Raspberry Syrup

Going with the theme of my first post on homemade coffee creamers, here is yet another way to make those recipes down-to-the-bones MIY...  making homemade raspberry syrup instead of using purchased coffee flavoring syrup.

Homemade Raspberry Syrup

 

Makes 2 1/4 cups

• 6 cups raspberries
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup water

1. Combine raspberries, sugar, and water in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat.
2. Cook, stirring occasionally, until raspberries break down slightly and release some of their juice, about 6 minutes. 
3. Remove from heat; let stand for 15 minutes. 
4. Strain mixture through a fine sieve, pressing down on solids to extract as much liquid as possible. 
5. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour.  Syrup can be refrigerated for up to 3 days. 

From Martha Stewart Living, June 2010

Read more at Marthastewart.com: Raspberry Syrup - Martha Stewart Recipes

Sweetened Condensed Milk

The last post about coffee creamers can be even MORE make-it-yourself-ified by making your own sweetened condensed milk to go with the recipes!  Some recipes for this use canned evaporated milk, but to be even more nuts-and-bolts, this recipe doesn't even need that... 

Sweetened Condensed Milk

This recipe will make 1 can's worth - or 14 oz. - of sweetened condensed milk substitute.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup boiling water
• 1 cup non-fat powdered milk
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 3 tablespoons butter (optional)

In a blender or with a hand blender, mix the water and milk powder.  Add other ingredients and blend until smooth - about 30 seconds.  Revel in the fact that you just saved yourself a trip to the store!  :)

~Jessica

P.S.  I just read that sweetened condensed milk can be frozen?  I never have tried this, but that would be handy.

Coffee Creamers

Though the flavored coffee creamers in your grocery store's freezer might be yummy, they are also expensive and reek the tang of mysteriously-unnamed artificial flavors, preservatives, and hydrogenated oils (i.e. transfats)... not to mention lots of other complex chemicals and additives.

In the spirit of simplifying life while still embracing yummy coffee flavors, here are some recipes for homemade coffee creamers that I featured at a coffee party this weekend with a few friends...

These fit perfectly in pint jars, which also add to their aesthetic appeal.

Each individual flavor contains half of a can (7 oz.) of sweetened condensed milk and 3/4 cup of 2% milk.  You can also customize them to contain whole milk, skim, or nonfat condensed milk.

Add the following to your milk base to make each flavor:

French Vanilla ~ 1 tablespoon pure (not the fake stuff) vanilla extract.  You can also add another tablespoon of vanilla coffee syrup to make it even more vanilla-y.

Amaretto ~1/2 teaspoon pure almond extract and 1/4 teaspoon pure orange extract

Chocolate Almond ~ 1 1/2 tablespoon cocoa powder and 1/2 teaspoon pure almond extract

Chocolate Truffle Mint ~ 1/2 teaspoon pure peppermint extract and 1/2 tablespoons cocoa powder

Chocolate Raspberry ~ 1 tablespoon raspberry syrup and 1 tablespoon cocoa powder

Cinnamon Strudel ~ 1/2 tablespoon cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract, and 1/2 teaspoon almond extract

~Happy Sipping,
Jessica