I am a morning person more than I am a night owl, but I occasionally struggle to get out of bed in the morning. One of the main things that lures me out of a deep slumber is the promise of a fresh cup of coffee. Sometimes I drink my coffee black and other times I like to jazz it up by adding in creamer, especially if I am making iced coffee. When I am on a creamer kick, I usually use a vanilla version from the grocery store. However, I’ve been wanting to make my own version for a long time now and I finally decided it was time a week ago.

I don’t know why I didn’t do this earlier. It really can’t get much easier as there are only 3 ingredients in the creamer I made and there is minimal prep work. Plus I feel a little better drinking my sassed up (is that a verb?) coffee with minimal preservatives.

This recipe is very adaptable and would be great with cinnamon, almond extract, peppermint extract, chocolate sauce- the list goes on and on.

Happy Monday, everyone. I hope you are enjoying your cup of coffee as much as I am.

Vanilla Bean Creamer

Yield: About 3 cups

Ingredients

• 3 cups half and half
• 1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise and seeds scraped
• 2 tablespoons sugar

Directions

Pour the half and half and sugar in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add in the vanilla bean seeds and vanilla bean pod and allow the mixture to come to a low boil, stirring occasionally until sugar is dissolved.

Remove from heat and allow mixture to steep for 30 minutes. Pour the creamer through a sieve to remove the pod and other larger pieces. Store in an  airtight bottle in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.

Source: Lolly’s Sweet & Savory Treats