that I'm satisfied with less. I usually drink 1 glass of iced coffee every morning and my typical pour of half and half was around 30g before I began measuring, with some wiggle room on either side (that I didn't really know about because I figured it was the same every time!) I'm down to 20g now and it still tastes just as good. :)
  • PAV8888
    PAV8888 Posts: 14,303 Member
    A long time ago, and over a long period of time, I weaned myself from triple triple to black. Had I known back then of unsweetened vanilla cashew milk things might have gone differently. very few calories. a bit too much sodium. good taste. but a bit expensive to buy. I mix in some skim milk powder for things that require the milk proteins to work (say instant pudding mix)... but that's another story.

    That said... what's wrong with your current powder?
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    cmriverside wrote: »
    Yeah, I wouldn't change my coffee too much. I did in the beginning when I was trying to eat 1200 calories. THAT got old real fast.

    I think the trick with coffee is to cut back on the number of cups in general. I went from three a day to one, and I use five ounces of 1% milk and a homemade chocolate syrup...total about 90 calories. It's worth it to me for the one cup. If I was drinking three cups...it wouldn't be worth it to me. I decided to not sacrifice that morning comfort and instead switch to tea for the rest of the day for 15 calories of sugar in each cup.

    Choices have to be made along the way in order to change weight for the long-term.

    I too have one cup of coffee (with H&H, milk, and sugar) before switching to tea, which gets way less dairy and sugar.
  • Speakeasy76
    Speakeasy76 Posts: 961 Member
    I agree with others to just lessen the amount you use over time. I cut myself down to 1 T of creamer (when I could have dairy creamer) in my morning coffee and just accounted for it. That plus a Stevia or sugar-free syrup with a flavored coffee was all I needed. I do realize that a lot of coffee creamers have weird stuff in them and at one point that bothered me, but not anymore.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 34,600 Member
    springlering62 wrote: »
    My fat free half and half is 20 calories for two tablespoons (30gr).

    Silk unsweetened version Cashew /almond milk is 30 calories per cup, and gives a good color, and creamy feel.

    I can put 1/4c skim milk in my Ninja hand pump frother, pump hard for twenty seconds, then give it 25-30 in the microwave, and it yields nearly a full cup of very rich foam, which lasts a long time.

    Jordan’s Skinny Syrups will rock your world. Zero calories, no bad aftertaste, and the only problem is there’s toooooooo many flavors to choose from. I really liked the peanut butter cup in my coffee. Next up is white chocolate, which sounds very tempting, too.

    Another vote for skim milk + frother, feels really indulgent - smooth, creamy, rich-feeling . . . but I fill to the max fill line, about 5oz, for a big mug of coffee, and it's a nice small-cals add to my protein-gram count (round numbers, 6g protein, 60 cals). @springlering62 turned me on to this magical device!

    (Can't follow her on the syrups, personally, though: I don't like my hot coffee sweet, not at all.)

    OP, if the powdered creamer is really tasty and valued to you, I vote that you should consider fitting it in. Nutrition is about overall eating, not just one food; and "clean" is a tangent to either nutrition *or* calorie compliance.

    Just my opinion, obviously, though.
  • age_is_just_a_number
    age_is_just_a_number Posts: 631 Member
    I don’t drink coffee. I drink tea. My husband drinks coffee. We both take our tea/coffee black. No sugar and no cream/milk etc.
    I suggest — cut the amount of creamer you put in your coffee by half or a third. Then a week or two later cut by another half or third. Then again and again until, after 6 or so weeks you don’t need it anymore.
  • Iwannabeapunkrockmom
    Iwannabeapunkrockmom Posts: 61 Member
    I drink tea and just add a splash of vanilla almond milk and that seems to do the trick for me.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    I haven't had powdered creamer since I traveled for business two decades ago. I never liked it. IIRC, it tastes nothing like half & half. In case anyone else was wondering, here are the ingredients for Coffeemate original. I'm not taking a position on whether it is healthy or not, but I can see why some would think it not.

    https://www.goodnes.com/coffeemate/products/fat-free-the-original-powder-coffee-creamer-16-oz-canister/

    CORN SYRUP SOLIDS, HYDROGENATED VEGETABLE OIL (COCONUT AND/OR PALM KERNEL AND/OR SOYBEAN)**, AND LESS THAN 2% OF SODIUM CASEINATE (A MILK DERIVATIVE)***, MONO- AND DIGLYCERIDES, DIPOTASSIUM PHOSPHATE, COLOR ADDED, SODIUM ALUMINOSILICATE, SUGAR, NATURAL AND ARTIFICIAL FLAVOR, ANNATTO COLOR., **Adds a trivial amount of fat. ***Not a source of lactose.
  • natasor1
    natasor1 Posts: 271 Member
    I use Muscle milk protein shake chocolate, cookies n cream, vanila or any other protein shakes. 1 oz of creamer will be only 13 cal, plus it adds some dose of protein more than milk
  • crackon20
    crackon20 Posts: 20 Member
    A nutritionist told me plant or cow based in the coffee. No fake food.
  • neanderthin
    neanderthin Posts: 10,261 Member
    I like unhealthy goat milk. Use it in my latte.
  • springlering62
    springlering62 Posts: 8,662 Member
    Well, skip this one if you oppose “fake food”.

    I cracked open a bottle of Jordan’s Caramel Cream Cheesecake zero calorie syrup this morning. To my utmost surprise and joy, my coffee tasted like a fancy coffee piled high with whipped cream and drizzled with caramel syrup.

    It defies all logic what they can do with fake foods.

    szy4kuc5ii74.jpeg
  • SuzySunshine99
    SuzySunshine99 Posts: 2,989 Member
    crackon20 wrote: »
    A nutritionist told me plant or cow based in the coffee. No fake food.

    What do you consider to be "fake food"?
    I bet a lot of plant based "milks" would qualify.
  • yirara
    yirara Posts: 9,985 Member
    crackon20 wrote: »
    A nutritionist told me plant or cow based in the coffee. No fake food.

    What's wrong with goats milk, or camel milk?
  • Sara3veg
    Sara3veg Posts: 48 Member
    I've experimented with all types of coffee additions and have settled on just reducing the amount of cups per day, like others have also recommended. I'm at one cup in the morning with a splash of whole milk and then 1pkt of sugar.

    If it's an issue for you maybe just reduce the number of cups?
  • lynn_glenmont
    lynn_glenmont Posts: 10,097 Member
    crackon20 wrote: »
    A nutritionist told me plant or cow based in the coffee. No fake food.

    So goat's milk is off the table?
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    cmccardleart wrote: »
    I'm not a complainer and I am good with eating clean and have even conquered my sugar cravings at this point. However, I am addicted to powdered creamer and can't seem to find an alternative that tastes good in my coffee.

    It's the one thing I can't seem to give up and I can't deal with black coffee. What are some good alternatives that you have used?

    This is one of those things where I'd ask myself, in the grand scheme of things is this really an issue that is having some kind of substantial negative impact on my overall nutrition and/or health? Most likely the answer here would be not really...it would be a tiny fraction of the entirety of my nutritional profile. I think people get way to caught up in the minutia of this little thing or that little thing and lose site of the bigger picture. Overall good nutrition happens on a fairly broad scale...not every little thing has to be perfectly 100% "clean" or whatever to have an overall nutritious diet. There are many things I enjoy that don't really add much to my nutritional profile...but I enjoy them and they aren't a detriment either...so there's really no reason to cancel them.

    As to a substitute, I would personally prefer just regular half and half.

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